Northwestern beats Nebraska, securing second round spot in B1G Tournament
The Northwestern Wildcats put an end to the Nebraska Cornhuskers' three-game winning streak, advancing to the second round of the Big Ten Tournament.
Julian Roper II landed the first field goal of the game after the ‘Cats had a rocky start with four missed shots from deep. From there, momentum shifted and Ty Berry followed with another three. With Northwestern taking control from deep, Nebraska countered from inside with three consecutive layups.
Averaging less than ten turnovers per game, Northwestern stunned with ten in the first half, four of which came from standout guard, Boo Buie. Heating up, Nebraska went on a seven-point scoring run with about five minutes left in the first half. Huskers senior, Alonzo Verge Jr. took control of the court with nine points, five rebounds, and five assists in the first, ending it with a driving layup.
The ‘Cats had their work cut out for them heading into the second half, trailing 14 points behind the Huskers, 25-39.
Coming off an explosive senior night game, Pete Nance chipped in a three at the start of the second half and Northwestern began its comeback tour. With about 15 minutes left in the second, Berry kickstarted the 'Cats’ 14-point scoring run with a layup. But, it was Buie’s three-point jumper, forcing a Nebraska timeout, that replenished the 'Cats’ energy going into the bottom half of the second.
"If I was on any other team I would have been dead in the water," said Buie on his first-half performance. "But my teammates kept instilling positivity in my head, so it allowed me to come out in the second half and play a lot better."
After Nebraska’s timeout, Verge Jr. picked up two layups, attempting to reinstate the team’s first-half mentality. But, Northwestern kept their momentum with two consecutive field goals from Nance and Buie giving the team its’ first lead since the first half.
"We got pretty stagnant just holding the ball for just like two seconds longer," said Verge Jr. on Nebraska's second-half energy shift. "When they got in the zone, I should have got into offense faster."
With 1:38 left, the 'Cats led by four, its largest lead of the game. Huskers freshman, Bryce McGowens slipped in a layup to take the lead down to two. And, with a personal foul on Ryan Young, Verge made two free throws to tie the game, 69-69.
In the end, it was Chase Audige and Buie's free throws from personal fouls on Derrick Walker and Kobe Webster respectively to nail down the win.
Buie ended with 16 points and three assists, and Nance, whose collegiate basketball career will live to see another day, sealed 14 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists.
Moving on to the second round of the tournament, the Wildcats will face off against the Iowa Hawkeyes, March 10 at 1 p.m. Coach Chris Collins said he has faith in his team, even though Northwestern fell to Iowa just last week.
"[Iowa] drilled us, but we had a lot of guys who were really down and out," said Collins. "Hopefully, we can get some rest and have some energy because I think they're playing as well as anybody in the country right now."
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