Hoops Game Day: Northwestern

in other news

BREAKING: Nebraska flips four-star WR Nalin Scott

Nebraska has flipped 2026 four-star receiver Nalin Scott.

• Steve Marik and Tim Verghese

FutureCast: Nebraska strikes again in the Sunshine State

A new FutureCast on a 4-star WR who has experienced one of the nation's most head-turning recruitments this offseason.

• John Garcia Jr. • Rivals.com

Brice Williams signs deal with Detroit Pistons

Former Nebraska basketball player Brice Williams signs deal with the Detroit Pistons.

• Steve Marik

Opponent Check: Houston Christian

Inside Nebraska's opponent check-in takes a look at Houston Christian and its key players.

• Steve Marik

Thursday Tim-Bits: Stock report on Nebraska's remaining 2026 targets

In this week's Thursday edition of Tim-Bits, we discuss where Nebraska stands with key 2026 targets

• Tim Verghese

in other news

BREAKING: Nebraska flips four-star WR Nalin Scott

Nebraska has flipped 2026 four-star receiver Nalin Scott.

• Steve Marik and Tim Verghese

FutureCast: Nebraska strikes again in the Sunshine State

A new FutureCast on a 4-star WR who has experienced one of the nation's most head-turning recruitments this offseason.

• John Garcia Jr. • Rivals.com

Brice Williams signs deal with Detroit Pistons

Former Nebraska basketball player Brice Williams signs deal with the Detroit Pistons.

• Steve Marik

Published Feb 16, 2019

Hoops Game Day: Northwestern

Robin Washut • InsideNebraska

Senior Writer

@RobinWashut

WHO, WHAT, WHERE, WHEN

Nebraska Cornhuskers (14-11, 4-10) vs Northwestern Wildcats (12-12, 3-10)

Saturday, Feb. 16, 2019 - 7:30 p.m. CT

Pinnacle Bank Arena

TV: BTN

Radio: Husker Sports Network

Internet: btn2go.com

Nebraska projected starters

NAME	HT/WT	YEAR	NOTES

Glynn Watson	6-0/180	Sr.	Scored 19 points on 8-of-16 shooting vs. Minnesota after scoring a total of 15 points over the previous four games.
Thomas Allen	6-1/184	So.	Finished with seven points, three assists, and a career-high nine rebounds in the win over Minnesota.
James Palmer Jr.	6-6/207	Sr.	Scored a team-high 24 points vs. Minnesota for his 12th 20-point games this season, the most by a Husker since Terran Petteway in 2014-15 (13).
Isaiah Roby	6-8/230	Jr.	Had six points, four boards, three assists, and two blocks in 36 minutes vs. Minnesota.
Tanner Borchardt	6-8/250	Sr.	Played 31 minutes vs. Minnesota but did not score a point, attempt a shot, or record a rebound, but had one assist.

Northwestern projected starters

NAME	HT/WT	YEAR	NOTES

Anthony Gaines	6-4/205	So.	Scoring 8.4 points per game and leads the team in with 3.1 assists per game.
Ryan Taylor	6-6/195	Sr.	Averages 11.5 points per game and has made a team-high 55 3-pointers on the season.
Vic Law	6-7/200	Sr.	Ranks first or second on the team in scoring (15.5, first), rebounding (6.7, second), assists (2.9, second), steals (1.1, first) and blocked shots (0.9, second).
Dererk Pardon	6-8/230	Sr.	Averages 13.7 ppg on 59 percent shooting while leading the team in rebounding (7.6 rpg) and blocks (1.0 bpg)
Barret Benson	6-10/240	Jr.	Averaging 2.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 0.3 blocks per game.

Embed content not available

3 KEYS TO VICTORY

1. Guards need to set the tone

Northwestern is an extremely veteran team with three seniors and a junior in its starting lineup, but there is a significant void on its roster. After losing four-year starter Bryant McIntosh to graduation last year, the Wildcats have been lacking a true point guard floor general to run the offense. As a result, Northwestern ranks second-to-last in the conference in scoring (67.7 ppg) and field goal percentage (41.2). Nebraska's talented backcourt needs to disrupt NW's rhythm with tough on-ball defense and force players who aren't natural ball handlers to operate under pressure. On the other end, the Wildcats do lead the league in 3-point defense (29.7 percent), so guys like Glynn Watson, James Palmer Jr., and Thomas Allen need to be on-point from behind the arc.

2. Slow down Law

While Northwestern lacks a quarterback for its offense, that doesn't mean it still doesn't have some dangerous firepower. Senior wing Vic Law tops the list of Nebraska's concerns coming into tonight, as he is the clear No. 1 scoring option for the Wildcats this season. At 15.5 points per game, Law leads his team and ranks ninth in the conference in scoring and has posted five 20-point efforts on the year. The 6-foot-7, 200-pounder is also playing his best basketball right now, averaging 20.1 points and 6.5 rebounds over the past two games. Like Palmer, Law is great at creating points at the free throw line, shooting 81.3 percent from the charity stripe.

3. Stay on the attack

Nebraska seems to be figuring itself out again more and more with every game it's played since losing Isaac Copeland for the season. Maybe the most encouraging adjustment yet came in Wednesday night's win over Minnesota, where the Huskers added some new dribble-drive actions that it hadn't really used that effectively since Terran Petteway. Some of the success of those wrinkles had to do with catching the Golden Gophers off guard since NU hadn't shown that on film all year, so chances are Northwestern will be more prepared for them tonight. But if nothing else, Nebraska needs to stick with that attacking mentality on offense and get downhill with the basketball. We've been saying it all year: the Huskers are at their best when they're going hard the basket, and that hasn't changed even if the lineups have.