Nebraska Basketball: 3 takeaways from crushing loss to Illinois

Nebraska basketball lost to the Illinois Fighting Illini by a 98-87 score. The game started off strong for Nebraska basketball in the first half as Rienk Mast made his presence felt in early. Things looked to be going strong for Nebraska, as they entered the locker room with a 51-40 lead.

However, a second half collapse saw Illinois fight back behind the play of Terrance Shannon Jr. Illinois made adjustments in the locker room, and it worked to stifle what was a rolling Nebraska offense. Shannon ended up scoring 40 points, for a Big Ten Tournament record.

Nebraska basketball now awaits their fate as selection Sunday nears. In the meantime, Illinois will face Wisconsin, in the Big Ten tournament Championship Game.

Here are my three takeaways from Saturday’s loss to Illinois.

The officiating played a major role-whether we want to admit it or not

I personally do not like complaining about the officials in a game. However, Saturday afternoon was a difficult one for Nebraska basketball in that regard. The free-throw discrepancy for the game was a weird one, and the floor was tilted in favor of Illinois.

Terrence Shannon Jr. shot 16 free throws alone, and Illinois shot 26 in total. The Illini played physical defense on Nebraska both in the paint and on the perimeter. They were also able to contest shots from inside the paint and do so without any fear of repercussions. Shannon in particular was able to get to the line with ease, while Nebraska basketball had to scratch and claw just to get a foul call.

Yes, Nebraska missed shots. Yes, they should have done a better job of executing, particularly in the second half. However, Illinois was able to get 18 free-throw attempts in the half, making 14 of those.

Illinois undoubtedly adjusted and reworked their game plan in the first half. However, the officiating was incredibly one-sided, particularly in the second half. Illinois was able to defend however they wanted as a result, and Nebraska could not overcome playing a lopsided floor.

Huskers go ice-cold from deep

Friday night was a case of Nebraska basketball shooting the three-point shot at a high level. They were firing on all cylinders, and the threes were falling. Saturday was the complete opposite. They couldn’t get the three-point shot to go, and it hindered both their execution and ball movement.

The Huskers make shooting from beyond the arc a major part of their game. Keisei Tominaga is a big part of that. After having a strong game on Friday, he struggled on Saturday. Shannon was his primary defender, and threw Tominaga off his rhythm. Tominaga finished with 18 points, but was two-of-nine from beyond the arc.

Nebraska shot eight-of-27 from deep as a team. By comparison, Illinois went 13-of-35 from beyond the arc. They made their shots, and were able to beat Nebraska at their own game.

Nebraska basketball just ran out of gas in second half, which may be the reason they struggled from beyond the arc. Either way, if the shots don’t fall, more than likely Nebraska doesn’t win. It’s a risky strategy, but it’s hard to argue with the results by and large. Here’s to hoping that a dry spell like the one that occurred on Saturday does not happen and tournament play.

Nebraska Basketball sparked by deep bench

Nebraska basketball still has a ton to play for, particularly with the NCAA tournament coming up. One of the positive things from Saturday’s loss came from the play of the bench. The bench had 18 points in total, and they came up big, especially with Josiah Allick and Mast getting into foul trouble.

An example of this was the play of Matar Diop. He had two points and a rebound in six minutes of play. Those weren’t exactly incredible numbers, but he was able to hold down the fort while the starters got  rest. Jamarques Lawrence provided the energy offensively for the bench group, scoring nine points in total.

The play of the bench is going to be important from here on out. If Nebraska basketball wants to go far in the NCAA tournament, they need to have continued strong contributions from guys like Lawrence offensively. Sam Hoiberg is a key piece defensively for that unit as well. He had eight points, but his ability to guard the perimeter came in handy on Saturday and kept Nebraska close. He too will be a linchpin for this Nebraska basketball team in order for them to make a deep March run.