In an effort to sort every Division 1 men’s basketball team, Ken Pomeroy ranks all 362 of them on his website, kenpom.com. He measures offensive and defensive efficiency and strength of schedule, among other things. Before tip-off Friday night, Nebraska was 57th, while the Huskers’ opponent, South Carolina State, entered the game rated 335th.
The game was not as close as the score indicated.
NU dominated from start to finish in a 91-62 rout. The Huskers sprinted to a 12-0 start built with inside and outside shooting as well as strong interior defense. They led 50-11 at halftime and held the Bulldogs to just 11.9% from the field in the first 20 minutes.
The Bulldogs did not score until hitting a 3 almost six full minutes into the contest. They missed their first 11 attempts from the floor before finally scoring.
Brice Williams led the way in the first half with 12 points and six rebounds, finishing with 16 and seven. CJ Wilcher led all scorers with 18 points off the bench. Josiah Allick filled up the stat sheet with 10 points, seven rebounds, and four assists, and was +30 in his 19 minutes. Eli Rice took advantage of 24 minutes on the floor by adding 10 points.
Nebraska’s five starters played an average of just 16.8 minutes per game, down almost 10 minutes per player. After staking NU to that huge lead, they gave way to more playing time for some reserves. Eleven players saw minutes for Fred Hoiberg in the first half and extensive action in the second, including Rice, Boogie Coleman, Matar Diop, and Cale Jacobsen.
Leading rebounder Rienk Mast did not play as he is recovering from minor knee surgery. Hoiberg hopes to have Mast back on the floor in January.
With the victory, the Huskers finished their non-conference slate with a 10-1 record. Since World War II, it is just the fifth time NU lost just once outside of regular season conference play.
Nebraska hosts Indiana on Wednesday, January 3.