3 keys and a prediction for Nebraska basketball against Rutgers

After the worst performance of the season, Nebraska basketball returns home to the Vault for a must-win game against Rutgers (8 PM CST, BTN.

It might seem early to call this a must-win game, but Nebraska basketball is 2-3 in the Big Ten. The schedule isn’t easy and this is one of the more winnable games.

This would count as a bad loss. Rutgers is 9-8. They are 2-4 in the Big Ten. The Scarlet Knights have traditionally been built on defense but they ranked 260th in college hoops in points allowed and 248th in field-goal percentage defense. Rutgers is forcing 12 turnovers per game, but that’s a drop-off too.

Nebraska has its own issues. The Huskers have been terrible over the last 60 minutes of basketball. They need to show some pride on the defensive end. Offensively, Nebraska will be fine. They need to get over the Iowa game and get back on track.

Here are three keys and a prediction.

Guard your yard

Nebraska basketball players need to take some pride in their defense and guard their man. That hasn’t been happening enough. Players have had to help too much. They have also been overhelping and not communicating well, leading to open shots for other teams.

Rutgers isn’t a great offensive team. They rank among the top 100 in college basketball in four categories: 2-point attempts, 2-point field goals, free throw attempts, and free throw makes. They are atrocious in most other offensive categories.

The Scarlet Knights also have the No. 2 and No. 3 players from the 2024 class. Dylan Harper and Airious Bailey. They are shooting 50 percent and 45 percent from the field. Both players shoot 34 percent from deep.

Most of the shots tonight will come from those players. Bailey is 6-foot-10. Harper is 6-foot-6. You can see why Rutgers plays the most isolation basketball of any Big Ten team. That means the Huskers need to guard their yard.

Juwan Gary needs to be the tone-setter

When Nebraska is playing its best, Juwan Gary is too. Brice Williams is the best offensive player on the team, but Gary is the heart and soul.

During the two-game losing skid, Gary is 9-of-23 from the field. He’s 0-for-8 from 3-point range. The senior didn’t have a block or steal against Purdue and has shot below 50 percent in six of his last seven games.

Nebraska basketball needs Gary at his best on both ends of the floor and I’d love to see him set the tone early against Rutgers.

Limit turnovers

It’s a simple thing but Nebraska basketball needs to do it on Thursday night. Rutgers is forcing just 9.6 turnovers per game during Big Ten play. Over the past two defeats, Nebraska has turned it over 15.5 times per game.

That’s just too many turnovers and against a poor defensive team like Rutgers, which ranks outside the top 200 in field-goal percentage defense in all three categories (overall field-goal percentage, 2-point percentage, and 3-point percentage), the Huskers should cruise, as long as they protect the ball.

Prediction: Nebraska 78, Rutgers 67

For More Nebraska content, follow us on Twitter, like our Facebook Page, and Subscribe to the Husker Big Red YouTube Channel. You can also find our podcast on Apple or Spotify.