On March 3, the Husker men’s basketball team celebrated four seniors in their last home game against Rutgers. The four players under the spotlight included Keisei Tominaga, Josiah Allick, C.J. Wilcher and Jarron Coleman.
Each senior was honored with a sentimental video tribute about their time at Nebraska. Along with that, each player was walked out by their family and was given a mural from one of their iconic moments during their time at Nebraska. This win was crucial in order to get a double bye in the Big Ten Tournament.
Going into this matchup, Nebraska stood at a record of 20-9 and Rutgers at 15-16. Rutgers ranks 27th defensively in college basketball just allowing 64 points a game. Looking at the interior, forward Clifford Omoruyi averages 3.4 blocks a game, so being efficient from the field is important. The Scarlet Knights also do a good job forcing turnovers.
The first possession was awarded to the Huskers, Tominaga would go on to miss consecutive three pointers, but would eventually be cleaned up by forward Rienk Mast for two. At the 15 minute mark, the Huskers found themselves on an 8-0, completely negating Omoruyi and locking down on defense. The Huskers took over on the rebounding side of things this half, out doing them by five. In addition, Nebraska is 14-0 when out rebounding their opponents. The Huskers would shoot 52% in the first half, and would lead by 12; (37-25).
Going into the second half, Allick led the team in rebounds with seven (three of them being offensive), and also tacked on six points. At the 16 minute mark, the Huskers were able to string together multiple stops which would transition into back to back threes from Mast and Allick. Nebraska this season has averaged two less rebounds than their opponents, but at the under 12 timeout they lead by a margin of 10. The Huskers went on a 7-0 run, initially sparked by a massive Tominaga ‘’and 1’’ three pointer. This momentum would carry into the end of the game, rewarding Nebraska one last win at the Vault (67-56 Final Score)
In a post game interview from HuskerOnline with Coach Fred Hoiberg, Hoiberg stated, ‘’It was the perfect night for our seniors to go out the way they did, it’s sad and emotional knowing that we just watched Keisei Tominaga’s last game in Pinnacle Bank Arena.’’ I thought on the offensive glass we were relentless, just again I thought the effort was where it needed to be in order for us to get the job done.’’
Nebraska will enter the Big Ten Tournament as a four seed, playing on Friday, March 15.
