Nebraska Hoops Game Day: Michigan State
Here is what you need to know going into Nebraska’s Big Ten Conference home opener tonight against Michigan State. Having lost two straight games after a 7-0 start, the Huskers need to get back on track.
Who, What, Where, When
Nebraska Cornhuskers (7-2, 0-1) vs. Michigan State Spartans (4-4, 0-1)
Sunday, Dec. 10, 2023 – 5:30 p.m. CT
Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,500)
TV: Big Ten Network
Radio: Huskers Radio Network
Internet: B1G+
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Nebraska projected starters
Jamarques LawrenceGSo.6-3/183Had a season-high 16 points and was 3-of-5 on 3-pointers at Minnesota. However, he committed 7 turnovers to 1 assist in 33 minutes.Keisei TominagaGSr.6-2/175Held to a season-low 4 points and went 0-5 from the field in the loss to Minnesota.Brice WilliamsGJr.6-7/213Scored 17 of his team-high 18 points in the first half at Minnesota but shot 0-3 with 4 turnovers after halftime.Josiah AllickFSr.6-8/231Has scored 9 points on 3-12 shooting with 6 turnovers over the past two games.Rienk MastFJr.6-10/248 Finished with a season-low 4 points on 2-7 shooting at Minnesota. Added 5 rebounds and 3 assists.
Michigan State projected starters
Tyson WalkerGSr.6-1/185Ranks third in the Big Ten with 20.7 ppg. Preseason All-Big Ten selection named to multiple 2023-24 national award watch lists.A.J. HoggardGSr.6-4/210Preseason All-Big Ten selection. Averages 10.1 ppg and ranks fourth in the conference with 4.5 apg. Jaden AtkinsGSo.6-4/190Averages 9.6 points. 5.1 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game.Mady Sissoko CSr.6-9/250 Scoring 5.6 ppg and is second on the team with 5.6 rpg. Shooting 92.3% on free throws this season.Carson Cooper CSo.6-11/240 Averaging just 3.4 ppg but leads MSU in rebounding (6.0 rpg) and blocked shots (1.3 bpg).
3 keys to victory
Handle adversity
Arguably, the most disappointing aspect of Nebraska’s two losses this week was how poorly the Huskers handled their first real taste of big-game adversity. Creighton got hot and blew the doors off NU. While that at least may have been somewhat understandable, the second-half collapse at Minnesota was not. Nebraska led by as many as 17 and ended up with an 11-point loss. That’s because as soon as the Gophers got some momentum going after halftime, the Huskers immediately fell apart. If this season is going to be anything close to what NU had hoped, its veteran leaders must step up. Adversity will hit in every game the rest of the way, starting tonight against a Michigan State team equally desperate to bounce back.
Be stronger at the rim.
Nebraska’s 3-point shooting has been rough the last two outings, going a combined 7-of-40 from behind the arc (17.5%). But just as concerning has been how ineffective – outside of one half at Minnesota – NU has been at the rim lately. The Huskers have had 35 shots blocked through their first nine games (3.9 bpg). After getting stuffed a season-high seven times in Minneapolis, Nebraska has been blocked 5.0 times over the past four games. Things won’t get any easier in that regard tonight, as Michigan State ranks fifth in the Big Ten with 4.75 bpg. Three Spartans (Cooper Carson, 1.3, 11th; Coen Carr, 1.0, 16th; and Mady Sissoko, 0.9, 19th) rank in the league’s top 20 for blocks.
Value the basketball
A significant reason for Nebraska’s second-half implosion at Minnesota was it stopped playing with the necessary effort, fight, and focus it did in the first half. The Huskers suddenly got lazy in all the simple-yet-critical aspects that helped them build a 17-point advantage. They started trying to catch passes and grab rebounds with one hand instead of two. Their defensive close-outs on 3-point shooters got lazy, as did their passing in the half-court. As a result, NU turned it over a season-high 18 times, including 12 in the second half, and got out-rebounded 21-12 after the break. Michigan State is an OK rebounding and 3-point shooting team, but it takes good care of the basketball (1.53 assist/turnover ratio). Nebraska isn’t good enough to take possessions for granted.
Quotable
“Some people have it naturally. Some people gotta breed it. Some people gotta focus on it. I feel like, right now, we’ve just got to focus on it. We have it because we’ve showed it. But we’ve got to bring it out consistently, because consistency is everything.”
Junior guard Brice Williams on Nebraska needed to develop a “killer mentality” this season.
Prediction
Michigan State 70, Nebraska (+3.5) 66
Robin’s season record: 7-2
Vs. the spread: 5-4
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