Nebraska Basketball Game Day: Western Illinois

Nebraska Cornhuskers (0-0) vs Western Illinois Leathernecks (0-0)

Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2021 – 7 p.m.

Pinnacle Bank Arena

TV: None

Radio: Husker Sports Network

Internet: BTN+ (subscription required)

1. Attack the glass

There’s no doubt that rebounding will be Nebraska’s most significant weakness all season, and tonight will be another early challenge in that regard.

Western Illinois boasts three starters listed at 6-7, 6-10, and 6-10, which will test the Huskers on the glass all night.

But being a more competent rebounding team goes beyond just getting more production out of the frontcourt.

Head coach Fred Hoiberg has mentioned a couple of times now that NU’s guards needed to be more physical in initiating first contact after a shot to prevent long opponent offensive rebounds.

There is no higher priority on Nebraska’s to-do list right now after giving up a whopping 35 offensive boards over its two exhibition games.

2. Keep on shooting

There might not be a more notable area of improvement on Nebraska’s roster this season than with its all-around 3-point shooting.

The Huskers showed how dominant they could be when multiple shooters got hot at the same time in the exhibition win over Colorado. They hit 12-of-27 from behind the arc and had six players with at least one made three.

Nebraska shot an impressive 47 percent from downtown in the two exhibitions and averaged 11.5 makes per game.

When NU is shooting like that and has Alonzo Verge Jr. quarterbacking the offense, it becomes a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses.

3. Set the tone in transition

Nebraska’s roster is loaded with depth and athleticism, and those two assets need to thrive in Hoiberg’s fast-paced offensive system.

With playmakers like Verge and Trey McGowens running the break and shooters at nearly every position, the Huskers have the potential to be lethal in transition.

However, the key to being able to run is getting stops and defensive rebounding. The better NU is on the glass, the more opportunities to turn games into track meets.

On the other end, Nebraska needs to continue to do a good job of getting back on defense and making opponents work for every possession. There were a couple of breakdowns in that regard when Colorado started chipping away in the second half.

Nebraska (-16) 81, Western Illinois 62

Robin’s season record: 0-0

vs. the spread: 0-0