Huskers.com
The Nebraska men’s basketball team looks for its first tournament title since 2000 on Christmas evening, as the Huskers take on Oregon State in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. (central) and will be carried nationally on ESPN2 and on the Huskers Radio Network. The radio feed will also be available on Huskers.com and the Huskers app, while the TV feed will be available on ESPN.com.
The Huskers (9-2) relied on their veterans in posting a 69-55 win over host Hawai’i in the semifinals. Brice Williams matched his career high with 32 points on 10-of-18 shooting, while Juwan Gary added a season-high 21 points as he hit 8-of-10 from the field. The pair combined for 34 second-half points, as Nebraska shot 59 percent in the second half to pull away. The win snapped a five-game losing streak to the Rainbow Warriors and sent NU into the Diamond Head Classic title game for the first time.
Williams has been one of the Big Ten’s top scorers, as he is third in the Big Ten in scoring at 19.2 points per game entering Wednesday’s game. The 6-foot-7 senior has had two 30-point efforts in Nebraska’s last three contests and has been in double figures in 14 of the last 15 games dating back to last season. Gary has been playing well as of late, averaging 14.2 ppg on 51 percent shooting over the last five games after playing just two minutes against South Dakota because of an injury.
Oregon State (10-2) advanced to the finals following a wild 80-74 overtime win over Oakland. The Beavers rallied back from a 12-point deficit in the final 4:30 of regulation to force an extra session before closing out the win with a 9-0 run in overtime. Liutauras Lelevicius led four Oregon State players in double figures with 17 points and nine rebounds.