Nebraska basketball overwhelms Murray State as Huskers win in Honolulu

The ball went into the paint, and Nebraska swarmed.

When Murray State kicked out to the perimeter, the Huskers closed out and rotated.

It made for an uncomfortable experience for the Racers overwhelmed by Nebraskas length and opportunism and unable to get much of anything going offensively as NU skated to a 66-49 win to open the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu.

The Huskers advance to the semifinals and will face the winner of Charlotte and Hawaii on Monday.

As Nebraska hounded MSU on the perimeter and contested shots at the rim, the Racers shot 4-28 from the field in the first half, missing 10 layups, 12 3-pointers and six free throws while scoring 14 points.

Murray State didnt have anyone tall enough to handle Andrew Morgan on the low block.

The 6-foot-10 forward consistently got to his spots and used his nimble footwork to get to the rim.

People are also reading...

Sex offender arrested for not reporting change in employment New director transitioning to role at community food pantry Beatrice man pleads guilty to receiving child sex abuse images Former Beatrice man sentenced for sex assault of runaway At the courthouse, Dec.

21, 2024 At the courthouse, Dec.

14, 2024 Fresh round of transfer portal targets emerges for Nebraska, including at quarterback Gage County says board had authority to deny permit for broadband provider Commendations given to Beatrice Police Zitel pleads not guilty to sex assault, child abuse charges How former Nebraska quarterback Daniel Kaelin landed with Virginia football Meyn, charged in death of 4-month-old, has case continued to March Nebraska volleyball libero Lexi Rodriguez signs with LOVB's Omaha team Perspective is reality Matt Rhule and Nebraska football plan Pinstripe Bowl practice in Central Park He began one possession with the ball beyond the 3-point line and backed all the way down into the paint before laying it in.

On back-to-back possessions in the second half, he put a defender in the spin cycle for a layup and hit a smooth turnaround jumper.

The North Dakota State transfer ended the night with 12 points and 13 rebounds.

Nebraska outscored MSU in the paint 32-18 and out-rebounded the Racers 40-26.

The Huskers 15 turnovers prevented the score from being more lopsided, errant passes and sloppy dribbling keeping Murray State from being completely blown out.

The Racers cut the deficit to 12 points late in the game as they found their offensive foothold.

Their ball movement was crisper, their drives to the basket more forceful as they put up 35 points and shot 48.1% from the field with Nebraska in cruise control for much of the half.

Murray State didnt score until an Alden Applewhite 3-pointer more than four minutes into the game.

Nebraskas solid one-on-one defense on the perimeter set the tone as the Racers missed 15 of their first 16 shots, and Braxton Meah and Berke Buyuktuncel patrolled the paint against a small front line.

Nebraska turned defense into offense on an early 16-0 run.

Sam Hoiberg and Brice Williams both turned steals into fast-break layups as Connor Essegian heated up from 3-point range.

He splashed his first attempt of the evening from the corner, then knocked two more from close to the logo.

He had 15 points on 5-10 shooting from deep.

Get local news delivered to your inbox!.

This article has been shared from the original article on beatricedailysun, here is the link to the original article.