Behind a whopping 12 made 3-pointers, the Nebraska men's basketball team advanced to the championship of the College Basketball Crown Tournament in Las Vegas with a 79-69 semifinal win over the Boise State Broncos on Saturday.
The Huskers will play the winner of Central Florida and Villanova on Sunday at 4:30 p.m. inside the T-Mobile Arena.
Juwan Gary led NU with 21 points, nine rebounds and three blocks. He didn't miss from deep, going 4-of-4 from 3-point range. He came into the game as a 31.6% 3-point shooter.
Two other players scored in double figures as Brice Williams added 14 points and Sam Hoiberg 10. Williams added five boards and a team-high six assists.
Four Huskers made more than one 3 on Saturday, including Gary, Hoiberg (2-of-4), Cale Jacobsen (2-of-2) and Ahron Ulis (2-of-3).
Ulis, the seldom-used point guard, had one of his best games as a Husker by pouring in eight points, five rebounds and two assists. With contributions coming from all over, NU's bench outscored Boise State's 26-12.
"We had contributions across and up and down this lineup," NU assistant Ernie Zeigler told Huskers Radio Network after the game.
NU shot 46% from the field, 63% from 3 (12-of-19) and 83% from the free-throw line (15-of-18). The Huskers' defense was giving Boise State's offense fits in the first half, and the Broncos turned the ball over eight times.
NU, which led for nearly 25 minutes of game action, went into halftime leading 39-33.
The Huskers trailed by 7 points, 26-19, with seven minutes remaining, but thanks to a 15-1 run they took back control. During that stretch, Gary had five points while Braxton Meah had four and both Hoiberg and Williams three.
Williams had 12 first-half points while Gary added 10.
The Huskers played hard and clean basketball. They limited turnovers in the first 20 minutes — just five — while shooting 41.4% from the field, 66.7% from 3 (6-of-9) and 90% from the free-throw line (9-of-10).
In the second half, NU threw the first punch and forced a Boise State timeout. The Huskers pushed its lead to 14 points, 64-50, with nine minutes left off a layup from Berke Büyüktuncel. A Williams layup with 4:48 left put NU up by 15 points, 74-59.
Boise State, considered by many as an NCAA Tournament snub, never quit and made their runs. ...
