3 takeaways from Nebraska basketball’s win over Le Moyne

Nebraska basketball looked similar to the team that we saw make history last March.

In the season opener against Le Moyne, the Huskers allowed the opponent to hang around for a little bit in the first half before running away for a 106-64 win.

Nebraska made 14 3-pointers. Eight different players hit a shot from beyond the arc. Just two of those makes were by Pryce Sandfort and Braden Frager, who combined for 27 points. Cale Jacobsen made 7 of 8 shots from the field, including both of his 3-pointers, on his way to 17 points. He also grabbed four rebounds, dished out three assists, and had two steals.

Nebraska shot 47% from deep and 54% from the field. The Huskers had eight turnovers and were credited with just 10 fouls. Le Moyne was called for 21 fouls and turned it over 17 times.

Looking back at the 42-point win, here are three takeaways.

Dominant 2-point effort for Nebraska basketball

Fans will focus on the 3-pointers. They are a staple of the Fred Hoiberg offense, but the interior game was effective, too.

Nebraska basketball was 21-for-35 (60%) on 2-pointers. Le Moyne made 44% of its shots. The Huskers gave up 10 3-pointers. They are going to give up those shots, but the help defense worked and forced 17 turnovers.

Damon Wilkinson, a transfer, scored 11 points and made just one field goal after earning nine free-throw attempts. He made all nine. Boden Kapke was 4 of 6, too. Sandfort and Frager did better work inside the 3-point line than outside of it, and it was a solid effort on both ends.

Connor Essegian was on a heater

Connor Essegian returned after missing a big chunk of last season due to injury. He’s a limited player, but is perfect coming off the bench. On Monday, he scored 13 points in seven minutes thanks to a 3-for-4 effort from beyond the arc. He also had two steals and made all four free throws.

You never know how someone will respond after being out with an injury. Nebraska basketball fans had to be pleased with his effort, and if he shoots that way, he will get more minutes consistently than he got against Le Moyne.

Jacob Lanier doesn’t look like a freshman

The true freshman was fifth on the team in minutes (23) and scored 11 points while grabbing five rebounds, two of them on the offensive glass. A 6-foot-6 wing, Lanier made two shots from deep, notched a steal and dished out two assists. He certainly didn’t look like a freshman.

With Frager moving to the starting lineup, there is a void on the bench. Jacobsen might be a guy to fill it, depending on who starts when Orme is back, but Lanier looks like a solid rotation player already. When Essegian is knocking down 3-pointers, this team feels pretty deep. That’s especially true after solid debuts from Wilkinson and Taj DeDourville, who combined for 20 points, five rebounds, and four assists off the bench.

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