Nebraska Hoops Big Ten Tournament Game Day: Indiana
After earning its third double-bye since joining the Big Ten, Nebraska opens its 2024 conference tournament tonight against Indiana.
Here is what you need to know going into the Huskers’ third meeting with the Hoosiers at the Target Center in Minneapolis…
Who, What, Where, When
Nebraska Cornhuskers (22-9, 12-8) vs. Indiana Hooisers (18-13, 10-10)
Friday, Mar. 15, 2024 – appx 8:00 p.m. CT
Target Center – Minneapolis, Minn. (20,000)
TV: Big Ten Network
Radio: Huskers Radio Network
Internet: B1G+
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Nebraska projected starters
Brice WilliamsGJr.6-7/213Finished with 10 points, 3 rebounds, and a team-high 4 assists over 34 minutes in Nebraska’s road win over Michigan.Keisei Tominaga GSr.6-2/175Named second-team All-Big Ten after averaging a team-high 15.1 ppg during league play. Scored 30 points at Michigan.Juwan GaryFJr.6-7/221Scored 9 points on 4-6 shooting with 7 rebounds for a plus/minus of 18 in Nebraska’s win at Michigan.Josiah AllickFJr.6-8/231Averaged 7.0 ppg on 59% shooting and 4.8 rpg in Big Ten play. Named NU’s Big Ten sportsmanship award nominee.Rienk MastFJr.6-10/248 Third-team All-Big Ten selection. Ranked among the conference leaders in rebounding (11th), assists (13th), assist-to-turnover ratio (12th), and blocks (0.7, 22nd).
Indiana projected starters
Gabe CuppsGFr.6-2/175Made two of Indiana’s three 3-pointers in Indiana’s win over Penn State on Thursday night.Xavier JohnsonGSr.6-3/200Did not play in the last meeting vs. Nebraska (injury). Had 4 points, 5 assists, and 6 rebounds in 37 minutes vs. PSU.Mackenzie Mgbako FFr.6-8/217Named the Co-Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Averaged 12.6 ppg and led the Hoosiers with 49 3-pointers this season.Malik ReneauFSo.6-9/233 Scoring 15.7 ppg and ranks third in the Big Ten in field goal percentage (57.0%) along with 5.9 rpg and 2.7 apg.Kel’el WareCSo.7-0/242 Third-team All-Big Ten selection. Leads IU with 16.1 ppg and ranks second in the league with 9.8 rpg and fifth with 1.5 bpg.
3 keys to victory
Come out running
One of the biggest luxuries Nebraska has in this matchup is that it’s coming off a four-day break since its last game at Michigan. Indiana will have finished its 61-59 win over Penn State roughly 22 hours before tonight’s tip. Not only are the Hoosiers playing their second game in as many days, but they leaned heavily on a six-man rotation to get past PSU. Four of those players saw at least 32 minutes on Thursday night, while the other two played 27 and 24. Much of that was because starting guard Trey Galloway missed the game with a knee injury. The odds are that he’ll be out again tonight. The Huskers will have significantly fresher legs in this one, and they need to take advantage of that from the opening tip to wear IU down.
Value the basketball
When Nebraska rolled Indiana in an 86-70 win in Lincoln, ball control was the story. The Huskers turned 19 Hoosier giveaways (13 off steals) into a 27-6 edge in points off turnovers. NU won the rematch in Bloomington because it was again more efficient with the basketball. Nebraska ended up with just seven turnovers in the win, which was its lowest total in Big Ten play. IU only turned it over 10 times, but the Huskers capitalized on them for a 15-6 advantage in points of TOs. It wasn’t just that NU didn’t turn it over; it also dished out 19 assists on 31 made baskets. That marked its second-highest total in Big Ten play and its third-highest this season. If Nebraska replicates those efforts, it will have a great chance tonight.
Dominate the arc
Indiana has been one of the league’s worst 3-point shooting teams all year. The Hoosiers averaged a conference-low 5.1 makes per game during the regular season. With 158 made threes to 263 by their opponents, they have been out-scored by 315 from behind the arc. That held true in both of IU’s losses to Nebraska. The Huskers hit 12 and 14 threes against Indiana in the first two meetings, while Indiana made 13 total. The Hoosiers will try to pound the ball inside to their talented bigs on most possessions. If NU can shoot to its potential and regularly trade threes for twos, it could be the difference in the game.
Quotable
“Listen, this is the fun part. You’ve got to enjoy the ride. It’s a stressful time, more so for the coaches, but these guys have to enjoy the position that they’ve put themselves in. They’re going to remember what they’re about to embark on for the rest of their lives… It’s what you prepare for. It’s why you do this, why you play this game, and why you coach in this profession: to have the opportunity to do something special like we’re about to come upon.”
-Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg on his messgae to the Huskers entering postseason play.
Prediction
Nebraska 71, Indiana 64
Robin’s season record: 21-10
Vs. the spread: 14-17
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