Fred Hoiberg demands Brice Williams be First Team All-Big Ten

Nebraska guard Brice Williams scored 43 points, breaking a three-decade old program scoring record on Tuesday night during the Cornhuskers’ 116-114 loss to Ohio State.

After the game, Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg praised the senior for his scoring showcase, andwasn’t shy about declaring Williams as an all-conference player.

“If that doesn’t lock up first team All-Big Ten, I don’t know what else he can do,” Hoiberg said after his performance. “He was absolutely phenomenal. He’s been our best free throw shooter, one of the best in the country. You’ve got your guy up there, and not only that, but he’s been a clutch free throw shooter. Unfortunately, that last one just rims out, and that happens.

“But we kept going, and he was incredible in the overtimes to keep us in that thing. I’m proud of our guys for their effort, but we’ve got to get over it quick. I know I say that a lot, but we’ve got a huge one coming up this weekend.”

Hoiberg is referring to Williams missing the second of two free throws that could have been to go-ahead point to win the game in overtime. Instead, the Buckeyes would emerge after a pair of overtime periods.

His 43 points are a career-high across his five year college career. However, he’s proved himself as one of the top scorers in the country this season. His 20.4 points per game average ranked 12th in the country. He’s scored 20 or more points in 18 of Nebraska’s 30 games this season, including in eight of the last nine games.

Despite Nebraska losing its last four matchups, Williams’ scoring has not faltered as he’s scored 26, 21 and 43 in their last three games. He was held to 17 points against Penn State on Feb. 19. It was just the sixth time in conference play he was held below his current average.

Whether he’s done enough to earn first-team all-conference honors for those efforts remains to be seen.

The Cornhuskers are now 17-13 overall, and 7-12 against Big Ten competition following the loss. Nebraska rounds out its regular season at home against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Sunday, March 9. Tip-off is set for 12:30 p.m. ET and will air live on FOX.

Both Ohio State and Nebraska were on Joe Lunardi’s ‘Last Four In’ line heading into the matchup. After the loss, that makes Sunday’s matchup against Iowa even more of a must-win for Nebraska.