3 takeaways from a get-right game for Nebraska basketball

Nebraska basketball needed to get back in the win column in the worst way, and the Huskers did that with a dominant performance against Penn State.

The 87-64 win was much more like the Nebraska team we have seen for most of the season. The Huskers have dropped four of the past six games, but Pryce Sandfort provided a huge spark, connecting five of his first six attempts from beyond the arc.

Sam Hoiberg did his usual, scoring, assisting, and defending like a nat. He was awesome. Nebraska basketball took better care of the ball, shot well, and covered the spread.

Nebraska essentially led wire-to-wire after an initial back-and-forth. Braden Frager hit two first-half treys to help extend the lead. Sandfort caught fire, and Huskers led 38-20 at the half.

Nebraska maintained that lead in the second half, thanks to three more triples from Sandfort, who had eight total and 33 points. Frager added 15 points on four 3s, and here are three takeaways from the 22nd-win of the season.

Pryce found his groove

The Big Ten officials finally called a defender for holding Pryce Sandfort. Maybe that will set a precedent going forward. Sandfort is excellent without the ball. He also buried eight 3-pointers and scored 33 points.

The single-season 3-point leader added eight more to his season total. He also added nine rebounds, and it was good to see the Huskers’ top scorer get a shot of confidence.

The basics were better

Nebraska turned it over too many times for my liking (11). However, some of that is relevant to the game. Penn State sells out for turnovers. The fact that Nebraska had 11 in a game it won by 23 points isn’t something to fret about.

For the most part, Nebraska did what it has done most of the season. It took care of the ball, moved it, made open looks, attacked the rim, and made 66 percent of their 2-point attempts.

Nebraska assisted on 22 of 32 field goals. The Huskers allowed nine offensive rebounds, which is still too many.

So there are still things to fix. A 23-point win is a 23-point win, though.

Nebraska steadies the ship

Maryland is up next. That’s another home game before a two-game trip to USC and UCLA, before a final home game against Iowa. After the NCAA projected the Huskers as a No. 3 seed in the NCAA tournament preview, Nebraska should be a top-four seed with a solid finish.

A 3-1 finish would be nice. That would help in the effort to get a double bye, plus it would give Nebraska a top-four seed, and a chance to aim for its first NCAA tournament win in a venue that’s close to home.

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