Lincoln – Derrick Walker Jr. tied a career-high with 14 points to lead four Huskers in double figures, as Nebraska shot season-high 54 percent in a 78-60 win over Idaho State Friday night.
Walker, who went 5-of-5 from the field and 4-of-5 from the line, matched his career high of 14 set against Rutgers last season, helping Nebraska improve to 2-2 on the season.
Alonzo Verge Jr. and Keisei Tominaga had 11 points apiece, while C.J. Wilcher had 10 for the Huskers as Nebraska got another strong performance from its bench. The reserves keyed an 11-0 first-half run in a span of 1:48, including a pair of 3-pointers from Wilhelm Breidenbach, as the Huskers built a double-figure lead at 24-14.
Idaho State was within 35-31 with 2:47 left in the half, but the Huskers closed the half with a 6-0 spurt, capped by Walker's dunk in the waning seconds. Walker had nine first-half points for the Big Red as NU took a 41-31 lead into the locker room.
The Huskers put the game out of reach midway through the second half, using runs of 10-0 and 8-0 to take a 66-46 lead with just under nine minutes left. Idaho State (1-3) got to within 17 at 67-50, but two Verge jumpers sparked a 9-0 run, as NU extended the lead to 76-50 after Tominaga's 3-pointer with 5:14 left.
Nebraska had 18 assists, including five from Kobe Webster and four from Verge and just eight turnovers on the evening.
Robert Ford III led three Bengals in double figures with 14 points, as NU held ISU to 39 percent shooting ad turned 15 turnovers into 25 Husker points.
The Huskers return to action on Sunday afternoon, as they host the Southern Jaguars. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. and the game will be carried on ESPNU and on the Huskers Radio Network. Tickets are still available for the matchup by visiting Huskers.com/Tickets or at the Pinnacle Bank Arena box office beginning Sunday at 1:30 p.m..
Derrick Walker tied his career high with 14 points on Friday.