Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Nebraska basketball: Huskers knock off Hoosiers for third road win of season

Nebraska 70 Indiana 60

Player of the Game:
Shavon Shields- I really hate to just cop out and give this to Shields, but he leaves me no choice. The guy is without a doubt Nebraska’s team leader. Whenever the Huskers needed a bucket Wednesday night, he delivered, scoring 11 of his 17 in the second half. He controlled most of the game with his ability to get to the rim. He also added 8 rebounds to his stat line. Benny Parker and Walter Pitchford both could have won this award, but Shields just beat them out. I wrote on Tuesday that Shields was the key to Nebraska’s success. He proved me right Wednesday. Huge night for him.

Key Stat:
Turnovers- Nebraska had seven of them in the first half, but only committed two in the second. That was the difference in the game. The Huskers took good shots, shot 45 percent from the floor and protected the basketball. That’s the formula for winning road games. Indiana, on the other hand, turned the ball over six times in the second half with many coming at key moments. Benny Parker made a couple layups off steals that were huge momentum swings for Nebraska. Got to protect the rock if you want to win, especially in the Big Ten.

Play of the Game:
Pitchford had a huge start to the game, but his three with just under two minutes to go sealed the win for Nebraska. Referees reviewed it to see if his foot was on the line, but didn’t have enough evidence to overturn the original call. This was a huge momentum swing for the Huskers as the Indiana crowd seemed to be taking control. Pitchford finished with 17 points on the night, his biggest performance since the Michigan State win.  

Other Notes:
-Nebraska completes its first-ever season sweep of Indiana and first win ever in Bloomington. NU was 0-5 all-time in Bloomington before tonight. It is the first time NU has swept two conference foes since 1998-99.
-Nebraska improves to 10-7 in the Big Ten, its first winning conference record since 1998-99. It is also the 11th time Nebraska has won double-digit conference games
-Nebraska can finish no worse than fifth in the final Big Ten standings
-Nebraska has won nine of its last 11 games dating back to Jan. 26.
-Walter Pitchford had 17 points, the ninth time in 11 games he has been in double figures. His 17 points was one off his career high of 18 set at Michigan State.
-Nebraska improves to 8-2 in the Big Ten when Shields scores in double figures. He had 17 Wednesday.

Thanks for reading and send me your reaction to Nebraska’s win.

Reach me at: award6344@gmail.com

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