A 18-2 run late in the second half helped the Nebraska men’s basketball team bury UT-Rio Grande Valley, 87-67, Monday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena in the season opener for both teams.
Bryce Williams paced the Huskers (1-0) with 27 points, including 10-for-11 from the free throw line. Rollie Worster narrowly missed a double-double in his Nebraska debut with 18 points on 6-for-7 shooting along with nine rebounds. Connor Essegian tallied 13 points on 3-for-4 from behind the arc, while Andrew Morgan scored 10 points in his first game as a Husker. K.T. Raimey, a Kansas City native, led the Vaqueros (0-1) with 14 points.
Nebraska dominated down low, to be expected with the Huskers’ physical advantage. NU outrebounded UT-Rio Grande Valley 42-32, and outscored them in the paint, 40-18. The Vaqueros jacked 41 shots from behind the arc, making 13 of them, for a 31.7 percent make rate.
UT-Rio Grande Valley challenged the Huskers early, leading 29-28 with five minutes to go in the first half. But Nebraska ended the half with a 14-7 run to take a 42-36 lead to the locker room for halftime. The Vaqueros pulled to within four, 67-63, with 7:30 to play in regulation. But over that last 7:30, the Huskers outscored UTRGV 20-4 to lock up the victory.
Nebraska will now prepare to face Bethune-Cookman Saturday at 7 p.m. Pregame coverage begins at 6 p.m. on KLIN.