Juwan Gary had 18 of his career-high 22 points in the second half, as Nebraska picked up its 20th win of the season with a 73-55 win over Minnesota Sunday evening.
Gary hit 7-of-13 shots from the field, including a career-high four 3-pointers in posting his third career 20-point game for Nebraska (20-8, 10-7 Big Ten), which held Minnesota to 31 percent shooting and a season-low 55 points.
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Brice Williams had 15 points and eight rebounds, while Jamarques Lawrence and Rienk Mast added 11 and 10 markers, respectively, as Nebraska picked up its fourth straight win and matched a school record with its 17th home victory.
Nebraska has won its last four conference games by 15-or-more points, the first time that has happened for the Huskers since the 1911-12 season.
Leading 28-20 at the break, the Huskers opened the second half with a 15-6 run, as Gary, Williams and Mast had five points apiece in the spurt as the Huskers built a 43-26 lead with just under 16 minutes remaining after Gary’s 3-pointer.
The Huskers extended the margin to 20 at 50-30 after Gary’s second 3-pointer of the half, and Nebraska kept a comfortable margin the rest of the way. The Big Red led by as many as 23 before setting for an 18-point win.
NU out-rebounded Minnesota, 44-38, and forced 13 Gopher turnovers.
Cam Christie led Minnesota (17-10, 8-8 with 14 points), while Dawson Garcia had 10 points and eight boards before fouling out. Minnesota had won five of its last seven before Sunday’s contest.
Nebraska’s defense was the key in the first half, as the Huskers held Minnesota to 28 percent in the first half in building a 28-20 halftime lead.
The game was deadlocked at 12 at the under eight timeout before the Huskers got some momentum going. Williams had seven of his 10 first-half points as Nebraska built a 26-14 advantage with 3:47 left in the half.
Minnesota came right behind Parker Fox, who scored six straight points to pull the Gopher within 26-20 with 1:26 remaining in the half before a pair of Williams free throws stretched the lead back to eight at the break.
The Huskers return to action when they travel to Ohio State this Thursday, Feb. 29. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. (central) and the game will be televised on FS1 and broadcasted on the Huskers Radio Network.