5 Things to Know About Purdue's Next Opponent — Nebraska Cornhuskers
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A marquee Big Ten showdown is on the schedule Tuesday night, as No. 12 Purdue travels to Lincoln for an important matchup with No. 9 Nebraska. This game is important for both teams in terms of the conference race, as well as NCAA Tournament seeding.
Pinnacle Bank Arena has been a tough venue for Purdue in previous seasons, and this will be the best Nebraska team the Boilermakers have faced. It should make for an interesting evening in Lincoln.
Here are a few things to know about the Huskers before Tuesday night's matchup.
Quality three-point shooters
Nebraska isn't shy with its three-point attempts this season, averaging 30.7 per contest, which ranks 15th nationally and third in the Big Ten. The Huskers are hitting at an efficient clip, too, converting at a 35.7% clip. This isn't a team with one or two quality three-point shooters, either; nearly everyone can knock down shots from behind the arc.
Pryce Sandfort is among the nation's best three-point shooters. His 3.5 makes per game isthe most in the Big Ten and is 11th nationally. He's also connecting at a 40.6% rate and is one of four Huskers hitting at a 37% or higher rate this season. Freshman Braden Frager (37%), senior Jamarques Lawrence (38.9%) and Sam Hoiberg (41.4%) have also been effective behind the line.
Senior big man Rienk Mast is also a 32.4% three-point shooter, a great average for a 6-foot-10 forward. Nebraska is loaded with shooters and they're not afraid to pull the trigger.
Third-best defensive efficiency rating in Big Ten
Defense has really been a strength for Fred Hoiberg's team this season. The Huskers have the 11th-best defensive efficiency rate in KenPom this season (94.6), which is third in the Big Ten.
Nebraska is well connected on the defensive end, forcing teams into tough shots and longer possessions. Opponents are shooting just 40% from the field and 30.2% from three-point range this season. Both those percentages rank among the top 50 nationally.
Sam Hoiberg might be one of the most underrated defenders in the country, averaging 2.0 steals per game. He applies pressure to opposing guards and Nebraska's overall length has caused problems for teams all season.
Mast creates matchup problems
Purdue has struggled with pick-and-pop bigs this season, and it faces one of the best in Mast. The 6-foot-10 forward is an efficient shooter at every level, making 46.1% of his field goal attempts and shooting over 32% from three. He's also an 83% free throw shooter.
Mast can score in the post or step behind the three-point line. In Nebraska's win over Michigan State, he connected on 6-of-13 shots from three-point range, but he hasn't been nearly as efficient since that early January game from long range.
Still, Mast is a complete player who always seems to make the right move. Along with 14.7 points, he's also averaging 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game.
Know your role
I don't know if there's a way to quantify this, but what has led Nebraska to so much success this season is its connectedness. Everyone on the team plays a specific role, and it's rare that guys are out of place.
Although there are some new faces in the crowd, this is a team with six seniors and four juniors on the roster. It's a group that has played a lot of basketball, and their experience and leadership shows up on a nightly basis.
Mast is a do-it-all big, Sandfort and Lawrence are catch-and-shoot threats and Sam Hoiberg is the glue guy. Defensively, everyone is in the right place at the right time.
Best season in program history
Entering Tuesday night's game against Purdue, Nebraska is 21-2, the best start in program history. The Huskers began the year 20-0 and had the nation's longest winning streak, dating back to last season's Crown Tournament.
Nebraska dropped consecutive games to Michigan and Illinois, but were short-handed on the road against Michigan — playing without Mast and Frager — and still nearly escaped Ann Arbor with a victory.
The Huskers were ranked as high as No. 5 in the nation, the highest in program history. They're a lock to make the NCAA Tournament and have entered some Final Four conversations.
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Dustin Schutte is the publisher of Purdue Boilermakers on SI and has spent more than a decade working in sports journalism. His career began in 2013, when he covered Big Ten football. He remained in that role for eight years before working at On SI to cover the Boilermakers. Dustin graduated from Manchester University in Indiana in 2010, where he played for the men's tennis team.
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