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Our zone held them to 23 in the second half.

Royalfan, one of us is way off on our thoughts on our zone. I love it and think its played well. You hate it and don't. I've been wrong many times in my life, so it could definitely be me. I loved it tonight though, as I note in the report card (even after OSU). One thing we DO have in common - can't WAIT for Royals baseball and the season to get started! Book 91 wins this year and the AL Central coming to KC.

OFFENSE: B+ I give Nebraska a TON of credit for bouncing back in the second half. Let's compare for a second: First half - season low 19 points on just 35% shooting, and only ONE free throw attempted (it was converted). And while we consider it a different category on these report cards, the "Ball Handling" (that's what she said) was pitiful. 11 turnovers completely let this one get away early and led to both of the banked three's that made the fans at "The Bank" quite disgusted. Second half - 41 points on 52% from the field, and 13-18 from the line (74%). That's an additional SEVENTEEN free throws and yes, while 6-8 were foul-a-thon shots at the end, it was still a legitimate ten. That's a HUGE difference. So what did NU do differently? They started to get the ball to the middle of the defense more consistently and hit some three's to boost the crowd. Then, they attacked the basket off of that threat and the energy from the building. Nebraska just looked mentally much more into it, also. You have to wonder if there was a "hangover" from the Biggs situation in the first 20 minutes. Our Player of the Game (should we even do it anymore - he wins every night?!?) was Terran Petteway, who scored the softest 18 points you'll ever hear on 7-10 from the floor! And as always, they were when it counted, from the nice layup to cut an Indiana deficit from 4 to 2 (after NU had come back to tie) to the "dagger" three created off of dribble penetration in the final two minutes. Petteway = STUD. DEFENSE: A- Nebraska's defense was consistently solid all night, outside of five minutes in the first half (after the banked three's). You can't do this but heck, take those two horrible missed three's off the board, and IU doesn't even crack 50! NU held the Hoosiers to 55 points on 45% shooting and helped force 19 turnovers. The defensive intensity was AWESOME and obviously, the crowd helped a lot. Can you imagine if NU could have played even 50% that hard against PSU? They would have blown them out of the building. For a second straight game, NU generated some offense off of its defense, as the seven steals were key in helping NU score 19 points off of turnovers! The zone, once again, was great. I never thought I'd finally see an NU team who could play it competently. REBOUNDING: D+ This was one of the few disappointing rebounding efforts of the season, as the Hoosiers out boarded NU by a wide margin (31-22 & 10-5). No Husker had more than Leslee Smith's five boards and Indiana had 11 second chance points. So again, take out the two banked three's AND a few offensive rebounds and well... Indiana aint crackin' 45. BALL HANDLING: D+ The first half was just AWFUL - 11 turnovers, many unforced, and many completely embarrassing. The second half was GREAT - 3 turnovers, an offense that actually flowed and 41 points on the board. I'll talk more about this under "Coaching" but nice to see Nathan Hawkins both make a three AND run the point for five minutes. We "stole" some key minutes that way when Tai Webster was in foul trouble and if teams continue to completely play off of Benny Parker (which they will unless he can start hitting shots), we are going to need much more of Hawkins. COACHING: B+ Coach Miles saw his team sleep walk through the first half and forget how to take care of the basketball. They also had a five minute stretch of bad defense off of bad offense. In the second? The zone and defensive adjustments pay HUGE dividends for NU, leading to some easy baskets and getting the crowd involved. NU all of a sudden looked alive on the offensive end and figured out the junk defenses the Hoosiers ran. And perhaps the savviest move of this entire game looked stupid at the time it occurred but WORKED. And that was the aforementioned Nate Hawkins sighting. When he first came in, I said "What the hell are you doing? Hawkins?" Then I realized Coach Miles knew what I knew - that Benny Parker couldn't run the offense in this game the way IU was junking us when he was on the floor. With Webster in foul trouble, Miles showed something we (and Indiana) have never seen - Hawkins running the point. So earlier this year, when Hawkins looked completely lost on the floor, he was probably playing out of position (the 3/4) as many on here pointed out. But tonight, he looked completely comfortable and natural in the 1/2 slots that he played. He hit a key three, ran the offense good enough and did a nice job at the top of the zone. It was a ballsy move that paid off. I'm sure Indiana didn't have him in the game plan or know a single thing about him, either. This was a completely savvy decision by Miles that was a GREAT in game adjustment. To me, perhaps one of the biggest "feather in the hats" he has pulled this year. One other thing to note about our coach - he is 10-2 in games decided by five points or less in the last two seasons. Think about that - 10-2 in games decided by five or less. Good coaches win close games. OVERALL GRADE: B As we so often see with young teams, it's a "tale of two halves." Look that term up in the dictionary and this game will show up. To me, this might be the most impressive win of the season, just because of the fashion in which it was earned (overcoming a 16 point deficit - the second biggest Miles has overcome at NU, next to the 19 points at Iowa last year). We are seeing before our eyes, NU improving each game and competitive in each game. We are seeing a bonafide First Team All-Big 10 Caliber player in Petteway who (not to put the cart before the horse) might get good enough where "NBA early talk" could happen at the end of next season. We haven't had that talk in these parts since Bill Clinton was in office. Make no mistake - WINNING THREE OF FOUR IS HUGE. A. We are right back in the NIT hunt. B. The local fans are PUMPED and full of MOMENTUM. C. Recruits are noticing. Believe me. One bold prediction - with no game until Wednesday, we have TWO official visits locked down (maybe THREE) with Miles and staff having momentum and plenty of time to recruit over the next few days. PLAYER OF THE GAME: TERRAN PETTEWAY 2013-2014 PLAYER OF THE GAME RESULTS: TERRAN PETTEWAY - 11 TAI WEBSTER - 2 WALTER PITCHFORD - 2 LESLEE SMITH - 2 SHAVON SHIELDS - 2 DEVERELL BIGGS - 1 This post has been promoted to an article

Believe me, the worst possible grade isn't a "C+." You can ask longtime readers about that!! Haha. I thought Nebraska played the best game of the year yesterday and all "A's" were warranted. The "A" on defense might not be applicable for a good defensive team but for this team, which is NOT good defensively, I thought it was warranted based on their ability level.

I still can't get over how well we trapped their ball screens on defense. Simply genius by Miles and staff. Also one other stat - Miles is 9-2 at Nebraska in games decided by 5 points or less.

No chance in hell we lose Petteway, Pitchford, Webster, Shields or Fuller. There's a chance of anyone else on the roster but none of them matter anywhere close to the above five. No reason to worry about losing any of those kids, 'cuz it aint gonna happen.

OFFENSE: A Nebraska did a fantastic job getting the shot they wanted nearly every single possession today and it was no coincidence that they scored their career high in the Big 10 (82 points) on 50% shooting from both the field and downtown. It was refreshing to see them handle the zone with ease and only get turned over once (Tai Webster late in the second) against the zone press they saw almost the entire game. What more can you say about Terran Petteway other than he played his best game as a Husker, scoring a career-high 35 points (and the most since Aleks Maric in 2007) on 10-15 shooting to go along with six rebounds, three assists and two turnovers. The scary thing is that this kid still has a lot of ceiling left, too. Love seeing an NBA player at Nebraska again. I have to call Shavon Shields the most underrated factor in this contest, as he scored some VERY KEY baskets while Petteway was on the bench with four fouls late in the second and NU was in dire need of baskets during a Golden Gopher run. Shields only scored 10 but they were a key 10 (how big was the three before the half)? All I can say is that it was truly fun to watch Petteway today. DEFENSE: A Nebraska was TRE-MENDOUS today!!! Best defensive game of the Tim Miles era. The doubling of guards with our Bigs completely ceased dribble drives for a good portion of this game and helped force 13 key turnovers and several late shock clock contested three's. Nebraska was active with its feet AND hands for once, stealing the ball EIGHT TIMES (I'm sure a season high) and swatting away three key shots. David Rivers, Benny Parker and Ray Gallegos deserve special mention for the work they did on the defensive end. And, maybe there's something to the talk of NU's W-L record with Rivers getting significant minutes. REBOUNDING: A Nebraska and Minnesota finished dead even on the boards (32-32) and NU held the Gophers to a very quiet eight offensive boards. Once again, Petteway and Shields led the way with six boards each. BALL HANDLING: A+ 19 assists to 11 turnovers. FANTASTIC - THIS is what good teams do! One completely unfair and pointless question I'd like to throw out - what happens in this game, both offensively and defensively, if Deverell Biggs had played? Do we play as good of defense knowing his well publicized deficiencies? Do we share the ball as well and break the press all day? Just sayin'. COACHING: A+ Coach showed guts in disciplining Biggs, first of all, just before the game today. Second of all, coach had an awesome defensive game plan that his players completely bought into. He did a marvelous job with substitutions, especially at the end going offense-defense when the foul-a-thon ensued. His team got good shots 95% of its possessions today and its defense created offense (10 fast break points and 14 off of turnovers). This was the best game of the season. OVERALL GRADE: A Nebraska played well in every facet of its game today. Would like to see more stops, less fouling and more made free throws in the last 90 seconds of games in which we have leads, but that's a symptom of being a young basketball team. I can't say enough about how impressed I was with this victory against a very good NCAA Tournament team (8-9 seed). PLAYER OF THE GAME: TERRAN PETTEWAY 2013-2014 PLAYER OF THE GAME RESULTS: TERRAN PETTEWAY - 10 TAI WEBSTER - 2 WALTER PITCHFORD - 2 LESLEE SMITH - 2 SHAVON SHIELDS - 2 DEVERELL BIGGS - 1 This post has been promoted to an article

I used to have doubts about Petteway's attitude but no longer. To me, he is a winner, plain and simple, who won't back down. He cares about the team before himself, though it can be confusing to see that at times. I think he is most likely a very complex kid. On one hand, he wants to play in the NBA, and he will. On the other, he really wants to win and put this program on the map. You could see it last year from how hard he cheered and got into games on the bench, to how frustrated he is away from the ball, when he has nothing to do with the play, when they don't get a stop, to how bad he wanted the ball at the end of the game last night, to lots in between. Petteway is a winner - we are lucky as hell we have him. He's the only high level Big 10 player we have, and it aint close.

OFFENSE: D Not good. Had every opportunity to blow this game WIDE OPEN, from the final ten minutes of the first half into the first ten minutes of the second. Could do nothing. For the night, shot 35% and only got to the foul line ten times (missing four). The sagging defense that PSU played apparently meant we had no possible way of getting to the rim? Shavon Shields looked like the pre-OSU and post FCGU Shields again, putting in just six points on 2-3 shooting (2-2 from downtown). Have no idea why he wasn't involved in the offense. We will talk about the outstanding game management of NU point guards in "Ball Handling." DEFENSE: B+ I give Nebraska only a "B+" because they couldn't turn Penn State over (only five) or get key stops when it mattered. Overall though, how can you be disappointed with 58 points allowed on 35% shooting? You can't. REBOUNDING: C+ 40 to 35 (NU) was great. But NU allowed Penn State to out tough them on the boards, including multiple times in the second half when Husker rebounders had BOTH HANDS ON THE BALL and simply were outwrestled. As Coach Miles pointed out on the postgame, this was a team that wasn't any bigger than us, but simply outmanned us. For as absent as Shields was on the offensive end, he DID grab ten boards, and I have to point out that Walter Pitchford grabbed seven. He continues to improve with physicality and its good to see. BALL HANDLING: F 22-1. That was the "points off of turnovers" in this one. NU point guards were miserable tonight, from Tai Webster's three turnovers and zero points in fifteen minutes to Deverell Biggs' epically impressive meltdown in the final two minutes. The whole night, NU did a nice job against PSU's "Mickey Mouse Press" when they'd occasionally throw it in. That is, until the biggest part of the game, when Biggs decided he could simply dribble through two guys in the MIDDLE of the floor, with NU up one. Of course, since this is Nebraska basketball, this led to a dunk and one, and NU would never get the lead back. But Biggs wasn't about to be outdone. He decided to seal NU's fate one more time, when after a completely AWFUL in bounds possession by PSU, the Nittany Lions gave it back to the Huskers with 10.3 seconds left, only down two. Inbounds pass to Biggs, who dribbles, dribbles, then tries to dribble through TWO MORE GUYS! Great idea, Dev! Turnover. Ball game. For the night, the turnover machine (in recent games) finished with four turnovers, two assists and nine points on 3-9 shooting. At least we now know that Biggs has a tendency for showing up late - from film sessions to end of ballgames. COACHING: C Not impressed with Walter Pitchford getting a play drawn up for him out of a timeout, down two, with under 2:00 left. Really? That's the best we can do and the area we want to go? Shields and Petteway were GREATLY underutilized in this one. I'm aware that PSU packed it in and played soft, but we made virtually no effort to go to the rim in the first half and in the early stages of the second. We weren't even in the bonus until after the under 4:00 timeout in the second half. I don't understand the lineup of David Rivers and Benny Parker on the floor at the same time. No offense. Nebraska had no fire and intensity, either. It looks stupid, and Jamel White used to do it (that's a name I want out of my head) but why not some intensity by NU on defense by slapping the floor? Show you want to do it. That will lead to points on the other end if you can force turnovers and stops. Just ask PSU. This team played with zero passion and fire, especially in the second. There were about 610 people in the gym, counting announcers, referees and cheerleaders. And we couldn't find a way to generate our own momentum. That's on coach. OVERALL GRADE: D Pissed away an unpissable game. NIT dreams, gone. Casual fans, off the wagon. Am I too hard? Maybe. Do we know this team is up and down, as it probably should be in year two of a new era? Yes. But let's have some freaking expectations here, even in year two. Losing this game is pathetic. There is no excuse. And I don't want to hear that things are looking up - I know that. But in order for them to look up higher, we have to start winning some games. Casual fans and recruits aint impressed by beating OSU if you split with Northwestern and PSU and play 5-13 while staying at home for the umpteenth year in a row. And really, why should they be? Because we have toilets in the john? Because we have a new arena? Gonna need to start winning these games, and quickly, or that momentum we have is going to evaporate, and the arms race is going to catch up to us. PLAYER OF THE GAME: TERRAN PETTEWAY 2013-2014 PLAYER OF THE GAME RESULTS: TERRAN PETTEWAY - 9 TAI WEBSTER - 2 WALTER PITCHFORD - 2 LESLEE SMITH - 2 SHAVON SHIELDS - 2 DEVERELL BIGGS - 1 This post has been promoted to an article

I say OSU means nothing because as always, we didn't build on it. And let's be real here. Beating OSU after they'd lost three in a row and were right for the plucking wasn't exactly earth shattering. Not too mention they struggled to beat a very mediocre Illinois team tonight at home. If we finish 7-11 (which we could have if we won tonights game) that means something. If we finish 5-13 (which is what we probably will with this loss) then that means very little as far as progress of the program to anyone casual (recruit or fan). If you can't win this game, you also aren't going to win at Northwestern. We can't split with NW and PSU and do any better than 5-13, IMO. That's why OSU means near nothing at this point.

Ohio State now means nothing, as I said in the Report Card after. Truly pathetic. Doesn't matter who the coach or players or opponent or even the conference is. It's the same old schtick. This is pathetic, year two of new era of year five. You played in front of 600 people with a team that scored 22 in the first half and was 0-5. No excuses. Pathetic.

49r, whereabouts in KC are you? I live in Lees Summit!!

Nebraska 64 Penn State 61 After PSU blows yet another big lead in the final minutes.

OFFENSE: A Nebraska shot 50% from the field simply because they finally figured out a way to attack the basket and get to the rim. When they weren't scoring from the field, they were often getting fouled, and the Big Red won the game because of this, converting on 77% of their foul shots (20-26). That included 9 of their last 10 in the closing minutes of the game. Wow, was the old Shavon Shields back or what? Tonight's Player of the Game poured in 18 points on 6-12 shooting while also grabbing a team high nine rebounds! While Terran Petteway was mostly bad during the first half and early into the second, turning the ball over EIGHT times, he still finished with 18 points and had a number of key baskets and free throws to seal the game at the end. I give him much credit for fighting through the struggles. Also, Tai Webster was very good tonight - again, the numbers aren't eye popping (9 points, 1 assist and 2 turnovers in 28 minutes) but if you watch the games, you consistently see him improving and flashes of what he WILL become. DEFENSE: A Let's first of all say that Ohio State DID miss a number of open looks. Still, Nebraska was EXCELLENT tonight on the defensive end, forcing 15 turnovers and holding Ohio State to 40% from the field and 62 points. And, had OSU not fouled at the end and greatly extended the possession total, they would have been legitimately in the mid-50's. One key thing; OSU connected on a paltry 28% from downtown (6-21) with two of those coming in the last minute. I continue to like the zone and think it will help win NU more games as the season progresses. Ask Northwestern how it does against better athleticism. REBOUNDING: A Nebraska out rebounded the Buckeyes 33 to 27 and held OSU to just six offensive boards (four of which came in the first half). We already mentioned Shields' effort on the boards, but also a "shout" to Petteway (5 boards), Leslee Smith (4) and Deverell Biggs (4). Nebraska just played "tough" - even Walter Pitchford, who only officially had two rebounds in 20 minutes, was boxing out with authority and going up strong to help secure boards. BALL HANDLING: D 17 turnovers, including EIGHT by Petteway and SIX by Biggs? No, no, no. This is the sole reason NU went from up 14 with 1:50 left in the first half to losing by three in the early stages of the second half. This included a 14-2 OSU run at one point. This is a couple of consecutive bad turnover games for Petteway - this needs to improve, obviously. COACHING: A Coach Miles went small after seeing OSU do so and it proved effective. He continued to mix in some zone at appropriate times and massaged his way through the turnovers by pulling guys at key stretches when they were struggling (Petteway and Biggs). Also, kudos to Miles for playing David Rivers down the stretch, who responded with a key block, some big rebounds and converting at the foul line. He didn't have too much pride to give the kid another chance and play him in key moments. OVERALL GRADE: A Sans the turnovers, this is a straight "A" report card! I don't remember the last time we had one of those. TREMENDOUS win for the Huskers - how do I know that? Many casual friends/fans I haven't heard from in ages texted me and e-mailed me after the game, excited. Believe me, the wins DO matter, both with casual fans and recruits. Loved seeing Jacob Hammond so excited on Twitter, too. But let's be honest - while the casual fans/recruits enjoyed it, even we, the biggest diehards, needed this. Getting beat down is only fun for so long and this puts us all on cloud nine. Now, Nebraska MUST MUST MUST win at least one more game this week or this game goes for naught. Win 2 of 3 this week and you still have a realistic chance at the NIT. Win this next one at Penn State, a game Nebraska ALWAYS loses in recent years (win a huge game, then drop a completely winnable game next), and you're making REAL progress. PLAYER OF THE GAME: SHAVON SHIELDS 2013-2014 PLAYER OF THE GAME RESULTS: TERRAN PETTEWAY - 8 TAI WEBSTER - 2 WALTER PITCHFORD - 2 LESLEE SMITH - 2 SHAVON SHIELDS - 2 DEVERELL BIGGS - 1 This post has been promoted to an article

OSU 72 NU 66

I hear what you're saying and on one level, don't disagree. It's sure going to be nice though someday when this program gets to a point where no loss is a "good loss" and we hate all losses. Over the last few years, we've gone form celebrating big wins to patting ourselves on the back for "good losses" whether it be UMass this year, then UAB after they beat UNC, then Iowa on the road, then Michigan. I hear what you're saying and am not being mean in the least - just saying this whole mantra needs to change and hopefully soon it will. But in the meantime, when they haven't given us many "W's" to be excited about in several years (or decades), then this is what we are left with as fans.

How did he look bad against OSU? He played like 60 seconds of meaningful basketball. 30 of those seconds the clock was being dribbled out for the last shot!

OFFENSE: B- Nebraska (for the most part) did a nice job of attacking the rim and getting inside against Purdue and that in turn: A. Led to some easy baskets. B. Got Nebraska to the foul line 18 times (though NU converted on only 66% of its attempts) And: C. Got A.J. Hammons into foul trouble and held him to just 22 minutes played (though he proved to be killer, with 18 points and 4 blocked shots). I liked seeing the inside-out game with Leslee Smith and NU perimeter players in the first half. That didn't lead to any points, but its a nice look that we haven't seen much of, outside of three possessions today. I like at least trying to establish inside ON TOP of attacking the rim. Ray Gallegos seemed to get things going early (finishing with 10 points on 4-7 from the field) but for the second straight game, completely disappeared in the second half. NU saw completely awful days from Shavon Shields (1-5 from the field, 3-7 from the foul line), Deverell Biggs (4-11 from the field) and Walter Pitchford (2-7 from the field). The play of Shields (in particular) is worrisome, especially since we don't know how much his knee is hurting. The full week off comes at a good time for the KC area sophomore. Nebraska went over six minutes without a field goal in the latter stages of the second half. DEFENSE: C Nebraska wasn't particularly good or bad today on the defensive end. The zone was a nice way of slowing down Purdue and helped lead to 12 turnovers, though many were unforced. Nebraska DID, however, get a couple of steals and fast break layups at the other end, which we've seen a total of maybe five times in the last month, so that was nice to see (defense leading to instant offense). Besides Hammons, Ronnie Johnson was particularly good today, scoring 14 points since NU refused to take away his strong hand (left) the majority of the game. REBOUNDING: C I give Nebraska only a "C" because it was horrific at securing rebounds down the stretch, most notably on the play where Shields palmed the ball with one hand out of bounds after a key missed Boilermaker free throw. That was the nail in the coffin today. Pitchford finished with just one rebound because he wasn't doing a single thing right today (offense, defense or rebounding) and couldn't stay on the court (15 minutes). Smith had just three boards. It was our Player of the Game Terran Petteway (19 and 9) who led the way on the boards for NU, and since I ripped Shields offensively and for missing the key rebound, I will at least give him a little credit for also grabbing nine boards. For the game, the Boilermakers out rebounded NU by four (38 to 34). BALL HANDLING: B Ball handling was better today - twelve assists (which I believe is a Big 10 high) and only nine turnovers. I thought Tai Webster was particularly strong today, though his line didn't really suggest it (5 points, 0 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 turnover). The assist on the drive and wrap around pass to Smith was a big time play that we haven't seen an NU point guard make around here since probably Tyronn Lue. COACHING: B+ Coach did a nice job wrinkling up his defense but too often, NU looked brain dead on how it guarded Johnson by giving him the left. Some nice plays were drawn up out of timeouts but once again, not executed by the offense (including Smith's too hard of a pass to Petteway which would have been a key wide open layup in the second half). Nine man rotation seems set, though I'm a bit confused as to why Benny Parker gets a token 5-6 minute first half appearance and either no minutes or two minutes in the second. Seems unnecessary for him to play and I NEVER like the combo of him and Webster on the floor at the same time. That is killer on the NU offense. BONUS - OFFICATING: F The referees were truly awful for the first time since the Charleston Classic, missing THREE block-charge fouls that wiped two points (plus one) off the board for NU AND led to Purdue points off of the next possession. AKA, an easy 3-7 points were given away by the refs. Also, the phantom foul on Smith when he got all ball on a block shot late in the second, which led to another point. Still, this wasn't enough for the officials to get Purdue at the -7 that they bet in Vegas, so it was for not and they lost their wagers they had on the game. OVERALL GRADE: B Nebraska hasn't found a way to win in the Big 10 yet, but its getting closer and closer. This was a 40 minute game for the second straight contest and outside of one half against OSU, the Huskers have been very competitive in league play. With that said, after we lose to Ohio State, it'll have been six straight losses and Penn State will be hungry as hell for a victory. It could be nearing FEBRUARY by the time NU wins again. I and most who watch this team every night can see progress happening. However, I worry that an overall Big 10 record of 4-14 or 5-13 will show stagnance instead of the progress which is happening to the casual observer/recruit. Just something to think about. PLAYER OF THE GAME: TERRAN PETTEWAY 2013-2014 PLAYER OF THE GAME RESULTS: TERRAN PETTEWAY - 8 TAI WEBSTER - 2 WALTER PITCHFORD - 2 LESLEE SMITH - 2 SHAVON SHIELDS - 1 DEVERELL BIGGS - 1 This post has been promoted to an article

Has anyone else noticed that everything with him is "short" this year? Meaning, he front ends almost every shot. Could that be because of a lack of legs/the knee?

Since I'm always wrong lately when I pick, I'll throw Husker Nation a bone and get us a win. Purdue 72 Nebraska 60