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    IU basketball: Indiana at Nebraska game day essentials

    Mike SchumannBy IU Basketball 7 Comments
    BLOOMINGTON, IN - JANUARY 10, 2021 - guard Rob Phinisee #10 of the Indiana Hoosiers during the game between the Nebraska Huskies and the Indiana Hoosiers at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, NE. Photo by Missy Minear/Indiana Athletics

    Game Day Essentials

    Indiana (12-4, 3-3) at Nebraska (6-12, 0-7)

    • Tip Time: 6:00 p.m. Eastern
    • Location: Pinnacle Bank Arena (15,500), Lincoln, Neb.
    • Television: BTN (Jeff Levering and Raphael Davis)
    • IU Radio Network: IU Radio Network
    • Stream:  Fox Sports Live
    • Point Spread: Indiana is an 8-point favorite
    • KenPom Projected Score: Indiana W, 77-67
    • Series: Indiana leads 17-7, Hoosiers won 68-55 on Dec. 4.

    Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Legacy Game

    The Nebraska and Indiana men’s basketball programs will honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during their matchup.

    As part of festivities, both programs will wear identical special-edition DREAM warm-up shirts. The game will also feature in-game graphics and announcements honoring the contributions and legacy of Dr. King.

    “We appreciate Coach Mike Woodson and the Indiana program helping us to recognize the contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on this special day,” Nebraska men’s basketball coach Fred Hoiberg said. “When I think about Dr. King’s legacy, it is the courage he showed while working toward justice and equality for all people and using his platform in mobilizing people to create positive change.”

    “His legacy is what I call the greatest,” said Indiana Men’s Basketball Coach Mike Woodson. “He is the GOAT to me in terms of somebody who risked their life to help people understand the importance of unity and getting along. He fought for equal rights. I should be able to go into the banks. I should be able to sit anywhere on a bus ride. I should be able to go into any restaurant and eat. That is his legacy. He fought for that so those that follow never will have to experience the inequities again. I can promise you that.”

    Three Keys from the First Meeting

    Indiana defeated Nebraska 68-55 on Dec. 4.  Here were our three keys to that IU win.

    1. A spark from the bench.  Indiana was a mess in the first half, down 16-6 with 10:21 remaining.  But the bench scored IU’s next 13 points and during that five minute span the Hoosiers pulled to within 20-18.  Anthony Leal, Tamar Bates, Jordan Geronimo and Michael Durr all scored during the run.  Overall the bench scored 26 points after providing just 10 against Syracuse earlier in the week.  Rob Phinisee also added five points and three assists.

    2. A bounce-back defensive effort.  Nebraska came into the game averaging 80 points a contest while shooting 45 percent from the field, but were held to 55 points on 37.7 percent shooting on the afternoon.  Bryce McGowens came in averaging 18.5 per contest but was held to eight points on 3-of-14 shooting.  Nebraska had just nine assists against 14 turnovers.

    3. A balanced attack, and effective from three.  Indiana proved it can win even when Trayce Jackson-Davis has a relatively quiet game in the scoring column.  The Hoosiers had five with at least eight points, but no one with more than 14.  Jackson-Davis had a team high 14 points on just 11 field goal attempts.  Bates had 13 off the bench.  The Hoosiers were 8-of-22 from three, good for 36.4 percent. It is the fifth straight game IU has been above 36 percent from long range, and they are now 37.4 percent on the season.

    Nebraska Notes

    • Nebraska’s Trey McGowens and Indiana’s Xavier Johnson were teammates at Pitt for two seasons (2018-20). Johnson originally signed with Nebraska in 2017, but decommitted from the Huskers in the spring of 2018 and eventually signed with Pitt. McGowens returned to practice on Jan. 12, and could make his first appearance since
      Nov. 16.  He had 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists in the meeting against Indiana last year.
    • Derrick Walker Jr. is one of only six players nationally averaging double figures while shooting at least 70 percent from the field as of Jan. 15. Walker is shooting 70.9 percent from the field this season, which is on pace to break NU’s single-season mark. Walker had shot 50 percent in 13 of the last 14 games before.
    • Nebraska has been shooting the ball better of late, making .464 percent from the floor, including .403 from 3-point range, over the past six games dating back to Dec. 22. NU is averaging 8.3 3-pointers per game in that stretch.
    • Nebraska guard Bryce McGowens ranks third nationally among all true freshmen in scoring at 15.5 points per game. McGowens is one of only three true freshmen nationally averaging at least 15 points per game as of Jan. 15.
    • Alonzo Verge’s three games with 10+ assists tie for fifth nationally, and matches the most by any power conference player in 2021-22.
    • Nebraska has produced a total of ten 20-point efforts this season (Bryce McGowens-4; Alonzo Verge Jr.-4; Kobe Webster-1; Keisei Tominaga-1).
    • Nebraska has been opportunistic on the defensive end, forcing a Big Ten high 15.3 turnovers per game as of Jan. 15. NU ranks second in steals (7.8 spg) and ranks fourth in turnover margin (+2.5 per game). NU has 10-or-more steals five time this season.
    • The addition of Keisei Tominaga has helped the Huskers’ 3-point shooting. The 6-foot-2 guard is fourth on the team in scoring at 8.1 points per game while connecting on a team-high 33 3-pointers entering the Indiana game. He has also committed just six turnovers in 380 minutes this season.

    The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”

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