First half powers Huskers over South Dakota 73-61

Lincoln – Jack McVeigh’s 16 points led five Huskers in double figures, as Nebraska snapped a three-game losing streak with a 73-61 win over South Dakota Saturday afternoon.

McVeigh, who hit four 3-pointers and added six boards, led a balanced attack as the Huskers raced out to a 22-point first half lead before allowing South Dakota to get within two midway through the second half.

Tai Webster had 12 points, a career-high nine assists and six rebounds, while Michael Jacobson collected his first career double-double with 11 points, a career-high 10 rebounds and five assists. In all, NU had a season-high 19 assists, including 14 in the first half in building a 45-31 lead.

Nebraska got off to a blistering start, hitting 10 of its first 15 shots and built a 26-4 lead in the first eight minutes after using runs of 7-0 and 14-0. Jacobson had six early points, as NU had seven players score at least three points and had eight assists on its first 10 baskets.

The Huskers eventually led 43-23 after a dunk by Isaiah Roby with 2:11 left in the half and were in control before the Coyotes used an 8-0 run, keyed by a pair of 3-pointers from Carlton Hurst, to pull within 12 right before the half.

The game stayed in that range until the Huskers ran off five straight points to make it 52-35 with 15:10 left. The Huskers led 56-42 with just under 12 minutes remaining then went ice cold from the field, missing six straight shots. USD’s Trey Burch Manning scored five of his seven points in a 12-0 Coyote run to get within 56-54 after a Matt Mooney basket with 7:30 left.

Webster then took over, as the senior snapped the dryspell with a 3-pointer to make it a five-point game at 59-54 as the Huskers scored six of the next eight points to extend the lead to 64-56. USD got to within 67-60, but a Jacobson putback and two free throws from McVeigh ended the Coyotes’ upset bid.

Matt Mooney led the Coyotes (6-3) with a game-high 18 points while Tyler Flack added 13 in a losing effort.

The Huskers return to action on Wednesday evening, as the Huskers host No. 10 Creighton. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. at Pinnacle Bank Arena and a limited number of tickets are available by visiting Huskers.com/Tickets or 800-8-BIGRED. The game will be carried on BTN and the Husker Sports Network.