Huskers’ comeback effort stymied by last second 3-point shot

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – The Nebraska men’s basketball team lost its third-straight one-possession game Saturday, falling 67-65 to Minnesota at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

The Huskers overcame a 19-point deficit in the second half, battling all they way back to take a 1-point lead with nine seconds left in the game thanks to a Juwan Gary layup.

Minnesota pushed the ball up the court in a hurry, getting a wide-open 3-pointer from Brennan Rigsby to give the Gophers the lead with four seconds left.

A half-court heave from Andrew Morgan at the buzzer was no-good, and the Gophers escaped PBA with a win.

As a team, the Huskers shot 44% from the field and only 25% from deep. The Gophers shot a solid 51% from the floor and 48% from beyond the arc.

Nebraska also went 11-for-20 from the free throw line.

The Huskers were able to crawl back into the game on the defensive side of the floor, forcing 14 turnovers and capitalizing off their efforts with 19 points.

Brice Williams and Gary led the Huskers with 21 points each. Williams also dished out a team-high two assists.

Berke Buyuktuncel, Connor Essegian, Morgan and Gary each grabbed five rebounds, while Sam Hoiberg and Morgan also had two assists.

Rigsby led the Gophers with 20 points on 7-for-8 shooting. He was 5-for-6 from beyond the arc. Lu’cye Patterson racked up 16 points and five boards.

With this loss, it puts a dent in the Huskers NCAA Tournament chances. Brice Williams feels some things have to change.

“We’re not going to be there if we don’t handle today. Something got to change, we’re going to have to come out,” said Williams. “We have the ability. We have the want. We got to have more consistency.”

Nebraska will likely have their backs against the wall these last two games, and coach Fred Hoiberg is taking this game by game. “We’ve got two more opportunities to put the uniform on, guaranteed,” said Hoiberg. “After that, there’s nothing for certain at this point.”

Nebraska will head to Columbus for a rematch with Ohio State. The last time these two squads met, Nebraska took down the Buckeyes 79-71.

Tipoff for that game will be Tuesday at 8 p.m. on Peacock.