Huskers Edge Tennessee in Final Seconds

Knoxville, Tenn. --- Marcus Neal Jr. hit three free throws with 1.2 seconds remaining to ice Nebraska's 62-61 come-from-behind road victory over Tennessee Thursday at Thomspon-Boling Arena.

Neal helped Nebraska improve to 5-4 on the season with 17 points and career highs with four three-pointers and six assists. It was NU's first road victory in three attempts this year, as NU improved to 3-4 in its last seven non-conference road games dating back to last season.

"I am really proud of our guys and the way they fought to the end," said NU coach Barry Collier. "We didn't shoot that well and did not make free throws as well as we should have, but we did just enough. I did think our defense was good, but we were lucky to get to the line at the end. We have been on the other end of that before, so it's good to be on this end."

 

After a 10-0 run put Tennessee

ahead by four, 61-57, with under a minute remaining, Jason Dourisseau made the Vols pay for a missed free throw by converting a dunk with 34 seconds left to pull NU within two points. The Vols missed four foul shots in the last 36 seconds, including the front end of two one-and-bonus situations.

Scooter McFadgon missed three free throws in the final 22 ticks and finished the game 2-of-6 at the line despite entering the contest hitting 45-of-50 free throw attempts on the year, including a school-record 31 straight at one point. McFadgon's last two misses came with 9.8 seconds left, giving the Cornhuskers time to work for a final shot.

With time running out, Neal brought the ball across midcourt when the ball was knocked loose. John Turek tipped the ball to Neal, who grabbed it and was fouled by C.J. Watson while attempting a three-pointer. Neal hit the first two and drained the game-winner after a Vol timeout.

 

Neal led Nebraska with 17 points. Joe McCray and Jake Muhleisen each had 11 points with Muhleisen gaining a season-high total by hitting three treys. McCray's two three-pointers moved him into a tie with Beau Reid for seventh place on the Husker freshman three-pointer chart.

 

The Huskers' nine treys tied a season high as Nebraska hit 39.1 percent from beyond the arc. NU hit 38.2 percent from the floor overall, while UT hit 45.3 percent. The Vols hit 7-of-17 from long range (41.2 percent) but connected on just 35.3 percent (6-of-17) from the charity stripe. 

 

"I was happy with almost all of our shots in the second half, but we had too many that were point blank that we did not finish," Collier said. "Tennessee came out and got in its fast break offense on a few baskets and you have to give them credit. But I thought our guys attacked and played hard on defense and made some tough shots too."

 

Brandon Crump led Tennessee with 19 points, including 15 after the intermission, while McFadgon had 15 and and Watson added 11 points. Chris Lofton and Andre Patterson each added a game-high eight boards, although the Huskers took a 41-35 advantage on the glass. It was the seventh time in nine games -- and first time on the road -- the Huskers earned a edge in rebounds.

 

Neither team led by more than six points in the first half. Nebraska used an 8-0 run, capped by Muhleisen's 3-pointer with 4:58 left in the half, for a 24-18 lead - the biggest lead for either team in the opening frame. The Cornhuskers led 31-26 at halftime.

 

Tennessee regained the lead twice in the first seven minutes of the second half. With the score tied at 42, Nebraska went on an 8-0 run and took a 50-42 lead on Neal's three-pointer with 10:03 left.

 

Nebraska was up 57-51 when the Vols started a 10-0 run capped by Crump's shot on the baseline with 3:25 left. Patterson's dunk in transition gave the Vols a 61-57 lead with 41 seconds to play.

 

Nebraska makes a quick turnaround as it returns to action on Sunday, Jan. 2, against Montana State at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. The Huskers and Bobcats tip off at 1:05 p.m. and the game can be heard on the Pinnacle Sports Network and Huskers.com. The game will also be shown in Nebraska on FSN Midwest and on DirecTV and Dish Network.

 

 

Official Basketball Box Score
Nebraska vs Tennessee
12/30/04 7:00 p.m. at Thompson-Boling Arena (Knoxville, Tenn.)
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VISITORS: Nebraska 5-4
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
44 Turek, John......... f  3-9    0-0    3-3    1  4  5   2   9  0  1  0  0  26
01 Dourisseau, Jason... g  2-4    0-0    1-4    1  2  3   2   5  2  1  1  1  32
02 McCray, Joe......... g  3-10   2-7    3-4    3  3  6   4  11  1  5  0  0  29
10 Neal, Marcus........ g  5-9    4-6    3-4    0  4  4   2  17  6  1  0  0  34
12 Muhleisen, Jake..... g  4-9    3-8    0-0    0  4  4   5  11  3  2  0  1  32
03 Richardson, Charles.    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  2  2   1   0  0  0  0  0  10
11 Wilkinson, Wes......    4-9    0-2    0-1    2  5  7   3   8  0  0  3  0  18
15 Schliep, Bronsen....    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   1   0  0  0  0  0   2
31 Maric, Aleks........    0-5    0-0    1-2    3  3  6   2   1  0  3  0  0  14
45 Wilbrand, Tony......    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  1  1   0   0  0  0  0  0   3
   TEAM................                            3  3
   Totals..............   21-55   9-23  11-18  10 31 41  22  62 12 13  4  2 200

 

TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-25 40.0%   2nd Half: 11-30 36.7%   Game: 38.2%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  6-10 60.0%   2nd Half:  3-13 23.1%   Game: 39.1%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  5-11 45.5%   2nd Half:  6-7  85.7%   Game: 61.1%    3

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HOME TEAM: Tennessee 6-5
                          TOT-FG  3-PT         REBOUNDS
## Player Name            FG-FGA FG-FGA FT-FTA OF DE TOT PF  TP  A TO BLK S MIN
04 Crump, Brandon...... f  9-12   1-1    0-3    2  5  7   3  19  0  1  1  1  28
22 Patterson, Andre.... f  4-9    0-0    1-2    1  7  8   1   9  3  1  2  1  26
02 McFadgon, Scooter... g  5-15   3-7    2-6    0  4  4   1  15  4  2  0  0  37
05 Lofton, Chris....... g  2-6    1-3    0-0    1  7  8   3   5  1  1  0  1  33
32 Watson, C.J......... g  3-8    2-5    3-5    1  1  2   3  11 10  0  0  1  39
01 Wingate, Major......    1-2    0-0    0-1    1  2  3   2   2  0  1  1  1  10
10 Smith, JaJuan.......    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   1   0  0  0  0  0   2
23 Bradshaw, Dane......    0-1    0-1    0-0    0  1  1   1   0  1  1  0  0  10
33 Hendrix, Jemere.....    0-0    0-0    0-0    0  0  0   2   0  0  2  0  0  15
   TEAM................                         1  1  2
   Totals..............   24-53   7-17   6-17   7 28 35  17  61 19  9  4  5 200

TOTAL FG% 1st Half: 10-26 38.5%   2nd Half: 14-27 51.9%   Game: 45.3%  DEADB
3-Pt. FG% 1st Half:  3-9  33.3%   2nd Half:  4-8  50.0%   Game: 41.2%   REBS
F Throw % 1st Half:  3-10 30.0%   2nd Half:  3-7  42.9%   Game: 35.3%    2

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Officials: Tom Eades, Bert Smith, John Hampton
Technical fouls: Nebraska-None. Tennessee-None.
Attendance: 11263

Score by Periods                1st  2nd   Total
Nebraska......................   31   31  -   62
Tennessee.....................   26   35  -   61