Nebraska men’s basketball travels to Iowa City again looking for their sixth straight win, and first on the road in Big Ten play this season.
The Huskers (12-2, 2-1 Big Ten) will tip off against the Hawkeyes (10-4, 1-2 Big Ten) in a game that will be streamed on Peacock, with Paul Burmeister and Robbie Hummel on the call. The game will also be carried on the Huskers Radio Network with Kent Pavelka and Jake Muhleisen on the call.
Nebraska is 5-2 away from Pinnacle Bank Arena this season. The Huskers are 1-1 on the road, including a win at Creighton, and 3-1 at neutral sites.
Strength Vs. Strength
After the win Saturday against No. 15 UCLA in Lincoln, the Huskers rank 10th in the nation in defensive efficiency according to KenPom. The Hawkeyes are averaging a Big Ten-best 89.4 points per game this season and are No. 22 nationally in offensive efficiency. The 89.4 scoring average is good for third nationally.
“They’re so potent in their attack,” Coach Fred Hoiberg said. “They’ve always got five guys on the floor that can make a play and make a shot. They don’t turn it over. They do a really good job of finding the hot hand and they run a lot of very random-type action. So it’s a hard game to prep for just because of all the different things that they do to keep you moving. And it’s one of the best ball movement, player movement teams that will face all year.”
As a team, the Hawkeyes’ 50.9 field goal percentage is second-best in the league and sixth nationally.
The Nebraska defense’s ability to travel in league play will be a key. The Huskers have held their last six opponents well under their season averages in scoring. The opponent before that six-game run was Michigan State in East Lansing. The Spartans took apart the Huskers that day, shooting 51% from the field, including nine made 3-pointers, and 22-of-23 free throws in an 89-52 win.
Iowa is coming off of their biggest loss of the season, a 116-85 loss at Wisconsin on Friday.
“You don’t look at what happened in the last one,” Hoiberg said. “You know they’re gonna bounce back with a lot of fire and be better be ready for it.”
Scouting Iowa
Iowa has won nine of the last 10 meetings between the two schools in Carver-Hawkeye arena.
Sophomore post Owen Freeman leads the Hawkeyes in scoring (16.8 points per game) while shooting 65.2% from the field. Freeman is also the team leader in rebounding (6.2 per game) and blocked shots (1.9 per game).
Senior Payton Sandfort decided to come back to Iowa for another season after testing the NBA waters. An All-Big Ten selection, he leads the Hawkeyes with 33 made 3-pointers this season while averaging 15.5 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.
Council Bluffs (Ia.) Abraham Lincoln graduate Josh Dix is averaging a team-best 18 points and five rebounds in three Big Ten games while shooting 56.1% from the field and 43.8% from 3-point range.
“Their talent on the offensive end is as good as anybody, not only in the league, but in the country,” Hoiberg said.
The Hawkeyes have made at least eight 3-point field goals in 13 games, including 10 or more in seven of their sixteen games. They are second in the Big Ten (23rd nationally), averaging 10.4 3-point makes per game.
Key Factors
It is pretty clear that Nebraska must find a way to slow down Iowa’s offense, particularly from behind the arc. In the Hawkeyes’ three conference games, they are fourth in the Big Ten in 3-point percentage (36.5).
The Huskers ranked 34th in the nation in defensive 3-point percentage (29.2).
Nearly 50% of Nebraska’s opponent’s shots have come from behind the 3-point line, which ranks 355th in the country. Their primary defensive philosophy and the way the team is built is to pack the paint. That has worked so far, but is it a good strategy against Iowa?
Getting to the free-throw line will be important. The Huskers won the game against UCLA by doing just that, hitting 25 of their 29 attempts. Nebraska ranks 38th nationally in percentage at 77.3% and 34th in rate with 23.1% of their points coming from the charity stripe. The Hawkeyes get just 13.3% of their points from the stripe and shoot just 67.2%, ranking 295th nationally.
