Huskers outworked in win over Pine Bluff
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BY BRIAN ROSENTHAL / Lincoln Journal Star
Under no circumstances, Doc Sadler said, should an opposing basketball team come into the Devaney Sports Center and play harder than Nebraska.
That’s what Arkansas-Pine Bluff did during the first half Saturday.
“There can’t be a reason,” said Sadler, the Nebraska coach.
He qualified that statement.
“There can’t be a legit reason.”
Going back to your room for some shut-eye after an 8 a.m. shoot-around, and returning for a 1 p.m. tip-off, does not qualify as a legit reason. Some players, Sadler said, did that.
“We’ll get that corrected,” he said.
There were many things to correct from Nebraska’s 67-53 victory over a winless Arkansas-Pine Bluff team before a crowd of 6,221.
Improving energy from the opening tip would top the list.
“We probably just didn’t take them serious,” Nebraska junior guard Sek Henry said. “Maybe that was probably it.”
One player who may have had an excuse for lack of energy was Toney McCray. He’d been battling an intestinal illness since Tuesday and sat the entire second half. He played only eight minutes the first half, attempting no shots.
“He wasn’t into the game, and he has no energy,” Sadler said. “When I found out he hadn’t eaten anything all day long … you can’t play.”
McCray, a redshirted freshman, entered the game leading Nebraska (3-0) in scoring and rebounding.
“He’s a big part of our basketball team,” Sadler said, “and when he’s not able to be in to the game, or whatever, then that hurts us.”
Arkansas-Pine Bluff, coming off an 82-50 loss Thursday at Creighton, didn’t look like a team embarking on an 11-game road trip to start the season. The Golden Lions, who’ve also lost to Colorado and Texas A&M, took a 19-11 lead, scoring four times out of transition and collecting easy points in the paint.
Gavin Montgomery’s dunk — Arkansas-Pine Bluff’s fourth of the game — put the Golden Lions ahead 21-15.
“We just came out sluggish,” said Henry, one of two Huskers in double figures with 14 points. “We should’ve been more mentally focused. We can’t do that next time.”
Steve Harley, who led the Huskers with 18 points, made two free throws, then Henry collected a steal and layup, and attacked the basket again, drawing a foul and making two free throws to tie the game 21-21.
“The offense wasn’t really going right, so I just tried to be aggressive and get the offense going,” said Henry, who also had four steal and four assists. “Once it got going, I tried to distribute the ball, and it went pretty well after that.”
Ryan Anderson’s jumper off the glass put Nebraska ahead 24-22, and Henry’s three-pointer later gave the Huskers a 29-24 lead. The margin was 32-24 by halftime, and Nebraska turned up the defensive intensity in the second half, leading by as many as 21 points.
“When we get set,” Sadler said, “our defense is pretty good.”
Nebraska forced 23 turnovers, collecting 11 steals. But the need-to-work-on list is growing. It includes rebounding (Arkansas-Pine Bluff held a 33-27 advantage), free-throw shooting (NU was 18-of-27, or 66.7 percent) and having a bigger presence inside offensively (Nebraska was outscored by 10 in the paint).
“We’ve got to get the ball inside,” Sadler said. “It doesn’t matter if we don’t score. The ball has got to get inside, and we’ve got to understand that, and we’re still not getting that done.”
Nebraska hosts St. Louis on Tuesday, its final tune-up before Saturday’s in-state showdown with Creighton.
“Obviously, we’ve got a lot of work to do,” Sadler said, “but we’ve got some time to get that done.”
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
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