Husker Defense Shines in Win Over Samford

Lincoln - Nebraska's defense converted 27 Samford turnovers into 29 points, to help the Huskers work their way to an 80-46 women's basketball win over the Bulldogs on Saturday at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Hailey Weaver and Callin Hake each grabbed four steals, while Amiah Hargrove added three, as the Huskers hauled in 17 steals as a team. In all, seven of the nine Huskers who played in the game notched at least one steal to help Nebraska improve to 2-0 while Samford slipped to 1-1.

Nebraska's defense set the tone from the start, as the Huskers erupted on a 13-0 run in the opening 4:20. The lead grew to 21-5 at the end of the first quarter thanks in large part to nine straight points from Jessica Petrie. The junior forward from Gold Coast, Australia finished with a career-high 20 points, while adding five rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal in an impressive all-around game.

Petrie added six more points in the second quarter to finish with 15 points in the half - matching her previous career high, which came last season in a win over Wisconsin.

Britt Prince added eight points in the second period to help the Huskers build a 42-25 halftime lead. The Nancy Lieberman Award candidate finished with a game-high 23 points on 10-of-13 shooting from the field. She also dished out two assists and grabbed two steals.

Nebraska's 17-point lead came despite hitting just 2-of-12 three-point attempts in the first half, while Samford drained 5-of-15 threes, including four from Bulldog Briana Rivera. The shooting guard pumped in 14 of Samford's 25 points in the half, getting 11 points in a four-minute span midway through the second period.

The Husker defense clamped down on Rivera in the second half, holding her scoreless on just one shot attempt. 

Prince pumped in a trio of three-pointers in the third quarter, and Petrie added five straight points early in the period, as Nebraska pushed the margin to 66-36 at the end of three periods.

Sophomore forward Amiah Hargrove played a solid game from start to finish, contributing her second career double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds in 29 minutes of work. Hargrove hit 5-of-9 shots from the field and both of her free throw attempts, while adding a blocked shot and three steals. She had six points and five rebounds in the fourth quarter to help the Huskers close out the win.

Fellow sophomore post Petra Bozan added a career-high 13 points, while grabbing six rebounds and two steals to go along with a blocked shot to put four Huskers in double figures.

Hake added five points and a career-high seven assists, while Weaver pitched in five points, two assists and block to go with her four steals. Kennadi Williams completed Nebraska's scoring with two points to go with her five assists. 

Nebraska hit 33-of-65 (.508) of its field goal attempts in the game, but just 6-of-23 three-pointers (.261). NU also went 8-of-12 (.667) at the free-throw line. The Big Red won the rebounding battle, 37-31, and the turnover margin, 27-14. 

The Huskers held Samford to just 17-of-51 (.333) shooting, including 8-of-27 threes (.296), while limiting the Bulldogs to just four free throw attempts. Rivera was the only Bulldog to manage double figures despite being held scoreless in the second half.

Nebraska completes its three-game season-opening home stand by colliding with Creighton on Wednesday, Nov. 12. The tip-off is set for 8 p.m. (CT) and tickets for the annual in-state matchup are available now at Huskers.com. The game will be televised by FS1 and can be heard across the Huskers Radio Network and on Huskers.com.