Keisei Tominaga tied his career high with 23 points off the bench as Nebraska cruised past Boston College, 88-67, at Pinnacle Bank Arena in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge Wednesday night.
The Huskers (5-3) put five players in doubles and shot a blistering 62 percent from the field, their highest mark the 2014-15 season.
Nebraska used a 23-2 spurt over a 12-minute span, turning a 34-30 deficit into a 17-point lead with just over 11 minutes remaining and cruised to a 21-point win.
Tominaga’s second career 20-point game keyed five Huskers in double figures for the second straight game. C.J. Wilcher scored all 14 of his points in the second half, while Emmanuel Bandoumel (12), Juwan Gary (10) and Derrick Walker (10) all reached double figures.
The Huskers outscored the Eagles 40-28 in the paint and outrebounding them 29-26. Nebraska also knocked down 12 three-pointers, the most in a game this season.
Blaise Keita immediately gave the Huskers a spark off the bench, netting five points to put Nebraska in front 10-5 with 13:46 left in the first half. The Eagles tied the game at 13 after a pair of 3-point shots from Makai Ashton-Langford and Chas Kelley III at the 11:33 mark.
The Huskers continued to get ample production from their bench as Tominaga erupted for 13 of his 17 first-half points over the next 5:33 to grab a 26-22 advantage. Boston College once again battled back and ventured on an 11-2 run to go up by five at the under-four timeout.
A crucial 7-0 run to close the half saw the Huskers sink their last three shots and take a 37-34 lead into the break. Nebraska held Boston College scoreless for the final 2:25 of the first half and took a 3-point point lead into the locker room.
Bandoumel knocked down a triple to begin the second half as Nebraska rattled off 12 unanswered points across the two halves, extending their lead to eight. A pair of buckets from Gary and Sam Griesel gave the Huskers their first double-digit lead with 14:23 remaining.
Up 46-36, Wilcher knocked down a triple followed by baskets from Wilhelm Breidenbach and Griesel to give Nebraska a 10-point lead with 11:15 left in the half. As the Eagles inched closer, Tominaga brought Husker fans to their feet with two consecutive three-pointers.
Up next, the Huskers make the short trek up I-80 to take on No. 7 Creighton on Sunday, Dec. 4.