Nebraska gets embarrassed in 89-72 blowout loss at Penn State
For the second game in a row, Nebraska dug itself into a massive hole after the first 20 minutes. This time, though, there was no miraculous 20-point comeback.
After rallying from down 20 at Northwestern on Sunday, the Huskers trailed 50-27 at halftime at Penn State on Wednesday night. There wasn’t nearly enough gas in the tank for a rally this time around, as NU fell 89-72.
Nebraska (17-10 overall, 7-9 Big Ten) sputtered from the opening tip, as sloppy turnovers and porous defense set the tone for the night. Penn State (14-13, 4-12) dominated the post on both ends, racking up 52 paint points and converting 16 NU turnovers (11 steals) into 16 points.
As a result, NU fell behind by as many as 26 in arguably their worst all-around performance of the season. Despite shooting 65 percent in the second half, the Huskers never got closer than 16 over the final 20 minutes.
Connor Essegian led Nebraska with 20 points off the bench, followed by Andrew Morgan (18) and Brice Williams (17). All five starters scored in double figures for Penn State, which shot 60.7% from the field on the night.
Nebraska hopes to get back on track on Monday night when it hosts Michigan for its first home game in 11 days. The game will tip-off at 7 p.m. CT and air on FS1.
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Another disastrous start proved too much for NU to overcome
Starting fast was a critical key for head coach Fred Hoiberg going into Wednesday night’s game. Well, the Huskers couldn’t have had a much worse first five minutes than it did in State College.
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Six turnovers through the first 4:35 helped Penn State go on a 12-0 run and jump out to a commanding 14-2 lead out of the gate. It only got worse for NU from there, as turnovers, fouls, and defensive breakdowns continued to pile up.
Penn State took a 50-27 lead into halftime after scoring their most points in a first half this season. Nebraska made eight field goals to 11 turnovers. On the other end, PSU shot a blistering 66.7% from the field and scored 30 of their 50 points in the paint.
Williams led the Huskers with nine points at the break, but he picked up his third foul with 3:07 left in the first half. Not only did Penn State score at will in the paint, it did so while making 15-of-18 from inside the arc.
That included converting 12 of its 14 dunks and layups on its 18 made field goals, helping the Nittany Lions average a whopping 1.515 points per possession. The Huskers attempted just 12 total two-pointers in the first half.
