Connect with us

The Nebraska men’s basketball team erased an early 12-point deficit and behind a big second half, the Huskers posted their first postseason victory in 11 years Wednesday night with an 80-76 win over Butler in a first-round NIT matchup at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

The Huskers (19-16) trailed midway through the second half before a game-changing 14-2 run turned a one-point deficit into a 12-point lead. Nebraska then made enough plays down the stretch, winning by four points after Butler cut the lead to one with 1:31 remaining.

With the win – Nebraska first postseason victory since a 67-48 win over Charlotte in the first round of the 2008 NIT – the Huskers advanced to the second round to face TCU in Fort Worth, Texas Sunday night at 8:30 p.m. (CT). Nebraska improved to 16-1 all-time at home in the NIT, and the Huskers are 3-0 against Big East teams this season. Butler, which was making its 13th postseason appearance in the last 14 years, saw its season end with a 16-17 record.

Isaiah Roby paced the Huskers with a career-high 28 points, and he just missed a double-double after grabbing a game-high eight rebounds. James Palmer added 23 points, while Glynn Watson Jr. scored 17 points, as Nebraska’s big three combined for 68 of NU’s 80 points. Tanner Borchardt and Johnny Trueblood added six points each to account for Nebraska’s other 12 points. The Huskers’ 80 points were their most in eight postseason games, dating back to the 2004 NIT, when Nebraska scored 83 points in a one-point loss at Hawaii.

Sean McDermott had 14 points for Butler, which had four players in double figures. Paul Jorgensen chipped in 12 points, while Jordan Tucker and Aaron Thompson each scored 11 points, with Thompson adding a career-high 12 assists for his first career double-double.

Butler scored 14 of the game’s first 16 points to jump out to a 12-point lead less than five minutes into the contest. But Nebraska responded with an immediate 7-0 run of its own. Roby scored all seven points during the spurt, as the junior scored Nebraska’s first 11 points of the game.

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

More in Men's Hoops