FIRST HALF ANALYSIS:
There was a phenomenal pace to this contest, as the first media timeout didn’t happen until 7 minutes in. Pryce Sandfort would have 6 points for Nebraska in the early stages, while Kam Woods and Chad Baker-Mazara each had 5 for USC. The Trojans would commit a handful of turnovers over the next few minutes, which led to 6 Husker points. Sam Hoiberg committed his second foul with 11:40 to go in the half, and that turned the tide in USC’s favor.
The Huskers would look stagnant offensively, committing
7 turnovers after Hoiberg went to the bench, while the USC offensive looked way better. Sandfort would eventually reach double figures for the Huskers, while Baker-Mazara was doing damage from inside and out. USC would take a 36-31 lead into the locker room.
FIRST HALF STATS:
Nebraska shot 12-34 for 35% from the floor. They went 5-12 for 42% from deep and 2-2 from the free-throw line. The Huskers collected 19 rebounds, 9 of which were offensive. Nebraska would only convert those 9 offensive boards into 8 points. They had 8 assists to 7 turnovers.
The Huskers were led by Pryce Sandfort, who had 12 points. Rienk Mast had 7 points and 5 rebounds. Braden Frager also had 5 rebounds to help pace Nebraska. 3 different Huskers had 2 assists.
USC shot 13-25 for 52% from the floor. They went 4-12 for 33% from deep and a perfect 6-6 from the free-throw line. The Trojans collected 15 rebounds, 2 of which were offensive. USC had 8 turnovers and 8 assists with 12 bench points.
The Trojans were led by Chad Baker-Mazara, who had 14 points. Terrence Williams II led the way with 4 rebounds. Kam Woods had 4 assists.
SECOND HALF ANALYSIS:
Nebraska got off to the start it needed, opening the half on a 12-2 run. The Huskers took the lead on a Pryce Sandfort 4-point play. The Huskers never lost the lead after that. USC committed 3 turnovers in the opening 4 minutes, while Nebraska had 4 offensive rebounds. Sandfort would reach the 20-point mark by the under 12 timeout. The Huskers were getting a ton of open looks inside the paint, and was shooting free-throws after every USC foul because of it.
USC went cold in the second half, shooting just 29% with 5 minutes left in the half. Meanwhile, Nebraska was shooting at a very warm 55%. Nebraska used a 15-0 run in a 4:42 timespan that blew the door open, taking the lead up to 18 points. Sandfort would hit a 3 in the final minute to give him his 3rd 30-point game of the season. The Huskers were never troubled in the last 10 minutes of the game.
FINAL STATS AND THOUGHTS:
Nebraska shot 30-68 for 44% from the floor. They went 8-23 for 35% from deep and 14-15 for 93% from the free-throw line. The Huskers collected 41 rebounds, with a very solid 18 of them coming offensively. Nebraska had 20 assists to 12 turnovers. They had 42 points in the paint.
The Huskers were led by Pryce Sandfort, who had 32 points and 6 rebounds. Braden Frager had 17 points and 8 rebounds off the bench. Rienk Mast had 11 points and 6 rebounds. Jamarques Lawrence led the way with 7 assists.
USC shot 23-51 for 45% from the floor. They went 4-21 for 19% from deep and 17-18 for 94% from the free-throw line. The Trojans collected 25 rebounds, 5 of which were offensive. USC had 17 assists to 14 turnovers. They had 30 bench points.
The Trojans were led by Alijah Arenas and Chad Baker-Mazara, who had 14 points each. Baker-Mazara missed most of the second half due to a leg injury. Jaden Brownell led the way with 5 rebounds. Kam Woods and Arenas each had 4 assists.
This game turned on its head in the second half for two reasons, Sam Hoiberg’s return to the lineup after picking up his second foul in the first half, and Baker-Mazara getting hurt early in the second half. With Hoiberg’s return, the Husker offense was moving way more efficiently, and a patience seemed to come over them. Add the fact that the defensive intensity went up about 2-3 levels with Sam’s return helped the Huskers open up a lead it would never relenquinsh.
The injury to Baker-Mazara seemed to stunt the USC offense something awful. Arenas wasn’t 100% healthy, and USC just didn’t have the Trojan Horses to compete with Nebraska in the end. The Huskers have been a second half team all season, and that showed up again. Nebraska looked a step slow in the first half but kept within touching distance to make its run when needed.
The Huskers will stay in Los Angeles for the next couple of days, as their next opponent is UCLA. The game is on Tuesday, March 3rd. Tip-off from Pauley Pavillion in LA is set for 10:00 pm central and can be seen on FS1.
