Huskers Falter In Overtime at Iowa

Brice Williams tied the game with a three-pointer at the buzzer to end regulation, but the Huskers suffered a 97-87 setback in overtime at Iowa on Tuesday night.

Nebraska dropped to 12-3 (2-2 B1G) on the season, while the Hawkeyes improved to 11-4 (2-2 B1G).

Williams carried the Huskers, scoring 28 points on 10-of-20 shooting to go with four rebounds, a pair of steals and two assists. Juwan Gary collected a double-double with 13 points and 13 boards, while Rollie Worster chipped in 14 points on six-of-nine shooting from the floor.

Iowa jumped out to a 13-6 lead in the first four minutes after connecting on its first three three-point attempts. The Big Red responded with a three by Berke Buyuktuncel and layups from Gary and Williams to lock the game at 13 with 12 minutes left in the half. 

Trailing 26-20 with seven minutes left in the half, the Huskers went on a 14-0 run over the next 5:38 to grab an eight-point advantage. Treys from Connor Essegian and Williams tied it up at 26, while Worster and Andrew Morgan combined for the next eight points to make it a 34-26 game with 1:18 left in the opening half.

A pair of buckets from the Hawkeyes in the final two minutes had Nebraska out front with a 34-31 lead at the half.

The Huskers raced out the gates in the second half with an 18-6 run to take a 52-37 lead with 14:54 left in the game.

Nebraska held a 59-49 lead after a layup by Morgan with 10:53 remaining, but a 15-5 run from the Hawkeyes locked the game at 64 with five minutes to go.

The Hawkeyes led 74-70 late in the game until a three-point jumper by Williams brought the Huskers within 74-73 with 1:04 remaining.

A pair of free throws grew the lead to 76-73 for Iowa with five seconds left. With three seconds remaining, Williams caught the inbounds pass at midcourt, took one dribble and drilled the game-tying three-pointer at the buzzer to send the game into overtime tied at 76.

The Hawkeyes scored the first nine points of the extra period to take an 85-76 lead with 3:04 to go. Worster converted one-of-two free throws to bring the Huskers within six with 1:18 to play, but the Hawkeyes shut down any chance of a rally from the Big Red to hold on for a 97-87 win on Tuesday.

Nebraska returns to the court this weekend, as the Huskers venture to West Lafayette, Ind., for a matchup on the road at No. 20 Purdue on Saturday. Tip-off between the Big Red and Boilermakers is set for 11 a.m. CT on BTN, while fans can listen to Kent Pavelka and Jake Muhleisen on the Huskers Radio Network.

Nebraska Postgame Notes vs. Iowa
*-This was Nebraska’s first overtime game of the season, and the Huskers dropped to 67-57 all-time in OT games. 
*-Brice Williams finished with 28 points, his seventh 20th-point night of the season and the 23rd of his career. He has now reached double figures for the 14th time in 15 games, and 18th in the last 19 games 
*-Juwan Gary finished with his first double-double of the season and seventh of his career with 13 points and 13 rebounds. Gary’s 13 rebounds were the most by a Husker this season. The previous high was 12 by Andrew Morgan against Murray State. 
*-Nebraska with a 14-0 run in the first half, marking the Huskers’ 14th double-figure run of the season.
*-Nebraska held Iowa to a season-low 31 first-half points, as Iowa’s previous low was 33 against Washington State.