Huskers' Season Ends in The Pit

Albuquerque, N.M. ---  Making their third postseason appearance in four years, the Nebraska Cornhuskers battled back from a 19-point second-half deficit but came up short as New Mexico held on down the stretch to earn an 83-71 victory over the Huskers in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.

With the loss, Nebraska finished its season with an 18-13 record, including six wins over teams that earned postseason bids. The Huskers were 8-8 in the Big 12 Conference this season, their best showing in the past decade, while finishing just one game out of a tie for fourth place in the league standings.  

Nebraska, the nation's shortest team in Division I, faced a strong Lobo squad that earned a share of the Mountain West Conference title after being picked to finish fifth in the league. UNM, which was the No. 3 seed in the Huskers’ NIT bracket, entered the contest averaging more than 77 points per game and showed why as it hit better than 51 percent from the field while setting an NU opponent season high with 83 points.

No team had scored more than 77 points against NU this season until the Lobos topped that mark with 1:14 to play in the game. By that point, the game was in hand for UNM, which improved to 22-11 on the year and advanced to play at Notre Dame in the second round of the NIT on Thursday.

Playing at the famed Pit, host to numerous memorable NCAA contests through the years, the Huskers climbed out of the deep hole behind Sek Henry’s aggressive second-half play. Henry scored 11 of his 13 points after the intermission, helping the Huskers get back within striking distance despite NU shooting just 30 percent in the frame.

New Mexico shot 59.1 percent (13-of-22) from the field in the second period, moving ahead 59-38 on Phillip McDonald’s 3-pointer at the 14:38 mark. The Lobos used a 16-3 run to open the second frame, keyed by three McDonald treys in the first five minutes after intermission.

Trailing 58-39, Henry scored a traditional three-point play with 13:06 remaining. He then scored seven straight points for NU, pulling the Huskers back within 12 points, 58-46, at the 12 minute mark. After UNM extended the lead back to 14, Chris Balham had a putback dunk and Brandon Richardson drained a 3-pointer to get the Huskers back in striking distance.

The Huskers finally cut the UNM advantage back to seven points in the final two minutes and had a chance to get it back to a four-point deficit but Ryan Anderson’s 3-pointer rimmed around and out with 1:32 to play. New Mexico then hit 7-of-8 free throws in the final minute to seal the victory.

The Lobos hit 51 percent from the field and nailed 77 percent at the line, where they took 35 attempts. UNM overcame 19 turnovers, including 11 Husker steals, by dominating the boards to the tune of a 41-24 advantage.

Daniel Faris led the way for New Mexico, scoring 28 points to go with 13 rebounds. The forward had 18 points and nine boards after the intermission as UNM built its large lead. Tony Dandridge added 18 points while Chad Toppert came off the bench for 15 points and seven boards.

Henry had 13 points for the Huskers, who had nine players score at least five points. Steve Harley added 11 points while Ade Dagunduro posted eight points while hitting just 2-of-13 field-goal attempts. NU connected on just 36.8 percent (21-of-57) from the floor but hit 22-of-28 at the line.

Nebraska started the game in solid fashion, hitting a pair of baskets to jump to a quick 4-0 lead before the Lobo offense, which came into the game averaging 77 points per contest, finally heated up. New Mexico got on the board at the 18:02 mark on Dandridge’s driving layup and quickly built an 8-0 run to go ahead by four points on Dairese Gary’s basket with 15:39 left in the half.

Toney McCray laid one off the glass for a Husker basket to cut the deficit to two but New Mexico added its second 8-0 run early in the game to lead by a 16-8 margin following another Dandridge basket.

The Huskers got a spark from Anderson, who scored five straight points to pull the Huskers back within three. NU eased the score back within two points on three more occasions but that was as close as they could get in the opening period

NU got back to a 23-18 margin on Paul Velander’s 3-pointer with 8:03 remaining, as the senior from Blacksburg, Va., snapped a personal streak of 15 straight missed treys. He added another 3 less than two minutes later to pull the Huskers within a basket at 23-21.

Dagunduro and Richardson each hit a pair of free throws to close the gap to two points, the last at 5:40 remaining before the Lobos got the crowd behind them with an offensive surge. UNM staged an 11-0 run behind a pair of Roman Martinez 3-pointers to extend the lead out to 13 points, 39-26, at the 2:59 mark.

Nebraska, which came into the game ranked 17th in the country in scoring defense, rallied down the stretch. The Huskers shut out the Lobos over the final three minutes, climbing back within five points at the break, 39-34. Even with the strong ending, the 39 points were the most Nebraska had allowed in a first half all season.

Dagunduro started the late charge with a traditional three-point play.  In the last minute, Harley and McCray each drained 3-pointers to help pull NU back within five at the break.

Nebraska hit 5-of-13 from long range in the opening period and outshot the Lobos 44.4 to 44.0 percent, but UNM held a distinct advantage at the line. New Mexico went to the charity stripe 19 times in the opening period, connecting on 13, while the Huskers were 5-of-7 at the foul line.