Husker Men Win Diamond Head Classic
Brice Williams led three Huskers in double figures with 25 points, as Nebraska won its first multi-team event since 2000 with a 78-66 win over Oregon State on Wednesday.
Williams, who was named MVP, finished with 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting along with a season-high seven rebounds and four assists to lead three Huskers (10-2) in double figures. He averaged 22.0 ppg in the three games, including 57 points in NU’s wins over Hawai’i and Oregon State.
Berke Büyüktuncel added 16 points and six boards while Juwan Gary chipped in 14, as Nebraska improved to 10-2 on the season. Büyüktuncel, who hit 3-of-4 from 3-point range, joined Williams on the all-tournament team. Juwan Gary was the third Husker in double figures with 14 points and chipped in pair of steals with his second straight double-figure effort.
The win was NU’s first MTE victory since the 2000 San Juan Shootout, and the second time a Hoiberg-coached team won the Diamond Head Classic, as he guided Iowa State to the event title in 2013.
Oregon State (10-3) was within 67-63 with less than three minutes to go before the Huskers finally seized control. Williams, who had 15 of his 25 in the second half, hit a jumper before the Huskers got a stop on the defensive end before Büyüktuncel hit his third 3-pointer of the afternoon to stretch the lead to nine with 1:51 left.
OSU pulled to within 72-66 before Williams’ 3-point miss was grabbed by Hoiberg, and the Huskers took advantage as Williams hit a short jumper to push the lead back to eight with 48 seconds remaining to end OSU’s hopes.
Nebraska shot 56 percent in the second half and out-rebounded the Beavers 18-9, including five offensive boards which led to 11 second-chance points, as NU became the second team to out-rebound OSU this season.
Oregon State got going in the opening minutes of the second half as Nate Kingz had all seven points in a 7-2 run that pushed the lead to 40-36 with 18:28 remaining. The Huskers came right back with a 6-0 run of their own to regain the lead at 42-40 after a Rollie Worster basket with 16:35 left
Nebraska trailed 49-48 after a Michael Rataj basket before going on a 9-2 run triggered by consecutive 3-point plays from Andrew Morgan and Büyüktuncel gave NU a 57-51 lead after a driving basket from Büyüktuncel with 9:09 left.
The Huskers extended the lead to 61-53 before the Beavers chipped away. OSU scored seven of the next 10 points to pull to within four, at 64-60 on a basket from Parsa Fallah with just under four minutes left.
Kingz finished with a team-high 19 points, while Damarco Minor added 16 points, five rebounds and four assists in a losing effort.
Nebraska led 34-32 at the half after a fairly even opening 20 minutes. Nebraska shot 50 percent from the field, including 6-of-11 from 3-point range, but the Beavers hit five 3-pointers of their own and turned seven Husker turnovers into six points. Early on, it was Williams and Gary carrying the load, as the pair combined for Nebraska’s first 13 points.
Nebraska trailed 22-18 before made a comeback, running off eight straight on two Hoiberg free throws, 3 -pointer from Connor Essegian and a 3-point play from Williams. The Huskers eventually built a 32-26 lead after consecutive 3-pointers from Berke Büyüktuncel to force a Beaver timeout. Oregon State ran off six straight points to pull even at 32, but Büyüktuncel’s baseline drive with 12 seconds left gave Nebraska a two-point lead at the break. Büyüktuncel had NU’s final eight points of the half.
The Huskers will return home to face Southern on Monday, Dec. 30. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. and a limited number of tickets are available by visiting Huskers.com/Tickets.