'Sheer Joy' for Nebraska Women's Basketball, Amy Williams After Snapping Losing Skid

Nebraska women's basketball and coach Amy Williams finally snapped their losing skid Sunday, and the initial emotion that took over the team was not relief - it was jubilation.

"Just sheer joy to watch them celebrate that win after all the struggles that we have been facing," Williams said Tuesday on the Huskers Radio Network's "Sports Nightly" program. "The pride that I felt, just looking in their faces. Just proud of the way that they've continued to fight through it all. For me, it was just happiness for them to celebrate that win."

Williams said she hopes the 66-65 win at Washington "opens the floodgates" for the Huskers after a losing skid spanning six games from Feb. 1 through Feb. 19. Five of those losses camge against teams in the current Associated Press top 25.

Oregon’s Janiyah Williams, center, shoots a 3-point shot over Nebraska’s Jessica Petrie during the second half | Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"That's one of the positives of a [West Coast] trip like that, there is a lot of together times. There wasn't a lot of times to sulk or go off to our own or anything like that. We had a tough loss - we felt like we were competitive [against Oregon]... I thought our kids kind of leaned into each other and just stayed together and stayed focused."

Williams said the team did "just enough to get over the hump" at Washington as the Huskers forced 17 turnovers but only recovered four offensive boards to be out-rebounded by the Huskies 43-24. In the end, Britt Prince's late three-pointer was the difference-maker for the Big Red. The Huskers' coach recognized the Elkhorn North grad's confidence growing as the game wore on in Washington.

"I thought Britt was playing aggressive-minded and really wanted the ball in her hands to make plays. She had showed that throughout the game, so that's always a great place for our team to be when she has that mentality going," Williams said.

Britt Prince's step-back three-pointer in the closing seconds gave Nebraska a 66-65 win at Washington. | Nebraska Athletics

"I honestly felt like 'That's good' [when Prince shot the ball]. To be honest, we said, 'We can go for two here. If you have an alley to the basket - and she had done such a great job of getting to the basket - or we could go for a win,'" Williams said on the play design. "Britt, I think she was thinking, 'Let me get to the basket right here.' It had been very successful for her all game. When the defender got on her heels, she just made the right basketball play."

Williams said she's seen the sophomore "make that shot a million times," giving the coach the confidence to trust her 2024-25 All-Big Ten Freshman team selection to knock down the game-winning play. Prince has proven that trust again this season, adding nearly four more points per game than her freshman season while improving on all her shooting categories.

Despite the win at Washington, Nebraska recognizes there are still plenty of warts on a team that had more than just NCAA Tournament aspirations near the midpoint of its season a few weeks ago. Since the turn into February, the Huskers have gone from a near-lock to make the women's tournament to potentially the 'Last Team In' according to ESPN's latest metrics. ESPN currently has the Huskers listed as an 11 seed in the Louisville region, a sharp drop from its No. 5 projected seeding rating at the end of December.

Nebraska coach Amy Williams. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

"I think we need to stay exactly where we were at. That is figuring out where we need to get better. We were able to get over the hump and win that game at Washington, but we still did not do the job that we need to do - or want to do - on the boards. Something that we know if we want to beat Rutgers on Saturday, we're going to have to do a better job of that," Williams said.

The Huskers rank 197th nationally in rebounding margin, barely passing the neutral mark. The Huskers have nabbed 925 rebounds and allowed 923.

Despite the frustration and headaches of a long losing streak to talented teams, Williams sees the growth of a young program budding through.

Nebraska guard Kennadi Williams makes a contested layup against Creighton. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

"I think we're really growing. We're seeing great growth. Players like Amiyah Hargrove - several players that are continuing to gain confidence. Petra Bozan has started to figure some things out and is finding ways to contribute," Williams said. "The growth we are seeing out of some of the young players in the program has been positive, but the sense of urgency that you can feel from our seniors is real. That's something we're really tapping into and leaning hard on."

Nebraska will honor four seniors Saturday when the regular season wraps up against Rutgers: Hailey Weaver, Allison Weidner, Callin Hake and Eliza Maupin.

Fortunately, Nebraska's metrics favor the Big Red for more than just a Big Ten Conference Tournament appearance. Williams noted the Huskers are in a "good position" in the NET rankings and the "wins above the bubble" national metric.

"We've done some things in a very, very challenging and tough conference to be competitive and to show offensive efficiency and a lot of the things that matter for postseason success," Williams said. "From our standpoint as a team, we're just keeping our focus on what we can control, and that is the game that is in front of us."

Nebraska wraps up its regular season Saturday at Pinnacle Bank Arena against a Rutgers team that has lost nine in a row heading into a game Wednesday night against Indiana. The Huskers are getting "rested and recovered" during the program's midweek bye ahead of Saturday's game and the conference tournament.

Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Amy Williams. | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Despite their record (9-18,1-15 Big Ten), Williams called the Scarlet Knights a "dangerous, dangerous team." She said Nebraska expects to use a smaller lineup to contend against Rutgers' size defensively, and she noted the offensive shooting threats that the team travels with.

"Its a team that we know we're going to have to play 40 minutes of Husker basketball," Williams said.

Nebraska tips off against Rutgers at 1 p.m. CST Saturday at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Television coverage will be provided by B1G+, with radio coverage on the Huskers Radio Network.

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