Nebraska falls to Clemson at buzzer, 60-58

Tai Webster had a wide-open look on a runner with a chance to tie the game at the buzzer, but the shot bounced off the back of the rim to seal a 60-58 loss for Nebraska at Clemson on Wednesday night.

Despite 17 turnovers, a 20-10 foul discrepancy and a 22-7 disadvantage in free throw attempts, the Huskers went toe-to-toe with the Tigers in their first true road game of the season, which was part of the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

After falling behind by five with eight minutes remaining in the game, sophomores Glynn Watson and Edward Morrow helped NU rally back and tie it at 58-58 with a 3-pointer by Watson with 1:33 left to play.

But Nebraska was called for traveling after a mad scramble with 6.9 seconds to go, and Clemson’s Avry Holmes added another free throw to give the Tigers a two point lead with 5.7 remaining. After a timeout, Webster had a great look to tie it, but the shot was off the mark.

With the loss, the Huskers dropped their third straight game and fell to 4-3 on the year after an impressive 4-0 start.

“We ran a set to try and get Tai or Glynn loose, either way, and Tai got a bit of a awkward shot, laid it on the rim, and it fell off,” head coach Tim Miles said during his post-game radio show.

It was sloppy on both ends of the floor to open the game, as Nebraska and Clemson combined for 13 turnovers in the first 11 minutes.

The Huskers finally settled in offensively and reeled off an 8-0 run capped off by a steal and layup by Webster that made it 16-8.

Webster and Watson scored 15 of NU’s first 20 points on the night, and a layup by junior guard Evan Taylor would eventually give the Huskers their biggest lead of the half at 24-15 with six minutes remaining.

Clemson would make just one field goal over a span of a full six and a half minutes, but the Tigers slowly chipped away at the lead with the help of an eight-point advantage at the free throw line, sending it into halftime with Nebraska leading 31-27.

“We were fortunate to be up four, because we hadn’t played that well in that two or three minute stretch (at the end of the half),” Miles said.

Clemson carried that momentum over after halftime putting an 11-2 run together from the end of the first half into the start of the second.

The combo of Webster and Watson would help Nebraska keep pace, but the Huskers would end up going more than three minutes without a point and the Tigers claimed their first lead since the five-minute mark of the first half at 45-44 with 11 minutes to go.

The Tigers eventually expanded their lead to 53-48 with seven minutes remaining, but some tough points by Watson and Morrow pulled NU back to within one at 55-54 with 3:37 to play.

With 1:33 left, Watson hit his biggest shot of the night by burying a 3-pointer to tie it up at 58-58.

Donte Grantham would make one of two free throws with 1:22 to put Clemson back up one, and after a pair of defensive stops by both teams, Nebraska had the ball with the shot clock turned off and a chance to win it.

But the possession turned into a loose ball situation and junior guard Anton Gill ended up with it and subsequently traveled to give the Tigers the ball back with 5.7 left.

Miles said he wanted to take a timeout if the initial first shot look wasn’t there, but timeouts during live action must be called by a player, and it never happened.

“They missed, and if Glynn could come down and make a play like he did against Dayton we wanted to let him,” Miles said. “We had told Tai to call timeout … I haven’t talked to Tai, whether I couldn’t get his attention or not.”

Holmes made one of two free throws, and Webster’s final attempt missed its mark at the buzzer to end the game.

Watson led the Huskers with a game-high 20 points, while Morrow posted a double-double with 10 points and a career-high 12 rebounds. Webster chipped in 12 points, while sophomore forward Michael Jacobson set season highs with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

“I told the guys, first of all I’m really encouraged by their play,” Miles said. “This was a veteran team and they’re a team that’s highly ranked in the RPI and they’re a possible NCAA (Tournament) team, and we knew it was going to be a war.

“For those guys just to really battle - and if we can get any of our 3-point shooters going I think we could be a tough team to beat. We just haven’t… There were just plays that we could make that we maybe don’t, and I think we will as the year goes on.”