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Nebraska Basketball: 3 keys for Cornhuskers to win against Penn State

By Bryan Mauro

Jan 10, 2023; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Fred Hoiberg watches action against the Illinois Fighting Illini in the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 10, 2023; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers head coach Fred Hoiberg watches action against the Illinois Fighting Illini in the second half at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports /
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Nebraska Basketball guard Sam Griesel Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports
Nebraska Basketball guard Sam Griesel Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports /

All Hands on Deck

Nebraska is unlike any other team in the Big Ten in the regard that they do not have a single player that can take over a game on the offensive end. It is imperative for Nebraska to take good shots, not turn the ball over and get contributions from the entire roster. The Huskers beat Ohio State in Lincoln on Wednesday night and in that game every player who recorded a minute in the game scored and Nebraska needed every one of those points. Nebraska will need a similar effort against Penn State on the offensive end.

The offense was never supposed to be this anemic this year as the Huskers do have some guys who have shown they can be reliable offensive players. Those players mainly Emmanuel Bandoumel and CJ Wilcher have not played very well on that end of the floor as of late. Bandoumel is struggling to hit any open shots right now, and Wilcher, who is supposed to be the three-point specialist is not hitting his threes at a very reliable clip.

Coach Hoiberg is confident that those players will eventually get going but while they are not going as they need to Nebraska has had to get creative on offense. To be honest, the creativity has not worked much and it has been a lot of Sam Griesel and Derrick Walker trying to beat teams. 2 on 5 on the offensive end will never work.

To further complicate matters for Nebraska, it was just announced that their most skilled offensive player, and a player who can do a lot on the offensive end of the floor. Juwan Gary is out for the season because he needs shoulder surgery. That loss has forced Nebraska to play an unproven Freshman in Denim Dawson at the 4 spot. Dawson came up big against Ohio State, he hit a clutch three and had two acrobatic layups in the lane that was huge for Nebraska winning that game.

Dawson and fellow freshmen Jamarques Lawrence, Oleg Kojenets, and Wilhelm Breidenbach are going to need to be huge again for Nebraska to have a chance. Every single player that touches the floor for the Huskers will need to contribute as they did against Ohio State. If they can do that they will have a chance to win the game.

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