National Basketball Association
Nebraska 89, Rutgers 72
When: 7:00 PM ET, Wednesday, March 9, 2016
Where: Bankers Life Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, Indiana
Officials:
# Bo Boroski, # Bill Ek, # Paul Szelc
Attendance:
16528
By The Sports Xchange
Senior forward Shavon Shields had 20 points and 11 rebounds to lead Nebraska to an 89-72 victory over Rutgers on Wednesday in the opening round of the Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis.
Junior guard Tai Webster scored 18 points and Andrew White III added 16 for the 11th-seeded Cornhuskers (15-17), who snapped a five-game losing streak.
Freshman forward Michael Jacobson scored 14 points for Nebraska, which meets sixth-seeded Wisconsin in Thursday's second round.
Sophomore guard Mike Williams scored 14 points for the 14th-seeded Scarlet Knights (7-25), who finish the season with losses in 18 of their last 19 games.
Senior guard Bishop Daniels added 13 points and senior guard Omari Grier had 12 for Rutgers, which lost more than 20 games for the third consecutive season.
Rutgers trailed by six points early in the second half but tied the score at 43 on a 3-pointer by freshman guard Corey Sanders with 16:54 left. The Scarlet Knights missed their next eight shots from the field and the Cornhuskers broke the game open with a 17-2 surge.
White's 3-pointer gave Nebraska a 50-43 lead and Shields' 3-point play made it a 13-point margin.
Nebraska freshman forward Ed Morrow's layup capped the run to make it 60-45 with 11:51 remaining before Grier answered with five straight points, including a 3-pointer with 10:47 remaining, to end the Rutgers field goal drought of more than six minutes.
The Scarlet Knights were unable to get within single digits and the Cornhuskers led by as many as 19 in the final minutes.
Webster scored 12 first-half points as Nebraska took a 37-33 lead into the break. Rutgers led 31-30 with 1:55 left in the opening half before Nebraska closed it out strong.
Top Game Performances
Rutgers |
|
Nebraska |
Mike Williams 14 |
Scoring |
Shavon Shields 20 |
Bishop Daniels 4 |
Assists |
Glynn Watson Jr. 5 |
Jonathan Laurent 7 |
Rebounds |
Shavon Shields 11 |
Bishop Daniels 6 |
Free Throws Made |
Edward Morrow 4 |
Mike Williams 2 |
Steals |
Shavon Shields 4 |
Bishop Daniels 1 |
Blocks |
Michael Jacobson 2 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Rutgers
|
72 |
42.9 |
7-15 |
17-22 |
15 |
30 |
2 |
4 |
17 |
Nebraska
|
89 |
47.1 |
7-16 |
16-21 |
18 |
39 |
2 |
11 |
10 |