Defensively, Nebraska did what it needed to do and then some to pull out an upset in its Big Ten opener at No. 9 Wisconsin on Tuesday.
The problem was the Huskers’ offense started cold and only got progressively worse as the night wore on. As a result, another close game turned into a blowout loss for NU, 67-53.
Despite shooting just 33 percent from the field and 9-of-17 (52.9%) from the free-throw line, NU led 33-32 with just over 14 minutes left to play. But it followed that by going the next eight minutes without making a basket, sparking a 16-0 Badger run from which it would not recover.
Dalano Banton had a team-high 15 points, eight rebounds, and four assists in 34 minutes of work, but it wasn’t enough to combat Wisconsin’s 50-percent shooting in the second half.
The Huskers fell to 4-4 overall and 0-1 in conference play. They haven’t won a Big Ten game since beating Iowa on Jan. 7 and haven’t won a league road game since Jan. 14, 2019, at No. 25 Indiana.
The game started as a defensive slugfest, as Nebraska led 2-0 after the first 4:53 of play, with the teams combining to shoot 1-of-12 from the field and 0-for-8 from 3-point range.
Nebraska wasn’t much better, making just five of its first 17 shots, but it was able to draw out an 8-0 run and go up 13-5 with eight minutes left in the half.
The Huskers lead got up to 10 on an And-1 by Trey McGowens, but after 15 minutes of doing nothing offensively, the Badgers came back to end the half. After starting the night 1-of-17 shooting, UW made eight of its next 13 attempts and closed on a 14-3 run to take a 25-24 halftime lead.
A 3-pointer by McGowens reclaimed the lead for NU at 33-32 just over five minutes into the second half, but Wisconsin again came right back with a 16-0 rally to take the game over.
After that three by McGowens, Nebraska went more than eight minutes without making a field goal and fell behind by as many as 16 points during that stretch.
The Badgers stayed in control the rest of the way, as their lead would reach as high as 18 before all was said and done.
Teddy Allen finished with 11 points before fouling out, while McGowens scored 10 with six rebounds. Brad Davison led Wisconsin with 15 points and seven assists, and Micah Potter posted a double-double with 10 points and 11 boards.
Nebraska will return to action on Christmas Day for a 5 p.m. home game vs. No. 19 Michigan on Big Ten Network.
1. Another collapse when the pressure was on
Nearly six minutes into the second half, Nebraska had a one-point lead and every chance in the world to pull off a stunning upset.
However, just like its previous three losses this season, the game fell apart on the Huskers in the blink of an eye.
Nebraska led Nevada by 10 with less than 10 minutes to play and lost. It led Georgia Tech by one with just under seven minutes left and lost. The Huskers were only down four at Creighton with 15 minutes to go and lost.
NU has led at the second-half under-16 media timeout in six of its eight games this year, yet it is now only 4-4.
Shooting became NU’s worst enemy as the stakes got higher on Tuesday night. While it only turned the ball over nine times with 12 assists, the Huskers could not buy a bucket when they needed one the most.
Even worse, they couldn’t even capitalize on the easy points at the free-throw line, going just 9-for-17 from the charity stripe. Wisconsin was a perfect 15-of-15 from the line, including making all 11 attempts in the second half.
Head coach Fred Hoiberg said after the game that he felt his team was “right there” in terms of getting its shooting going. It sure wasn’t going on Tuesday, and won’t Nebraska win in this league until it does.
2. The defense couldn’t have been much better
Hoiberg could not have scripted a better defensive effort from his group than what Nebraska gave against Wisconsin.
The Badgers made one basket in the game’s first 12:41 and had just 25 points at halftime, the lowest opponent first-half total for NU all season.
The Huskers had six blocks and forced 11 turnovers while holding UW to 8-of-26 shooting from behind the arc. Wisconsin came in shooting 44 percent from 3-point range as a team and leading the Big Ten with just 8.1 turnovers committed per game.
The Badgers’ 67 points marked their second-lowest total of the season.
The struggles on offense eventually started taking their toll on NU’s defensive effort, which led to the second-half collapse.
But if Nebraska can give that type of performance on defense more often than not, it’s going to have a chance in almost every game it plays this season.
3. Mayen’s confidence seems shaky
The good news was that Lat Mayen, who had disappeared in a few games earlier this season, was as aggressive offensively as we’ve seen yet.
The bad news, though, was that he ended up shooting just 2-for-8 from the field and 0-of-6 from 3-point range to finish with only five points in 29 minutes.
The 6-foot-9 forward is a player Hoiberg has been excited about since Day 1, and the coach has noted time and again that Mayen was one of NU’s best perimeter shooters.
But after missing all six of his threes at Wisconsin, Mayen is now 11-of-40 (27.5%) from behind the arc on the year. Over the past four games, he’s 1-for-14.
Again, it was positive to see Mayen be on the attack, especially after shooting the ball just once at Creighton. But he desperately needs to see the ball go through the net again to get his swagger back up to where it was at the start of the season.
Hoiberg said he still had total faith that Mayen would bounce back and start hitting shots again, but Tuesday night showed a player who didn’t exactly share that same confidence.
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