Nebraska Cornhuskers (18-16) vs Butler Bulldogs (16-16)

Wednesday, March 20, 2019 - 8 p.m. CT

Pinnacle Bank Arena

TV: ESPN2

Radio: Husker Sports Network

Internet: WatchESPN

1. Exploit the matchup

From a roster standpoint, Butler actually presents a pretty favorable matchup for Nebraska tonight. The Bulldogs' rotation only really consists of one true post player (Nate Fowler, 6-10/240), and their offense is heavily reliant on 3-point shooting (42.6 percent of their shots per game are threes) and they don't get to the free-throw line very often (their 25.1 free throw rate ranks 331st nationally). Butler has been good with its ball security (only a 16.2 turnover percentage), but it doesn't rebound well, especially on the offensive end (its 25.7 offensive rebounding percentage ranks 260th), and its defense has been mediocre all season (268th in effective field goal percentage defense at 52.7). The Huskers have to be as dialed in as they were in Chicago to pull this one out, but this is about as good as a 4 vs. 5 pairing as they could've asked for.

2. Adjust to the new rules

The NIT will once again be experimenting with some rule changes this year, most of which are similar to what Nebraska played under last year and a couple of others that were added for 2019. The carryover rules are: extending the 3-point line approximately 1 foot, 8 inches to the same distance used by FIBA (22 feet, 1.75 inches); widening the free-throw line from 12 to 16 feet (same as the NBA); and resetting the shot clock to 20 seconds after an offensive rebound instead of the full 30 seconds. The two new rules are that team fouls will reset at the 10-minute mark of each half for the purpose of determining free throw "bonus" situations, and one-and-one free throws will be eliminated, making it a two-shot bonus from the fifth team foul during each 10-minute segment. The foul/free throw changes are probably going to have the biggest impact on Nebraska, especially considering how important bonus situations are for an NU team so limited in its depth.

3. All hands on deck

Speaking of depth, the Huskers could enter the NIT somehow even more shorthanded than they already were in Chicago. Freshman center Brady Heiman hurt his back getting out of bed on Monday morning and did not practice the previous two days. He's questionable at best and likely doubtful for tonight. Pair that with Thomas Allen (ankle) expected to be out again and Amir Harris (knee) and Nana Akenten (suspension) already being ruled out, Nebraska would have five scholarship players and seven total available players vs. Butler. The only silver lining is that NU only played six guys in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal loss to Wisconsin and still almost won, and Heiman was a healthy scratch for that game due to matchups. Regardless, the Huskers will once again be asking a lot of the healthy players they still have left to carry such a huge load.

Nebraska 71-63

Robin's season record: 23-11

vs. the spread: 18-16