Nebraska hopes to carry momentum from Friday’s win over Sam Houston into Tuesday night’s matchup in Lincoln, Neb., against in-state rival Creighton.
Following a season-opening loss at home against Western Illinois last week, Nebraska rallied from an early 10-point deficit for a win against visiting Sam Houston.
“I felt like it was different from the first game,” said Bryce McGowens, who led the Cornhuskers with 29 points in the 74-65 win. “Everybody was confident, like, ‘We’re not letting this happen again.’ So there was no nervousness in the locker room.”
Creighton has a 28-26 series lead against Nebraska. The Cornhuskers (1-1) will host the Bluejays (2-0) for the first time since the 2018-19 season, when Nebraska won 94-75 on Dec. 8, 2018.
Creighton has defeated Arkansas-Pine Bluff and Kennesaw State at home ahead of its trip to Lincoln.
In the 51-44 win over Kennesaw State last Thursday, Creighton pulled away with a 10-0 run after trailing 24-22 at halftime. The Bluejays have trailed at the half in both of their games this season.
Creighton showed balance in its win over Kennesaw State with Alex O’Connell scoring a game-high 13 points, Ryan Nembhard adding 11 and Ryan Kalkbrenner finishing with 10. Ryan Hawkins added 10 rebounds.
Creighton’s 51 points were the fewest in a win since the team beat Missouri State 50-49 in 2008. The 44 points by Kennesaw State was the lowest total Creighton has allowed against a Division I team in eight years.
“Even though it was a short prep (after beating Arkansas-Pine Bluff two days before), I was really proud of our guys’ ability to take what we ask them to do and execute it on the floor defensively,” Creighton coach Greg McDermott said. “Because without that, we don’t win this game.”
–Field Level Media
