Nebraska Basketball: Huskers are on the brink after ugly loss to Ohio State

Nebraska basketball was in desperate need of a win against Ohio State but after an ugly loss, the Huskers are on the brink.

Nebraska basketball head coach Tim Miles called his team soft earlier this week after a loss to Rutgers and another pathetic showing at home against Ohio State, it appears he was right.

In a game that could easily be billed as a must-win for Nebraska basketball, the Huskers started out strong, knocking down a couple of early 3-pointers, however, as the game wore on it was clear Ohio State was the better team. It also appeared the Buckeyes wanted it more in what turned out to be a 70-60 loss for the Huskers.

Nebraska basketball pressed Ohio State early and looking back, that might have been a mistake. It seemed to zap some of the energy away from the Huskers as they managed just 24 points in the first half, going into the intermission down five.

James Palmer tried to do his part knocking down 7-of-17 shots from the field on his way to 19 points. Glynn Watson Jr. also contributed with 18 points but they were the only Huskers in double figures. Isaac Copeland knocked down 2-of-3 treys but had to leave the game due to injury.

Where Ohio State really won the game was on the boards, where the Buckeyes had a 45-31 advantage and also on the defensive end.

Nebraska basketball shot just 36 percent from the field and 36 percent from beyond the arc, which isn’t bad, but certainly wasn’t good enough to make up for the lack of scoring inside.

Nebraska is an athletic team that can guard people, but the Huskers had no answer for Ohio State’s Luther Muhammad who scored 24 points. Kaleb Wesson also had a big game inside with just seven points but 11 rebounds. He also affected things inside on defense.

For the Huskers, the loss is going to be damaging to their NCAA tournament hopes. They are now 3-6 in the Big Ten (tied for 10th) and 13-7 overall. However, three straight losses have Nebraska squarely on the bubble and unless they close the season on a hot streak, the big dance is looking more and more like a dream, not a reality.