Nebraska overcomes first-half deficit to beat Oklahoma 105-99

Nebraska hosted former Big 12 rival Oklahoma in Sioux Falls S.D. Saturday night in its first major conference game of the year. Junior Pryce Sandfort gave his best effort with a career high 28 points which helped the Huskers keep their undefeated season alive beating the Sooners 105-99.

The Huskers did enough to hold the game within single-digits heading into halftime. That end of half momentum kept the Huskers going in the second-half. Nebraska’s offense found a sense of balance and Oklahoma cooled off from long-range allowing Fred Hoiberg’s unit to walk away winners.

Here is an instant recap from the Huskers’ win over their rival Sooners:

Sandfort’s scoring carries first-half scoring

Nebraska’s offensive flow seemed sluggish early. Oklahoma surged out to an early 10-0 lead behind three different scorers. The Huskers opened 0-for-2 from 3-point range, a familiar sign of another slow start. The junior Sandfort didn’t let the game get out of hand early. He accounted for 11 of his team’s first 13 points, starting 4-of-5 from the field.

Sandfort’s contagious shooting carried over to the rest of his teammates. The Huskers trailed 13-6 at the under-16 timeout but found a scorching, streaky offense. By the time the next media timeout hit, Nebraska had battled its way to a 25-23 deficit. During that stretch, Rienk Mast scored five points, and Sandfort pushed his total to 11.

The Sooners took control and continued on a 16-3 run. Berke Büyüktuncel gave Nebraska some life when he exploited a down-low mismatch against the undersized Sooners. Büyüktuncel was able to cut the score to 44-26 with seven minutes to play in the first-half. The Huskers continued to exploit the lack of Sooner adjustments, feeding Büyüktuncel who totaled eight first-half points.

After a fan ejection and fans chanting at the referees, the Huskers shook off the adversity and cut the Sooner lead to ten with four minutes to go in the half. Sandfort’s hot hand continued into the locker room, keeping Nebraska in the game. His 18 points were a first-half high, and Nebraska shot 46% from the 3-point line to narrow the gap, heading into the locker room down 51-44.

Four double-figure scorers lead explosive second-half

The Huskers’ offense began to click in the second half. Sandfort, Mast, and Büyüktuncel all entered double-figures early in the half. Despite the consistency on offense, Oklahoma kept Nebraska at arm’s length with red-hot shooting. It wasn’t until the Huskers came out of the under-16 timeout that they found a spark.

Jamarques Lawrence missed a chunk of the first-half due to two early fouls but was a key piece to Nebraska’s second-half success. Lawrence had eight points between the 16 and 13-minute marks, highlighted by back-to-back 3-pointers, cutting the Sooner lead to 63-61 with 13 minutes to play.
The Huskers capped off a 12-0 run by taking their first lead. Cale Jacobsen drove into the paint, drew contact, and was fouled. After making the basket and free throw, Nebraska held a 64-63 lead.

The Huskers finished with five scorers in double-figures. With 12 minutes to play Lawrence reached the 10-point threshold keeping his team in the lead. Jacobsen finished with 10 points of his own. Sandfort reached a career high with a 3-pointer with 11 minutes to play. His previous career high was 22 at Iowa last season.

Oklahoma’s shooting kept them in the game despite Nebraska’s best effort to pull away. The Sooners shot 55% from the field in the first-half and 50% in the second-half. Nijel Pack and Xzayvier Brown both finished north of 20 points with Tae Davis adding double-figure help as well.

The Huskers were able to stifle the Sooners’ shot-making ability and extend their record in the Sanford Pentagon to 3-1 all time. Mast and Sandfort carried the team and extended the lead to ten with three minutes to play. Mast finished behind Sandfort with 26 points.

The Huskers had to make enough free-throws to get the job done down the stretch. Nebraska shot above 50% from long-range in the second-half to hold off the stubborn Sooners and grab its first power-conference win of the season.

Nebraska heads to Kansas City next for a pair of important matchups. On Thursday, the Huskers battle New Mexico at 6 p.m. Central before taking on either Mississippi State or Kansas State on Friday. That second game will start either at 6 p.m. Central or 8:30 p.m. Central, and both games will be available on Peacock.

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