FIRST HALF ANALYSIS:
Pryce Sandfort came out like he did when the Huskers played Illinois in Champaign back in December. Nebraska had to make a lineup change due to Berke Buyuktuncel out with an illness. Given the fact that Fred Hoiberg has only been using a 7-man rotation lately, that was going to test the Husker depth early. Sandfort was doing his level best to keep pace with the entire Nittany Lions team. Penn State went on a 7+ minute scoring drought, not scoring between the 5-minute and 12-minute mark.
Penn State had plenty of turnover issues during that drought, and Nebraska would open up a double-digit lead. Braden Frager and Cale Jacobsen both picked up 2 fouls in the half, leading to the introductions of Leo Curtis and Jared Garcia. Garcia was doing some work on the glass, something that has been sorely lacking the last few games for Nebraska. Nebraska was comfortable most of the half and took a 38-20 lead into the half.
FIRST HALF STATS:
Penn State shot 8-24 for 33% from the floor. They went 1-8 for 13% from deep and 3-5 for 60% from the free-throw line. The Nittany Lions collected 17 rebounds, 4 of which were offensive. Penn State had 11 turnovers to just 4 assists. 12 of their points came in the paint.
The Nittany Lions were led by Josh Reed, who had 8 points. Ivan Juric led the way with 6 rebounds. 4 different Nittany Lions had 1 assist.
Nebraska shot 14-31 for 45% from the floor. They went 7-16 for 44% from deep and 3-5 for 60% from the free-throw line. The Huskers collected 18 rebounds, 6 of which were offensive. Nebraska had 10 assists to 5 turnovers. Nebraska scored 12 points off of turnovers.
The Huskers were led by Pryce Sandfort, who had 20 points. Jared Garcia had 6 rebounds off the bench to lead Nebraska. Jamarques Lawrence had 4 assists to pace the Huskers.
SECOND HALF ANALYSIS:
Nebraska was pretty comfortable throughout the entire second half. The Huskers used a 9-0 run to push the lead to 22. Pryce Sandfort, who had 20 in the first half, only had 2 in the opening 10 minutes of the second half. That was alright, as Sam Hoiberg worked his way into his first career double-double. Sandfort would finish with a career high 33 points in the end, but needed just 1 rebound to get a double-double of his own.
He had 6 minutes to do it but couldn’t find one. Ivan Juric was about the best thing for Penn State, as he had a double-double of his own. Penn State would not cut the lead any closer than 15 points, and Nebraska eased its way into its 23rd victory.
FINAL STATS AND THOUGHTS:
Penn State shot 24-57 for 42% from the floor. They went 4-20 for 20% from deep and 12-17 for 71% from the free-throw line. The Nittany Lions collected 33 rebounds, 10 of which were offensive. Penn State had 15 turnovers to 13 assists, and had 36 points in the paint.
The Nittany Lions were led by Ivan Juric, who had 13 points and 10 rebounds. Kayden Mingo also contributed 13 points and 6 assists. Josh Reed had 11 points and 5 rebounds.
Nebraska shot 32-62 for 52% from the floor. They went 14-35 for 40% from deep and 9-12 for 75% from the free-throw line. The Huskers collected 36 rebounds, 10 of which were offensive. Nebraska had 22 assists to 11 turnovers and had 19 points off of turnovers.
The Huskers were led by Pryce Sandfort, who had a career high 33 points. He also had 9 rebounds. Sam Hoiberg had 11 points and a career high 10 assists. Jared Garcia had 7 rebounds off the bench, which was pivotal in helping Nebraska outrebound Penn State.
This one was a good “get right” game. Pretty straightforward, not challenging and a solid home victory. 9 different Huskers scored, with 3 of them getting into double figures. Sandfort going 8-14 from deep certainly helps, but I felt Frager, Hoiberg, Mast and Lawrence did a really good job of balancing things out today. Jared Garcia, who I felt needed more minutes to help out the big men, came in and did a great job of clearing the glass in his short time. 4 points and 7 rebounds (3 offensive) in 19 minutes was the exact thing Fred Hoiberg needed to help rest Rienk.
Nebraska has another home game coming up, as they take on the Maryland Terrapins. Maryland is not nearly as good as they were a year ago, as they lost their head coach and two star players (Derik Queen and Julian Reese) from last season’s squad. Tip-off from Pinnacle Bank Arena is set for 6:00 pm on Wednesday, February 25th, and can be seen on the Big Ten Network.