Last-Second Shot Leads UAB Past Nebraska

 

Lincoln --- Senior forward Demario Eddins scored on a layup with only four seconds remaining, and Nebraska freshman guard Jamel White’s last-second attempt glanced off the rim as the UAB men’s basketball team escaped with a 73-72 road win over Nebraska Saturday at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

                                                                                 

The loss dropped the Huskers to 5-1 this season, while UAB improved to 3-1 with the win.

 

Senior forward Wes Wilkinson notched another career effort for NU with 17 points and a career-high 16 rebounds as the Huskers dominated the paint, but the Blazers missed only one shot in the game’s final five minutes and went 10-of-11 from the free-throw line to claim the win. Nebraska posted a 39-28 rebounding edge for the game, but 19 turnovers that led to 18 Blazer points helped seal NU’s fate.

 

With the score tied, 69-69, and only 1:41 remaining, senior forward Jason Dourisseau forced a Blazer turnover with a steal and was fouled before draining 1-of-2 free throws to give the Huskers a one-point lead.

 

Senior forward Brandon Tabais hit a baseline jumper to give the Blazers a one-point lead, 71-70, while Dourisseau countered with two more clutch free throws to put Nebraska back on top by one. UAB went back on top for good the following possession on Eddins’ layup with the shot clock winding down. Nebraska moved the ball to midcourt before a timeout and got a pass in but the ball went out of bounds with 1.0 second remaining to set up White’s final shot.

 

Dourisseau scored a team-high 18 points for NU, while freshman point guard Marcus Walker added a career-high 12. Senior guard Marvett McDonald led the Blazers with a personal-best 22 points on 9-for-16 shooting, while junior guard Wen Mukuba and Eddins pitched in respective totals of 15 and 13 points.

 

Trailing 41-35 at the start of the second half, UAB came out firing with an 11-0 run to take a five-point lead. McDonald nailed 3-pointers on three successive possessions during the stretch to fuel the Blazers. NU was held scoreless for the first 4:09 of the half before sophomore center Aleks Maric finally ended the run by hitting two free throws.

 

Facing a 49-50 deficit with 10:20 remaining, Nebraska rattled off a 7-0 run. One possession after junior forward B.J. Walker had given NU a one-point lead on a jumper, Wilkinson put back a Walker jumper to extend the lead to three. Wilkinson then added another basket for a five-point lead, and he would later drain two treys to make the score 65-60.

 

The Blazers tied the game at 69-69 with just under three minutes remaining on a 3-pointer by Mukubu.

 

UAB began the game strong, racing to a 10-2 lead in the game’s first three minutes, but NU answered with a 13-2 run of its own by holding UAB scoreless for the next three minutes.

 

Following a layup by Marcus Walker, Wilkinson nailed Nebraska’s first 3-pointer of the game. After a transition dunk by Eddins, the Huskers gained the lead on a pair of jumpers by Maric and Wilkinson and two free throws by Dourisseau. White added a transition layup off a turnover to give the Huskers a 15-12 lead.

 

Aiding Nebraska’s cause in the first half was a 24-13 Husker edge in rebounding. Wilkinson single-handedly controlled the paint with 12 first-half boards, while he reached the double-digit mark for the first time in his career only eight minutes into the game.

 

The Blazers struck back to take a 20-17 edge at the midway mark of the first half. After the two teams traded baskets, junior point guard Charles Richardson Jr. evened the score with his first trey of the season at the 8:12 mark, but senior guard Derrick Broom countered with a 3-pointer of his own on the next possession to help UAB regain a three-point lead. A backside layup by Dourisseau and a pair of Marcus Walker free throws put the Huskers back on top, 26-25.

 

Dourisseau brought the DevaneyCenter crowd to its feet with the clock winding down in the first half. After Mukuba banked in a 3-pointer for the Blazers with only seven seconds remaining, Dourisseau countered by banking in a buzzer-beater from half court to send the Huskers into the locker room with a six-point advantage.

 

Nebraska will return to the DevaneyCenter court Thursday, when it plays host to South DakotaState at 7 p.m.