Huskers hold on for key road win over Rutgers

Facing what was essentially a must-win situation in order to keep its NCAA Tournament hopes alive, Nebraska toughed out a crucial 60-54 road victory over Rutgers on Wednesday night.

Behind the one-two punch of James Palmer Jr. and Isaac Copeland, who accounted for 41 of NU’s 60 points, the Huskers were able to take the lead in a back-and-forth game early in the second half and held on until the final buzzer.

With the win, Nebraska improves to 15-8 overall and 6-4 in Big Ten Conference play, keeping its Big Dance resume intact for another game with a valuable league road victory.

"That was a slugfest..." head coach Tim Miles said on his post-game radio show with the Husker Sports Network. "To come out and find a way to win I think is really important."

There wasn’t much offense to speak of from either team through much of the first half, as Nebraska missed five of its first six shots of the game and scored just eight points in the opening seven minutes of play yet still led 14-11 midway through the half.

While there wasn’t a lead larger than three points, Palmer and Copeland carried the Huskers by scoring 22 of their first 27 points on a combined 9-of-17 shooting to send NU into halftime with a 27-25 advantage.

Palmer and Copeland both had 11 points, and Glynn Watson added four of his 10 points in the first half, but outside of a free throw by Isaiah Roby, the rest of NU’s lineup was 0-for-6 from the field with five turnovers.

“It was a tough game,” Watson said. “Coach Miles told us it was going to be tough, it’s a road game, so we just had to come in and take it to them.”

The offense picked up to start the second half, and back-to-back 3-pointers by Palmer and Copeland sparked a 10-0 run with just under 15 minutes to play gave Nebraska the biggest lead yet at 41-32.

But from that point on Nebraska managed to make just one field goal and commit seven turnovers over the next seven minutes to allow Rutgers to cut the lead all the way down to 44-42 with just over eight minutes remaining.

Even though NU ended up going six minutes without making a shot, it was able to keep the Scarlet Knights at arm’s length with defense and free throws until a 3-pointer by Copeland pushed the lead back up to 49-42.

Once again, Rutgers was able to rally back and pull within 54-52 on a layup by Candido Sa with 1:16 to play. After a missed 3-pointer by Palmer, Copeland came up with one of the most important rebounds of the night to extend the possession with 47.2 left.

That led to a layup by Watson with 29 seconds left, and then Sa missed the front end of a one-and-one with 19.2 to go, but DeShawn Freeman grabbed the offensive board for another shot.

With a chance to make it a one-score game, Corey Sanders was called for a charge on Watson to give the Huskers the ball back, and after being fouled on the inbounds pass, Palmer knocked down two free throws with 12.1 on the clock.

“I just tried to stay aggressive,” Watson said. “I knew I hadn’t been shooting well and things like that, but Coach Miles told me to stay aggressive, and my teammates, they believe in me to stay aggressive. I had to do that and make sure to bring it on the defensive end if my offense isn’t going.”

Sanders scored a layup with 7.4 left to keep the game within reach, but Palmer again stepped up with two clutch free throws to put the victory away.

Copeland led all scorers with 23 points and seven rebounds, while Palmer finished with 18 points, six boards, four assists, and two blocks.

Watson, who had struggled mightily over the past few weeks, finally got back on track with 10 points, four rebounds, three assists, and a steal in 35 minutes of action. Roby also filled the final box score, posting eight points, eight boards, three steals and two blocks.

Sanders scored 14 points to lead Rutgers, which shot just 33.8 percent from the field and 2-of-12 from 3-point range. The Scarlet Knights did manage to haul in 20 offensive rebounds off of 43 missed shots, but it only resulted in a 14-11 edge in second-chance points.

Nebraska will return home on Saturday to play host to Iowa for a 7 p.m. on Big Ten Network.

1. Welcome back, Glynn

Much had been made about Watson’s recent slump, especially after scoring just two points on 1-of-9 shooting in a costly loss at Ohio State on Monday.

But the junior responded with one of his gutsiest performances of the season, and it made one of the biggest differences in Nebraska holding on for the win.

He only ended up with a modest 10 points, but Watson scored four of those on two crucial baskets in the final minutes. He also drew the charge on Sanders that led to two free throws by Palmer and all but sealed the game.

After the victory, Miles said Watson’s smile was the biggest in the locker room, as it should have been.

“He had an ear-to-ear grin, man,” Miles said. “That was so great to see. He feels pressure, and people are talking about it, writing about it - that’s natural to internalize that. So for him to come out and make really big plays … I was really proud of Glynn.”

2. Copeland gets back to form

It wasn’t just Watson who was a no-show at Ohio State, as Copeland also only managed five points in the loss, marking his second time scoring under double-figures in the past three games.

But the junior forward got back to his old self on Wednesday night, scoring a game-high 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting to go along with seven boards, and two blocks.

He also ended up posting a game-high +27 efficiency rating in 36 minutes of action.

Miles noted that he’s seen Copeland’s confidence growing with every game this season, and after two frustrating outings in the previous three contests, the former Georgetown transfer stepped up in a major way at Rutgers.

“Issac probably felt more confidence, hit a couple threes, had a couple inside scores that were strong for us,” Miles said. “And made some really nice defensive plays on (Deshawn) Freeman.

3. Survive and advance

There was nothing pretty about Nebraska’s win, but that doesn’t mean a thing.

All that concerns the Huskers at this point and through the rest of the season is stockpiling as many victories as possible - especially road wins - to bolster their final record for a potential NCAA Tournament at-large berth.

With eight games remaining, NU remains on track to make a strong push towards the Big Dance, especially with the favorable home-heavy backend of the schedule.

Big Ten Network analyst Andy Katz said during the broadcast that if Nebraska can pick up one or two more road wins - out of the remaining trips to Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois - and win out at home, it will end up in the tournament.

That’s obviously all much easier said than done, but even after a missed opportunity at Ohio State, the Huskers look to be right on track.