3 thoughts on Nebraska basketball’s win over Hawaii

Monday night was the sixth time that Nebraska basketball has played Hawaii in Hawaii but this was the first time that the Huskers came away victorious.

You could see why on Monday. The Rainbow Warriors jumped out to a 22-14 lead before Nebraska basketball responded with a 15-0 run to take the lead. Juwan Gary put the Huskers in front with a 3-pointer. Brice Williams capped the run with another to make it 29-22.

Hawaii trimmed the lead to two points at intermission, but Nebraska forced 12 turnovers in the second half. Williams and Gary combined for 53 points on 18-of-28 shooting and Nebraska gutted out a 69-55 win.

Here are three thoughts.

Gary and Williams carried Nebraska basketball

The Huskers dynamic duo was huge in the win over Creighton earlier in the season. The same goes for Indiana and when it felt like the Huskers might be in some trouble on Monday, Williams and Gary stepped into the phone booth and put on their superman capes.

The versatile tandem dominated on both ends of the floor. Their length was a problem but they also took over on the offensive end, making a combined 7-of-9 3-point shots.

Gary and Williams shot more than half of Nebraska’s field-goal attempts and combined to make 64 percent. They went a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line and frankly, put on a clinic.

Defense was a difference-maker too

Gary and Williams stole the show with their 53 combined points — 31 for Williams — but the defense of the Huskers was just as responsible for the win.

In the second half, Hawaii had more turnovers than made field goals. The Rainbow Warriors turned it over just twice in the first half but 12 times in the second.

Nebraska held Hawaii to just 25 percent from 3-point range and allowed just five assists. The Huskers were disciplined and allowed just 20 3-point attempts, which is a big drop.

Williams and Gary stole the show. They deserve their flowers. But the defense also combined for 12 steals/blocks while Hawaii had just five.

An opportunity in the title game

The 9-2 Huskers will face 10-2 Oregon State in the championship game of the Diamond Head Classic on Christmas Day. The first two wins won’t help the resume at all. Winning each by double digits was positive but the best thing is that it provided a quadrant-1 opportunity on Christmas at 2:30 P.M. CST on ESPN. 

Oregon State is ranked 40th in the NET rankings right now. Nebraska basketball is 56th. It wouldn’t be a quad-1 for the Beavers but it would be for Nebraska, at least for now and it’s the kind of win that the Huskers could use on their NCAA tournament resume.

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