Nebraska Husker Men's Basketball
LINCOLN – The Nebraska men’s basketball team returns home to begin a two-game homestand this Saturday, as the Huskers host the Michigan Wolverines. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. and the matchup will be televised on BTN and available on the Huskers Radio Network. Saturday’s game is a sellout with a crowd of over 15,000 anticipated for the first of two matchups between the Huskers and Wolverines.
Nebraska (16-8, 6-7 Big Ten) returns home following a tough 80-68 loss at Northwestern on Wednesday night. The Huskers out-shot the Wildcats from the field, but 17 turnovers proved costly as Northwestern enjoyed a 26-7 advantage in points off turnovers. Juwan Gary’s 15 points led four Huskers in double figures, while Brice Williams posted his first double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
Williams has been a steady performer in his first season after transferring from Charlotte, averaging 13.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 steals per game. The 6-foot-7 guard has posted career highs in rebounding, assists, steals and blocked shots while also matching up with the opponent’s primary backcourt threat. He paces NU with 18 double-figure games and is shooting nearly 39 percent from 3-point range.
The Huskers have been tough at Pinnacle Bank Arena, going 14-1 on the season including wins over then-No. 1 Purdue and then-No. 6 Wisconsin. The 14 home wins is the most since the 2017-18 team went 16-1 at PBA. A win Saturday would tie the second-highest home win total since moving into Pinnacle Bank Arena in 2013-14.
Michigan (8-15, 3-9 Big Ten) comes off its best performance of the season, a 72-68 win over No. 11 Wisconsin on Wednesday night. Dug McDaniel’s 16 points led four Wolverines in double figures, as Michigan shot 45 percent from the floor and got to the line 25 times against the Badgers. Olivier Nkamhoua grabbed 12 rebounds, as Michigan enjoyed a 34-28 advantage on the glass.
Huskers to Celebrate Black History Month During Saturday’s GameAs part of the Huskers’ Black History Month recognition, several initiatives will take place during Saturday’s game against Michigan.
• The Huskers will wear their special-edition adidas cream jersey which feature multi-color pastels along the sides representing the tearing down of obstacles to create something beautiful, while the goldenrods on the lettering show gratitude and appreciation for the contributions of Black individuals within the program over the years. The goldenrod is the state flower of Nebraska.
• NU will honor Ivan Gilreath during Saturday’s game and highlight his accomplishments in the Lincoln and Omaha communities following his Husker playing career.
Worth Noting• Nebraska matched its 2022-23 season win total with 16, and with a victory against Michigan on Saturday would mark the first time since the mid-1960s (1963-64 to 1965-66) that the Huskers increased their win total for three straight years.
• Nebraska enters Saturday’s game with a 16-8 record, it matches the Huskers’ best 24-game start in the Big Ten era (16-8 in 2017-18). The last time the Huskers had a better record after 24 games was a 17-7 mark in 1991-92.
• Saturday’s game matches the two most prolific 3-point shooting teams in the Big Ten. The Huskers lead the conference at 9.5 3-pointers per game, while Michigan is tied for second with 8.6 3-pointers per contest.
• With the win over No. 6 Wisconsin on Feb. 1, Nebraska has two top-10 wins for the first time since 2013-14 and the sixth time in school history (2023-24, 2013-14, 1993-94, 1991-92, 1990-91 and 1957-58). The 1957-58 team was coached by Jerry Bush, the grandfather of current Husker Head Coach Fred Hoiberg.
• Nebraska has an opportunity to break another long losing streak on Saturday as the Huskers have lost eight straight to Michigan dating back to the 2017-18 season. The Huskers have already snapped four streaks of at least seven games this season: Michigan State (11 games); Kansas State (seven games); Indiana (seven games) and Northwestern (seven games).
• Nebraska enters the Michigan game averaging 77.2 points per game to rank fourth in the Big Ten in scoring offense as of Feb. 8. It is NU’s highest points per game average since the 1995-96 season (80.2 ppg). NU has climbed from 149th to 42nd nationally in offensive efficiency in KenPom as of Feb. 8. NU’s highest average since joining the Big Ten was 73.3 points per game in 2021-22.
• Nebraska leads the Big Ten and ranks 23rd nationally with 9.5 3-pointers per game as of Feb. 8. NU has 228 3-pointers this season, a total which ties for sixth on NU’s single-season chart. The Huskers are just four 3-pointers away from the No. 5 spot on NU’s single-season list.
• A few Huskers are approaching milestones heading into Saturday’s game with Michigan. Keisei Tominaga: Needs one 3-pointer to become the ninth Husker with 150 3-pointers in a career…Needs seven points to reach 900 points for his Husker career…Is nine 3-pointers away from eighth place on NU’s career list. Rienk Mast: Needs 14 rebounds to reach 850 for his college career. Juwan Gary: Needs four rebounds to reach 400 for his career. C.J. Wilcher: Is 17 points from 800 for his career…Is two 3-pointers from 150 in his career.
• The Huskers are 22-11 over the last 33 games dating back to Feb. 1, 2023, which ranks second in the Big Ten in winning percentage in that span.
• Nebraska enters Saturday’s game ranked third in the Big Ten in free throw shooting at 76.1 percent. It is on pace to be one of NU’s highest season percentages in school history. NU has not shot over 74 percent from the foul line since the 2011-12 season when NU shot a school-record 76.6 percent. Nebraska was a perfect 14-of-14 from the foul line in Sunday’s OT loss at No. 14 Illinois and went 18-of-22 at Northwestern on Wednesday.
• One strength of the Huskers has been getting to the free throw line. NU has shot more free throws in 16 of 24 games in 2023-24 and its +87 differential is fifth in the Big Ten as of Feb. 8.
• The Huskers are now 24-6 under Fred Hoiberg when scoring at least 80 points, including 19-3 over the last three seasons. All three losses have come in overtime (104-100 in 4OT at NC State on Dec. 1, 2021; 87-82 in OT at Rutgers on Jan. 17, 2024; 87-84 at Illinois on Feb. 4). NU had won its last 17 games when reaching the 80-point plateau before the OT loss at Rutgers.
• Nebraska’s bench has provided a spark, averaging 23.6 points per game. The Huskers’ leading scorer has come from the bench eight times (Hoiberg-Lindenwood; Wilcher-five times; Gary-Stony Brook; Allick-Iowa) and NU has had 23 double-figure efforts from its bench in 2023-24.
• The Huskers finished non-conference action with a 10-1 mark, matching their best non-conference record since joining the Big Ten (also 2018-19).
Numbers to Know3 – Nebraska has gone to overtime in three times this season. The school record for overtime games in a season is four, which has been done seven times (2022-23, 2019-20, 2007-08, 1996-97, 1986-87, 1979-80 and 1955-66).
9.5 – NU leads the Big Ten with 9.5 3-pointers per game as of Feb. 8, an average which is on pace to break the single-season school record for 3-pointers per game (9.5/gm, 2001-02). The Huskers are 9-4 this season when hitting at least 10 3-pointers.
15 – Nebraska has won its 15 games dating back to last season when holding an opponent to 70 points or less. This season, NU is 11-0 following the win over Ohio State on Jan. 24.
11 – Fred Hoiberg has 11 career wins against top-10 teams and 28 wins over ranked opponents in his collegiate coaching career.
2 – Rienk Mast became only the second Husker in the last 25 years to post a 30-point, 10-rebound game with his performance against Ohio State on Jan. 24. He joined Aleks Maric, who accomplished the feat four times in his career from 2005 to 2008.
About MichiganMichigan comes into the game with a 8-15 record following Wednesday’s win over No. 11 Wisconsin. The Wolverines snapped a five-game losing streak with the win over the Badgers. Michigan also has Big Ten wins at Iowa and over Ohio State, while posting a win over St. John’s in non-conference action.
Michigan is led by fifth-year head coach Juwan Howard, who has guided Michigan to two NCAA Tournaments and an NIT bid in his first four seasons. Howard, who starred at Michigan during the Fab 5 era, spent 19 seasons in the NBA playing for eight franchises and won two NBA titles with the Miami Heat in 2012-13. He worked in the Miami Heat organization for six seasons, the final five as an assistant coach before returning to his alma mater in 2019.
Tennessee transfer Olivier Nkamhoua averages 15.5 points and a team-high 7.3 rebounds per game while Terrance Williams III is at 13.3 ppg and shoots 39 percent from 3-point range. As a team, Michigan shoots 46 percent as a team and nearly 37 percent from 3-point range. Michigan will be without leading scorer Dug McDaniel for Saturday’s game. McDaniel averages a team-high 16.8 ppg and 4.7 assists per game and is second on the team with 41 3-pointers.
Series History: Michigan leads the all-time series, 22-3, in a series that goes back to 1949, although the Wolverines’ win over the Huskers in the 1992 Rainbow Classic was later vacated. Michigan has won 16 of the 17 meetings since Nebraska joined the Big Ten with the Huskers’ only win coming in a 72-52 win in Lincoln during the 2017-18 campaign. One of Nebraska’s three wins in the series was a 74-73 win over No. 1 Michigan at the NU Coliseum on Dec. 12, 1964. In that game, Fred Hare’s buzzer beater knocked off the Cazzie Russell-led Wolverines. That win is one of four wins over No. 1 ranked teams in Nebraska’s history.
Last Meeting: Keisei Tominaga led Nebraska with 24 points, but Michigan shot 58 percent from the field in posting a 93-72 victory in Ann Arbor on Feb. 8, 2023.
Tominaga led NU with 24 points on 10-of-16 shooting for his second straight 20-point game to pace Nebraska. Derrick Walker added 15 points, seven rebounds and a career-high eight assists in a losing effort. Jett Howard led six Wolverines in double figures with 22 points, including six 3-pointers, as Michigan shot 68 percent in the first half and out-rebounded Nebraska 35-23. Hunter Dickenson scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Last Time OutJuwan Gary had a team-high 15 points to pace four Huskers in double figures, but Nebraska fell at Northwestern, 80-68, Wednesday evening.
Gary scored 13 of his 15 points in the first half but it was not enough as Northwestern hit eight 3-pointers in the first half en route to building a 16-point halftime lead.
Brice Williams had 13 points and 10 rebounds while Jamarques Lawrence and Keisei Tominaga added 12 and 11 points, respectively, as Nebraska fell to 16-8 and 6-7 in Big Ten play. The Huskers shot 45 percent and went 18-of-22 from the foul line, but 17 turnovers led to 26 Northwestern points.
Boo Buie had 17 of his game-high 22 points in the first half to lead four Wildcats (16-7, 7-5 Big Ten) in double figures. Ryan Langborg had 18 points, while Brooks Barnhizer added 14 points and 10 boards, as the hosts enjoyed a 36-29 advantage on the glass.
