Nebraska MBB: Husker Show Grit in Win over Green Wave

By Shamus McKnight, Associate Media Relations Director, University of Nebraska,

"Lincoln – Nebraska made the stops down the stretch when it had to, as the Huskers pulled out a 61-57 win over Tulane Wednesday night in the Joe Cipriano Nebraska Classic.

Nebraska, which improved to 4-0 for the first time since the 2008-09 campaign, didn’t allow a field goal during the final seven minutes to overcome a 55-52 deficit to remain unbeaten.

“We talked to our guys and told them it was going to be a tough game,” Nebraska Coach Tim Miles said. “It was a gritty win. I thought we did enough on defense. They (Tulane) were in control the first 10-12 minutes of the second half, but I thought we buckled down at the end and played gritty defense and made enough hustle plays to hang in there.”

Trailing 55-52, the Huskers held Tulane (3-2) scoreless for nearly five minutes, as seniors Dylan Talley and Andre Almeida supplied the offense. Talley’s runner in the lane with 5:43 left pulled NU within one before Almeida, who did not attempt a field goal for the first 35 minutes, gave the Huskers 56-55 lead on a mid-range jumper that kissed off the glass.

Almeida and Talley then combined on NU’s biggest offensive play down the stretch, as Talley found Almeida wide open for a dunk to put Nebraska up 59-57 with 1:45 left.

On Tulane’s next possession, the Green Wave got an offensive rebound and regained possession with 1:07 left. On the in bounds play, Jordan Callahan was fouled attempting a 3-pointer.  Callahan, a career 73 percent shooter from the line, missed all three attempts and NU got possession, but could not capitalize.

Tulane had two chances to tie or take the lead in the final minute, as Josh Davis, who led all players with 19 points and 12 rebounds, could not hit a jumper to tie the game with 21 seconds left before Callahan, who finished with 16 points including a trio of 3-pointers, missed another jumper with five seconds remaining. Thomas Bruha got the offensive rebound after Callahan’s miss, but traveled to give NU possession.

Ray Gallegos then stepped to the line and hit both free throws with three seconds remaining to provide the margin of victory.

Gallegos and Talley led four Huskers in double figures with 14 points each, while Almeida scored nine of his 10 points in the second half and added six rebounds and four blocked shots. Brandon Ubel was the fourth Husker in double figures as he finished with 12 points.

Early on, Nebraska used strong long-range shooting to build a 33-28 halftime lead. The Huskers went 7-of-10 from 3-point range in the opening 20 minutes and built a 22-13 lead after a Mike Peltz 3-pointer. NU led 25-17 after a Gallegos’ 3-pointer, but Tulane roared back, using an 8-2 spurt to pull within 27-25 after a Ricky Tarrant 3-pointer. Tulane pulled within 30-28 before Talley’s 3-pointer gave the Huskers a five-point lead heading into the break.

NU held Tarrant in check, as the preseason All-Conference USA pick had eight points on 3-of-12 shooting.

The Huskers built a 39-32 lead after a 3-point play from Benny Parker with 17:42 left, but a Callahan 3-pointer started an 8-0 run for Tulane, as the Green Wave took a 40-39 lead after a Callahan jumper in the lane and neither team enjoyed more than a one-possession lead until the final seconds.

The Huskers will complete the five-game home stand Saturday night, as they host Kent State at the Devaney Center. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. and tickets are available for as little as $5 by visiting Huskers.com or calling 800-8-BIGRED, as Nebraska looks to clinch the Joe Cipriano Nebraska Classic championship.

Nebraska Notes 

*-Nebraska improves to 4-0 for the first time since the 2008-09 season with tonight’s win.
 

*-Nebraska went 10-of-19 from 3-point range which was a season high. Prior to tonight’s game, the Huskers had just 11 3-pointers in their first three game
 

*-Freshman Benny Parker dished out a career-high seven assists and had just one turnover in 31 minutes. The Huskers also dished out a season-best 15 assists
 

*-Andre Almeida finished with 10 points, marking his second straight game in double figures. Almeida, who had nine of his 10 points in the second half, also blocked a season-best four shots. It marked the seventh time in his career he has blocked three or more shots in a game. Almeida also played a career-high 25 minutes for NU.
 

*-The Huskers shot 50 percent for the second time in four games, going 20-of-40 from the field.
 

*-Nebraska was 2-of-7 from the line in the first half, but went 9-fo-12 after halftime
 

*-Shavon Shields made his Husker debut after missing Nebraska’s first four games with an elbow injury
 

*-Mike Peltz’s 3-pointer in the first half marked his first career points as a Husker
 

*-Ray Gallegos tied his career high with four 3-pointers, which he also had against Valparaiso on Nov. 15.
 

*-Tulane’s 57 points was a season low, as its previous low was 61 against Georgia Tech on Nov. 9.
 

*-Nebraska had four players in double figures for the second straight game

Nebraska Head Coach Tim Miles
 

On the early-season drama
 

“We talked to our guys and told them it was going to be a tough game. It was a gritty win. I thought we did enough on defense. Tulane did a great job in the second half. They got off to a slow start, but didn’t let us get away from them. And then in the second half, they were in control the first 10-12 minutes of the second half, but I thought we buckled down at the end and played gritty defense and made enough hustle plays to hang in there.”

On Tulane’s comeback
 

“I was thinking ‘are we just going to hang our heads and go away or are we going to find a way to make plays to win this game?’ I was proud that we found a way to win the game.”

On how difficult it was to keep Tulane off the boards
 

“It was with (Josh) Davis for sure. He was a nightmare. He’s so active and long and quick to the ball that he was a major problem for us. He also opens up plays for other guys. I think he was the major cause of it. We didn’t do a great job on the glass. I wasn’t pleased with 11 offensive rebounds. That’s way too many.”

On Andre Almeida’s play down the stretch
 

“I thought Andre was good at the end. I thought our starters were the best group the whole night just because of foul trouble and knowing that was our best group. We had to manage it to get to the last seven, eight minutes of the game and be able to play them.”

On if the 3-pointers came more out of the flow of the offense tonight
 

“I thought we played okay on offense. You can shoot the ball well and not play very good offense. When you look at our field goal percentage, that’s a really good offensive night. But we didn’t play that good of offense. We just shot well.”

On if the close games will springboard the team going forward
 

“I don’t think it’s going to change for a while, hopefully. This is how we are going to play. It’s going to be that way. You have to finish with a flourish. You’ve got to concentrate on the fundamentals and the process, not to worry about the outcome. If we can do that, we’ll be okay.”

Nebraska Guard Dylan Talley
 

On how happy he is to come away with the win
 

"I'm very happy. We didn't play our best game by any means. We were out rebounded by a tough team. They were tough on the boards all night, but we still found a way to come out with the win. We toughed it out. I'm proud of our team and just happy we got the win."

On whether or not this win will help them "get winning in their system" as Coach Miles puts it
 

"Definitely. This is a game that will help our confidence, because we know we can get better. We know we did a lot of things wrong. We did some things well, but we competed for 40 minutes against a tough team that didn't let up for 40 minutes. They were coming at us the whole night. We competed and toughed out a win. It will boost our confidence and help us win again. "

On whether or not there is more offensive flow after four games
 

"Yes it's getting a lot better, but we could get even better. From where we started to now, we have definitely gotten better. We just have to keep on working."

On whether or not Coach Miles challenged the team to match Tulane's intensity in the first half with rebounding
 

"Definitely. He told us to play like men and try to keep the lane players off the backboard. It was tough because they had some physical players and they just didn't let up. They were strong physical players, but we competed and fought to the end. That is what I love about our team; we just keep on fighting."

Nebraska Center Andre Almeida
 

On if it is true that he has extended his shooting range
 

"A little bit. That is something I have been working on. Coach Miles has been telling me that if you get wide open, just shoot the ball."

On whether or not he hesitated with the three
 

"No, I have been working on it, especially this summer. I worked on it during open gyms and in practice. I'm trying to get more comfortable with those jump shots and not hesitate."

On how his free throw game has been improving
 

"Yes. I have changed my shot a little bit. Coach said if you want to change it go ahead, but just stay with it. He said sometimes you're going to struggle a little bit, but just stay with it. It is something where I have been trying to get in a few extra drills on after practice. As a post man you're going to get a lot of fouls and you have to be able to make those free throws. Today was a good free throw shooting day."

On how important it is for the team to get those foul calls
 

"You have to attack other teams, bottom line. You have to be the aggressor if you want to win the game. I think the second half we did a better job attacking the glass and getting those fouls. Also by attacking the glass it opens up other possibilities like an open shot."

On whether or not it was hard to keep composure with the 37 fouls called in the game
 

"No. You have to stay with it. You have to keep playing. If you want to win basketball games, if you want to win on the road, if you want to play in the Big Ten, if you lose it in a two- or three- minute span they can open up a big lead, so you have to stay focused."

On how tough it was to stop Josh Davis
 

"We knew he was going to be athletic and aggressive. He is a great competitior. He was always going to the glass. He plays hard all the time and we knew we had to take some of his game away to win this game. I think we did a decent job. He's a good basketball player and he will not go with zero points. I think we did a decent job."

Tulane Head Coach Ed Conroy
 

On scoring two points in the last seven minutes 

“We just didn’t execute down the stretch. We didn’t take advantage of the opportunities that we had, whether it was free throws at the line or out-of-bounds situations. We just didn’t execute the way that we needed to. That’s why we play these games and go on the road, but we will get better; we have to get better. We needed a better performance tonight down the stretch”

On Nebraska shooting so well going 7-for-10 on three-point shots but still being in the game so close 

“I will credit Nebraska because I thought that they, offensively, shot the ball better than they have and obviously from the perimeter. That made it tough because they’ve got great size inside. I credit Nebraska. They had a good shooting performance and our guys for fighting back and putting ourselves in position where if we execute a couple things down the stretch and make some free throws then there’d be a different outcome.”

On Tulane’s rebounding 

“I don’t think there is any question that we showed improvement. We just have to put it all together. We certainly challenge our team in conversion defense and getting on the glass. I thought that Tomas Bruha played his best game of the year and really inspired some efforts to go get some extra possessions for us at the end; he played twenty three minutes. I thought Josh Davis played fantastic on the offensive glass. That’s what we need. I’m proud of our guys but like I said we just have to execute better down the stretch.”

On Jordan Callahan and going 0-for-three in free throws with 1:05 left 

“Yes. That’s the guy that we want at the line. That was something that we executed very well coming out of bounds. We need to get some points on that possession. I believe Jordan will make those every time.”

On what he told the team in the locker room and whether they are hurting 

“They are. The staff is hurting. Everybody put a lot into it and they’re hurting right now, rightfully so. This is one that we need to fine tune some things and get ourselves into position like that again and we may have a shot.”

On the upcoming game on Saturday against Southern 

“We need everybody to come out and see that this is a team that’s going to grow each game and all through the year. We appreciate all of the support on Saturday. Southern is a team that is not an easy offense, that’s for sure.”