Huskers dominate No. 25 Hoosiers in 66-51 road victory

Despite a 12-4 start to the season, the one glaring hole in Nebraska’s early NCAA Tournament resume was the lack of a signature Big Ten Conference victory.

That void was filled in a major way on Monday night.

The Huskers never trailed and led by as many as 18 points before handing No. 25 Indiana a 66-51 upset, the Hoosiers’ first home loss of the season.

Senior point guard Glynn Watson scored 12 of his team-high 15 points in the second half while senior guard James Palmer Jr. nearly posted a triple-double with 11 points, nine rebounds, and seven assists.

Romeo Langford (18) and Juwan Morgan (17) combined to score 35 of IU’s 51 points, which were the Hoosiers’ lowest total of the season and 26 under their scoring average.

Indiana (12-5 overall, 3-3 Big Ten) came into the game leading the conference and ranked second nationally in field goal percentage at 52 percent, but it shot just 36 percent from the field on Monday and was just 2-of-14 from 3-point range.

“I’m so proud of the kids,” head coach Tim Miles said on his post-game radio show on the Husker Sports Network. “You say, hey, here’s the game plan, here’s what we need to do, and obviously we wanted to set the tone early and get (the fans) out of the game: Bang. Check.

“Move the ball and get quality looks: Check. Rebound: Check. They were really tough.”

Nebraska (13-4, 3-3) couldn’t have asked for a better opening 10 minutes, as it got things going by making its first four shots while Indiana missed its first five to take a 9-0 lead out of the gates.

Three straight baskets by senior Isaac Copeland and a six-minute scoring drought by the Hoosiers later sparked a 16-2 run that gave NU a commanding 26-9 advantage with nine minutes left in the half.

But as hot as the Huskers started, they quickly went ice-cold on offense, missing 12 of their next 13 shots and going seven minutes without making a field goal. That allowed Indiana to steadily go on a 13-1 run of its own and pull within 26-20 with just over a minute remaining.

A 3-pointer by Copeland and a walk-off dunk by Palmer finally ended the slump and got the lead back up to 31-22 at halftime.

Indiana quickly got back within six less than three minutes into the second half, and a 3-pointer by Devonte Green made it 35-32. But Watson provided a spark with back-to-back 3-pointers to push the lead back up to 11 with 14 minutes remaining.

Watson scored two more buckets to help NU go on a 17-6 run after Indiana cut it to three, as he accounted for 10 of the Huskers’ first 19 points to open the second half.

The lead got back up to 15 on a 3-pointer by sophomore Thomas Allen with 8:25 to play, and Nebraska would stay up by double-digits the rest of the way before settling on the 16-point victory.

“They were all just happy,” Miles said of the Huskers’ mood in the locker room after the win. “It wasn’t over-jubilant, there wasn’t any Gatorade bath or anything crazy. It was just a very happy, almost relieved team, and I think a more confident team, too…

“It’s a hell of a win, and I’m just really happy for the guys,” Miles said. “It really gave us a shot of confidence.”

Allen scored eight of his 10 points after halftime, including going 2-for-2 from behind the arc. Senior center Tanner Borchardt chipped in some valuable production off the bench, finishing with seven points, five rebounds, and a steal in 17 minutes.

Nebraska, which had been dominated on the boards thus far in Big Ten play, ended with a 40-31 rebounding advantage and an 11-9 edge on the offensive glass.

The Huskers will return home on Thursday night to host No. 6 Michigan State for a 7 p.m. CT tip that will be televised on FS1.

“I started watching Michigan State film the other night but then turned on The Shining to make myself feel better," Miles joked.

1. Statement made

Looking back on last season, maybe the biggest reason Nebraska was held out of the NCAA Tournament was its lack of Quadrant 1 victories, especially not having one away from Pinnacle Bank Arena. Not only was this win huge in terms of getting NU’s swagger back on track, it now jumps to the top as the signature piece of the Huskers’ postseason resume so far. Despite now having lost three straight, Indiana is a high-quality team that will almost certainly find itself once again firmly in the Big Dance, so a road win in Assembly Hall carries significant weight and answers the most common gripe about Nebraska of, “Who have they beaten?”

2. Watson was clutch

In a difficult road environment and his team on the brink of blowing an 18-point lead, Watson stepped up when Nebraska needed him the most and provided a game-changing lift in the second half. He scored just three points in the first half, but the senior knocked down consecutive 3-pointers after Indiana pulled within three with 15 minutes remaining. Watson ended up scoring 10 of NU’s final 29 points and was as much of a reason for keeping the game in control as anyone. On top of that, his 15 points and two steals moved him up to No. 16 and sixth on the school’s career scoring and steals lists, respectively.

3. Borchardt came up big

One of the most pressing concerns facing Nebraska all year has been the lack of depth in its bench rotation. In fact, that issue was as glaring as ever last time out vs. Penn State, when the starting five played all 20 minutes of the second half. But even after making an unexpected visit to the dentist before the game and learning he’d need a root canal once he got back to Lincoln, Borchardt toughed it out and provided a huge boost with his 17 minutes off the bench. With both Copeland and Isaiah Roby dealing with foul trouble, Borchardt stepped in and scored seven points on 3-of-4 shooting with five rebounds and a steal for an efficiency rating of +11.