Seniors Williams, Gary have left lasting legacies during their Nebraska careers

In a transfer portal era where players sometimes only spend a few months at a school, Senior Days aren’t quite the same these days.

However, while neither Brice Williams nor Juwan Gary played a full career at Nebraska, their legacies within the program are still significant.

The talented senior duo will play their final home games at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Sunday in NU’s must-win finale against rival Iowa. Their respective focus remains on a critical task at hand to keep their NCAA Tournament (and Big Ten Tournament) hopes alive.

But Williams and Gary have already thought plenty about how their time as Huskers had changed their lives forever both on and off the court.

“My time at Nebraska, it’s been an amazing experience,” Gary said. “I can’t say nothing else about it. It’s been something that helped mold me into the man I am today. I appreciate everyone that helped me and was involved in that… This is always going to be home to me.”

“In two short years, (Nebraska) is a place that’s kind of been synged into my heart,” Williams said. “I’m going to remember this place forever. I’m going to remember everything it’s done for me, all the experiences, the fans…

“Then just kind of coming into my own and growing up and kind of spreading my wings.”

Williams will go down as an all-time Nebraska great

He’s only been at Nebraska for two seasons, but Williams has already established himself as one of the all-time greatest Huskers.

Since joining NU as a transfer from Charlotte in 2023, the Huntersville, N.C., native has written his name all over the program record books.

Williams most recently broke Eric Piatkowski’s 31-year-old single-game scoring record (41 in 1994) with 43 points in a double-overtime loss at Ohio State. That also marked the second-most points by a Big Ten player since Nebraska joined the conference in 2011 (Iowa’s Luka Garza had 44 vs. Michigan in 2019).

The 6-foot-7 wing is a three-time USBWA Player of the Week (the first Husker to earn the honor) and a two-time Big Ten Player of the Week.

Williams currently leads the conference and is in a tie for 12^th nationally in scoring at 20.4 points per game. That would put him seventh on the school’s all-time single-season scoring average chart, ahead of Jerry Fort (20.2 ppg in 1975) and behind Tyronn Lue (21.1 in 1998).

At 613 points on the season, Williams likely just needs to hold off Northwestern’s Nick Martinelli (598) to claim this year’s Big Ten scoring title. That would make him the first Husker to do so since Terran Petteway in 2014 and only the fifth NU player to do so in over a century.

Williams is now fifth on Nebraska’s single-season scoring list, as he just passed Lue’s 603 in 1997. With 34 more points, he’d pass Piatkowski (646 in 1994) for fourth place.

“I was in an era of Nebraska basketball, playing at Iowa State, where there were some pretty special players…” Hoiberg said. “But what Brice has done, especially down the stretch here… As far as individual talent, yes, I would put him up with anybody.”

Gary’s toughness, passion made him a Husker fan favorite

Gary might not have the same accolades as Williams, but no player on the roster has been more of a face of the program over the past three seasons.

Since arriving in Lincoln as a transfer from Alabama in 2022, the senior forward has become a fan favorite for his effort, toughness, and passion on the court.

The Columbia, S.C., native is also having the best season of his college tenure in 2024-25. Gary is averaging a career-best 13.7 points per game, along with 4.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals. He’s second on the team in scoring, boards, blocks, and steals.

Primarily known for his defense and rebounding, Gary has emerged as one of Nebraska’s top scoring options this year. He’s been at his best in Big Ten play, averaging 16.7 points on 49% shooting, including four 20-point efforts, over NU’s last 10 games.

Gary needs four points against Iowa to reach 900 as a Husker and just one more to reach 1,200 for his career.

What Hoiberg and NU fans will remember most about Gary, though, is the joy with which he played the game every time he stepped onto the floor.

“Juwan Gary, if you would have told me three years ago that he would’ve emerged as the leader, I would’ve questioned that,” Hoiberg said. “But he’s just come in and done whatever’s asked of him, and the kid plays with so much heart and effort. I know he’s going to go down as up there with one of a lot of people’s favorites that’s ever worn the uniform.”

Williams, Gary remain determined to finish the job

A little over a year ago, Williams and Gary released a video on social media announcing their return to Nebraska for a final season.

After leading the Huskers to their first NCAA Tournament appearance in a decade, the seniors were determined to win the program’s first-ever game in the Big Dance.

However, after losing five of its last six games, NU is now in do-or-die mode to keep that dream alive.

While Nebraska’s postseason fate is uncertain, the one guarantee will be that Williams and Gary plan to lay it all on the line in every chance they have left.

“I hope it ain’t no emotions (on Senior Day), for real, until after the game; until the buzzer,” Williams said. “I’m just going to try to stay in the moment but also take in the moment and live in the moment, because it’s going to be something I’ll remember forever. “

“I hope there ain’t no crazy emotions or stuff like that, because we’ve still got a job to do,” Gary added. “But this is something that we play for and set our goals to… We’re in our last year of college, and I feel like this is one of our best years overall as a man and as a player, and we’ve overcome a lot of adversity.

“Of course, we’re not having the results over the year that we wanted to, but we’ve still got an opportunity to make a run. That’s what we’re reaching for.”

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