For 15 minutes of its 79-59 win over Michigan, Nebraska basketball was close to flawless.
The Huskers’ offense was crisp as the ball snapped to and from the lane and around the perimeter. Layups and open 3-pointers flowed from every trip down the court.
On the other end of the floor, Michigan couldn’t find any rhythm. NU brought pressure to every part of the court, speeding up the Wolverines and getting them out of their preferred style of offense. Missed shots frequently ended up in the Huskers’ hands. It was Nebraska's basketball eutopia, the snapshot of a team that, for a stretch, could do no wrong on the court.
Nebraska never reached the same level over the last 25 minutes, but by then it didn’t matter. The Huskers had pounced on a downtrodden Michigan team, trapping the Wolverines in an insurmountable hole.
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“That was a phenomenal stretch of basketball,” Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg said. “And I just loved the swagger that our guys were playing with.”
The lead stretched to as many as 30 points in the first half before Michigan, and consequently Nebraska, tightened up. The ball stopped moving as smoothly, bending the Michigan defense until an easy look presented itself.
Keisei Tominaga and C.J. Wilcher, neither typically bashful in letting one fly from beyond the arc, both hesitated on possible 3-pointers as UM (8-16, 3-10 Big Ten) switched to a zone defense. Michigan never found a way to consistently score, but finished the first half on a 12-2 run over the last 5:21, culminating with a Jaelin Llewellyn buzzer-beating 3-pointer from the corner.
“When you miss layups and have opportunity to shoot open 3s and you don’t shoot them, you’re playing a dangerous game, and that’s what happened,” Hoiberg said. “But I think we got their attention at halftime and went out there and started playing the right way.”
Over the final 20 minutes, Nebraska (17-8, 7-7) wasn’t dominant, but it did enough to keep from ever being seriously challenged. The lead never dipped below 15 points.
Michigan had nowhere to go. Nebraska smothered on the perimeter, rotating quickly in and out of double teams and getting its hands into passing lanes. The lack of breakdowns in the Huskers’ one-on-one defense forced the Wolverines into a bevy of contested shots and 14 turnovers. UM shot 32.3% from the field.
“Just pressuring the ball, getting them out of their offense because if they can walk down and set up where they want to set up, then their offense is gonna be easy,” guard Brice Williams said. “But if they had to deal with pressure and have like eight seconds come off the clock, it just speeds up their offense and makes them more antsy.”
Tominaga hit an early 3-pointer and spent the rest of the evening doing all the things that define his best performances: scurrying around the perimeter, hunting for shots, pump-faking, relocating and wearing his emotions on his sleeve with every made basket. He heated up enough that his shot fake from 40 feet out in the first half created enough space to get inside the defense and dish to Rienk Mast for a layup. Tominaga finished the game with 19 points on 50% shooting from beyond the arc. Nebraska shot 39.1% from deep and assisted on more than half of its made baskets.
As Tominaga forced Michigan to close out hard to any potential jumper, Nebraska outplayed the Wolverines under the basket. Juwan Gary skied for rebounds and came away with seven of them. Josiah Allick was aggressive, powering his way to the rim as he scored 16 points and grabbed eight boards. The Huskers’ 16 offensive rebounds were twice as many as they had in their previous two games.
“I didn’t know what direction it was gonna go energywise, I just knew we were all focused, and that was the biggest deal all week, actually,” Williams said. “When the tip-off happened, we were locked in. The intensity was there.”
