Lady Husker shooting sinks Lady Lions 73-45

No. 17 Nebraska LOVES Pinnacle Bank Sports Arena. Connie Yori said last night in her pre-game radio comments “it is ALWAYS good to be home. PBA is good to us!” How true that was last night! Huskers took care of business from the opening tip dominating the Penn State Nittany Lions in an offensive explosion 73 – 45.

The game had a bit of a strange beginning for Nebraska. Coach Yori typically sends out the starters: Laudermill, Cady, Theriot, Sample and Jeffery. Due to a “violation of team rules” Hallie Sample and Rachel Theriot were slated to sit the bench while Natalie Romeo and Esther Ramacieri started in their place. A last moment roster mix-up sent Theriot out in place of Jeffery. By the time four minutes ticked off the clock, both Theriot and Sample were back on the floor playing in their usual positions.

Dec 27, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; The Nebraska Cornhuskers mascot during the fourth quarter against the USC Trojans in the 2014 Holiday Bowl at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

But the BIG story of the match up between Nebraska and their perennial rival, Penn State revolves around OFFENSE, 3-point shooting and FRESHMEN participation (specifically NATALIE ROMEO!)  It also helped that for the first time this season Nebraska dressed ALL 11 players and they ALL played. While the Huskers struggled with injury and illness over the past month., offensive output was uneven and 3-point shooting fell to a paltry 19%. The defense kept Nebraska in those games as they fought hard to scratch out any victories.

Right at the outset last night, the Nebraska scoring barrage began. Although the first four minutes of the game appeared a bit out of sync, once the shots started falling the Husker “machine” ran smoothly. The “machine’ was fueled by freshman Natalie Romeo. In her first career start, she put on a 3-point shooting demonstration for the 5,395 loyal fans in the stands. Romeo was the spark that ignited her teammates. Ball handling greatly improved with far fewer turnovers. The defense also revved up buoyed by the play of Allie Havers and Hailie Sample. When the halftime buzzer sounded, Nebraska went to the locker room with a 16 point lead. up 38 – 22.

Mar 22, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers players wave to the crowd after defeating the Fresno State Bulldogs in a women

Penn State struggled to find any offensive rhythm in the first half despite being an explosive team in the past. They are still searching for their starting line up after graduating four headlining starters. Lady Lions coach Coquese Washington, previously Big Ten coach of the year twice, spent the majority of the first half substituting players in and out. Lady Lion guard Candace Agee anchors this team but the inexperience of their young players is very evident.

Nebraska began the second half the way they ended the first half.  Husker offense cruised while their defense continued to stymy the Penn State attack. Natalie Romeo, the star of this game, continued her offensive output with 3-point shooting. Comfortably in control, Coach Yori began to rest the starters and give all her freshmen more playing time. Anya Kalenta and Chandler Smith who haven’t been on the court in a couple of months came out and played well. Anya Kalenta scored a beautiful 3-point bucket.

N (Photo Credit Kelli Anne)

While Penn State did find some scoring during the second half from their starters, they were also plagued by turnovers committing a total of 24 by games end. It was obvious that the Huskers had all the momentum while the Nittany Lions couldn’t find any.

Nebraska was overjoyed to celebrate a win over Penn State. (Since Nebraska joined the B1G Penn State has led the series 5 -3) The Huskers were thrilled to finally put together a complete game. Scoring was spread amongst the squad but Natalie Romeo certainly made a statement. She finished the game with 18 points, scoring six 3-point buckets.

More from Husker Corner

• Former Nebraska football star returns to the program in new role
• Travis Hunter injury uproar has some Nebraska football fans reminding Colorado about Adrian Martinez
• Nebraska Football: Freshman RB in line for big playing time
• Nebraska Cornhuskers News: Heinrich Haarberg has believer in Rhule, more
• Nebraska Football: Matt Rhule faces tough decision between Heinrich Haarberg and Jeff Sims

In her post game radio comments, Coach Yori was very analytical. “Every game is BIG for us. I felt this was a win we have to GET.  It was an unusual start for us….Nat Romeo was BIG for us. It was fun to see her make shots.”

Nebraska  13 -3 (3 -2 Big Ten) entertains Purdue 9 – 8 (2 – 4 Big Ten) on Monday night, January 19, 2015 on home court at Pinnacle Bank Sports Arena. It’s an early start at 6pm (CST) and BTN will provide television coverage. Stay tuned for more excitement and as always, GO BIG RED!!!