Husker Men pick up first Conference Road win at Indiana

Husker Men pick up first Conference Road win at Indiana
Courtesy/NU Media Relations
February 21st, 2024 | huskers.com

Jamarques Lawrence had a career-high 19 points, including six points and three assists in a decisive 14-1 second-half run, as Nebraska picked up a crucial 85-70 win at Indiana Wednesday night.

Lawrence played the best all-around game of his career, finishing with 19 points on 6-of-8 shooting, including a perfect 5-of-5 from 3-point range, while adding five assists and six rebounds, as Nebraska (19-8, 9-7 Big Ten) picked up its first conference road win.

Indiana had nearly erased a 22-point deficit and was within 59-56 with 11:27 remaining before Lawrence ignited the run with a 3-pointer before finding Juwan Gary and Josiah Allick on consecutive baskets to stretch the lead back to 10. The sophomore continued the run with another 3-pointer before he found Keisei Tominaga on a basket to give NU a 16-point lead with 6:19 left, and the Huskers led by double figures the rest of the night.

Keisei Tominaga led NU with 20 points, including four 3-pointers, while Brice Williams and Juwan Gary added 18 and 15 points, respectively. NU shot nearly 50 percent from the field and had 19 assists and just eight turnovers in the victory.

Mackenzie Mgbako led Indiana (14-12, 6-9) with 22 points while Kel’el Ware added 17 points and 12 rebounds.

Nebraska put together its best half of the season in the opening 20 minutes, shooting 57 percent from the floor, including 9-of-19 from 3-point range to take a 51-31 lead at the break. Tominaga had 18 first-half points, while Gary totaled 12 first-half points.

Nebraska got a quick start from Tominaga, as he hit a trio of 3-pointers in the first 5:01 as Nebraska built a 16-8 lead. The Huskers, who hit six of their first 11 from beyond the arc, extended the margin to 22-11 after a Gary 3-pointer with 12:01 left in the half forced a Hoosier timeout.

The Huskers eventually extended the lead to 40-22 after a Gary basket with 6:01 left before the Hoosiers mounted a comeback. Indiana used a 9-2 spurt over the next two minutes to pull within 42-31 after a Mgbako basket.

Nebraska, which held Hoosiers to 38 percent in the first 20 minutes, closed the half on 9-0 spurt as Brice Williams and Tominaga combined for all nine points as the Huskers took a 20-point lead into the locker room.

Nebraska extended the lead to 53-31 after a Brice Williams dunk on the opening play of the second half, but Indiana came out of the gate quickly, hitting 10 of its first 12 shots in the second half and used a 25-6 run to to cut NU’s 22-point lead to three points before the Huskers steadied the ship down the stretch.

The Huskers will return to action on Sunday, Feb. 25, as they host Minnesota. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. and the game will be televised on BTN and carried on the Huskers Radio Network.

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