Fastbreak: Nebraska basketball gets 2022-23 season underway

Nebraska basketball head coach Fred Hoiberg and players Wilhelm Breidenbach and Emmanuel Bandoumel met with local media on Tuesday following their first official practice of the 2022-23 season.

Here is a full rundown of what they all had to say…

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Head coach Fred Hoiberg

***Hoiberg said Nebraska’s first fall practice on Tuesday was “a good opening day,” though it was more of a continuation of months of work this offseason. He said he’d gotten a “good feel for the guys” as players and people since the team started workouts in June.

***Hoiberg praised the maturity and experience on Nebraska’s roster, which has gone a long way toward helping the Huskers gel on and off the court. Hoiberg took things a step further this offseason by starting a six-player leadership group that will meet weekly to help continue building the program’s culture.

Hoiberg declined to name the six players but said it was made up mostly of older players with “one younger guy” included. The group met at his house for the first time last week.

***With the new roster additions NU made this offseason, Hoiberg said the goal was to find players from winning programs. He said guys like Sam Griesel (North Dakota State), Juwan Gary (Alabama), Bandoumel (SMU), and Blaise Keita (Coffeyville C.C.) all fit that bill.

***Hoiberg announced that Nebraska’s annual “Opening Night” event on Friday would look different this year. Instead of a scrimmage, the Huskers will hold more of an open practice over roughly 30 minutes to highlight better some of the changes they’ve been working on this offseason.

***Hoiberg said point guard Quaran McPherson underwent season-ending ACL surgery last week, and “everything went great.” It will be a long recovery given the severity of the injury, but Hoiberg said McPherson was “going to be fine.”

***Hoiberg said Griesel was still on a “load restriction” coming off his offseason hip surgery, but he was now making it through nearly a full practice. Griesel made it through Tuesday’s session, and his workload would continue to grow over the following 29 practices before the season opener.

***Hoiberg said Breidenbach had no workload restrictions after coming back from a season-ending knee injury last year.

***While Nebraska was able to workout with coaches all summer, the most significant difference now was the Huskers went from only being allowed four hours a week to 20. That allowed NU to focus on more team-specific work vs. mainly individual drills.

***With McPherson out and Griesel still on a restricted workload, Hoiberg was asked about Nebraska’s point guard depth situation. He said Bandoumel had emerged as the No. 2 point guard option behind Griesel.

Even though he didn’t play much at the one at SMU, Hoiberg said Bandoumel had looked good in that role this summer and had proven to be an effective playmaker on the ball.

***Ramel Lloyd Jr. and Cale Jacobsen will also be backcourt options at the point, while bigs like Derrick Walker and Breidenbach can bring the ball up against pressure defenses.

***Nebraska is hoping to take on a much more aggressive identity on defense this season, and Hoiberg said the team’s overall length would be a critical part of that.

He said it started with having a 6-foot-7 point guard in Greisel and then having an off-guard that could defend baseline to baseline in Bandoumel. Hoiberg also pointed to Denim Dawson, who leads the team in deflections and has “great defensive instincts.”

Hoiberg also loves having the 6-10 Breidenbach at the four along with Gary, who he thinks can defend 1-5. Then add in Keita, who Hoiberg said has been “as good as anyone” on defense and leads the team in charges taken “by a wide margin.”

***Hoiberg said he’d been challenging his guys to buy into defense all offseason. One example was having practice officials “calling everything” to incentivize taking charges and forcing the offense to play under control. The staff also makes defensive video edits for each player after every practice so they can go back and see their mistakes.

***Hoiberg said CJ Wilcher had lost 15 pounds since last season and looked like “a completely different player.” He said Walker had also made noticeable strides in his strength and conditioning, and Breidenbach and Griesel had been putting heavy work into their rehabs all offseason.

***Hoiberg said Nebraska would have a “much more balanced attack” on offense than what they’ve had in previous years. NU is promoting ball movement more than ever, and Hoiberg would like to continue using more of the misdirection ball screens that were successful late last season.

***Asked whether he felt more pressure after three disappointing seasons: “I feel pressure every day of my life.”

***Hoiberg said Keita would face a significant adjustment going from junior college to the Big Ten, just like Keisei Tominaga did last season. But Hoiberg pointed to how much Tominaga had grown over the past year and thinks Keita would make a similar jump.

Hoiberg said Keita had been “picking things up so quickly” and admitted he “didn’t know he’d be as good as he has been so quickly.”

***Hoiberg said that if Wilcher or Tominaga “have any daylight, I want them shooting the ball.”

***Hoiberg said paring down Nebraska’s rotation would be “a huge decision” because so many players had shown flashes this offseason.

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Guard Emmanuel Bandoumel

***Bandoumel said it had been “pretty easy” for Nebraska’s players to gel over the summer. He admitted the Huskers had to try and accomplish a lot in a short window, but “everybody genuinely loves each other” and is “going in the same direction.”

***As one of the veteran leaders, Bandoumel said a lot of the focus has been on building the proper habits on and off the floor. With so many players from different backgrounds, the Huskers are focused on working together and doing the things necessary to be successful.

“We’re heading in the right direction.”

***Bandoumel said Griesel “looks great” as he continues to work more into the mix. Bandoumel said Griesel was “never out of position,” who always made the right plays and “doesn’t get sped up.”

***Bandoumel said that defense had been such an emphasis this offseason because NU knows that “to win in the Big Ten, or anywhere, it starts with defense.” He said the Huskers’ energy in practice had been “through the roof.”

***In describing NU’s approach on offense, Bandoumel said there would be “a lot of ball movement, not as much dribbling and taking bad shots.”

“We’ve got the same agenda,” he said, adding that the Huskers weren’t worried about their individual numbers. Instead, their focus was, “what can I do to get my teammate a shot?”

***Bandoumel said sometimes the players must remind each other about being too unselfish and making sure their shooters take open shots.

Forward Wilhelm Breidenbach

***Breidenbach said he was feeling good and was “pretty much back” after his season-ending knee injury last year. He said he’d been working for a couple of months now. “I’d say I’m back.”

***Breidenbach said the new roster had “definitely gelled,” and “everybody works together” and helps each other.

***On Griesel, Breidenbach echoed the praise for his decision-making and how he was always in control. Getting Griesel back on the floor had helped a lot for other players.

***Breidenbach agreed that everything would start on defense this season, “which I think people will see” once the season began.

***Breidenbach didn’t think there would be issues with Nebraska’s unselfish approach on offense. “You need five guys to win. People are going to be scoring; everybody is going to have their day.”

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