Hustle Part Of Winning Formula For Huskers

Thorir Thorbjarnarson deflected an Iowa pass in the paint. The basketball fell to the court and bounced away, and the battle for the loose ball began.
 
Nebraska's 6-foot-2 guard Charlie Easley versus Iowa's 6-foot-11 center Luka Garza.
 
By now, Husker fans surely know to not bet against the freshman walk-on from Lincoln, no matter the competition.
 
Remember the clip of Easley putting his rump into Purdue center Matt Haarms to not only successfully box out, but frustrate the 7-foot-3 center?
 
"I'm not going to shy away from anybody. I'm not scared of anybody," Easley said. "It's just something you got to do in a game. You just got to be physical. It doesn't really matter, height. I mean, it matters to a certain extent, but you just got to want it more, basically."
 
Easley certainly wanted it more Tuesday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena. He beat Garza to the loose ball, gathered himself with the basketball and smartly called timeout to give Nebraska possession on what became an Iowa turnover.
 
Before the play even finished, Husker fans were jumping to their feet to celebrate the steal from Charlie Hustle.
 
"I thought Charlie Easley made some unbelievable hustle plays," Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg said. "That play where he dove on the floor was the loudest it got in the building all night."
 
It also symbolized what Hoiberg had hoped to see from his Nebraska men's basketball team after a lackluster, disappointing home loss Friday night to a physical Rutgers team.
 
"I wanted to see us go out there and compete and play the right way," Hoiberg said. "If we win this game, great; if not, at least we're taking a step in the right direction and can hopefully build some momentum."
 
Turns out, competing, hustling and playing "the right way" can indeed result in victory, as Nebraska (7-8, 2-2 Big Ten Conference) proved in its 76-70 victory over Iowa, the Huskers' fourth in a row over the Hawkeyes at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
 
"You go out and play with effort and intensity and follow the game plan the way we did, it gives yourself a chance," Hoiberg said. "I'm really proud of the guys for buying in and believing and having a great couple days of prep."
 
Easley helped set the tone while coming off the bench. Even though he missed his three 3-point attempts, he positively affected the game in other ways, including with an assist, a rebound and his two steals.

"Charlie was all over the place, diving on the ground, and making the little things that we needed," said Nebraska guard Cam Mack, who finished with 15 points and 10 assists. "He came through. I appreciated Charlie a lot, and I thank Charlie."
 
Thorbjarnarson, who paced Nebraska with 17 points, including a couple of late clutch 3-pointers after the Hawkeyes had forced a tie, recognized the importance of Easley's contributions.
 
"Charlie was amazing," Thorbjarnarson said. "Charlie is such a competitor. He works his butt off. He got those dives on the floor and he's all over the place. He's willing to sacrifice to do anything for the team. Big shout out to Charlie."


 
Easley played a career-high 16 minutes. His previous career high was 10 minutes, in the aforementioned game against Purdue. Nebraska won that game, too.
 
To recap: Easley has played 26 minutes in two Big Ten Conference victories for the Huskers.
 
"Charlie, he's a hard worker," junior guard Dachon Burke said. "Sometimes me and him are battling to see who's the first in the gym. I see him in here 10 minutes before me, the next day I'm trying to get in 10 minutes before he gets here.
 
"But jumping on the floor, keeping that energy going? You can't teach that."
 
That energy, that physicality, is what Hoiberg stressed would be key to beating the Hawkeyes – and, for that matter, pretty much every Big Ten Conference team. The Huskers didn't match it against Rutgers. They did against Purdue and Iowa.
 
"We didn't do a good job against Rutgers of closing the paint," Thorbjarnarson said. "I think that was the biggest emphasis for us, stopping Garza, because he's obviously one of the best big men in the country. We had to do a good job on him."
 
Garza, a junior averaging 22.5 points and 10.1 rebounds, and a contender for All-America honors, finished with 18 points and 16 rebounds. But he didn't score until 7:41 remained in the first half, as the Huskers continually collapsed with as many bodies as possible against Garza while being cognizant of closing out on Iowa's dangerous perimeter shooters.
 
"If Garza got the ball, he was going to score," Hoiberg said. "So we wanted to force the kick out, which we did not do a very good job of against Rutgers. I thought we guarded the drive much better."
 
By the time Garza finally scored, Iowa had gone 1-of-16 on 3-pointers, setting the tone for a 4-of-33 performance for the game. In an overtime loss to Indiana and in victories over Purdue and Iowa, the Huskers held the opposition to a combined 15-of-93 shooting on 3-pointers, or 16 percent.
 
Iowa, by the way, had been shooting 41.8 percent on 3-pointers over its previous five games.


 
"They weren't in rhythm and they weren't making their shots," Thorbjarnarson said. "I think our emphasis on letting certain guys shoot and packing the paint on Garza, the game plan went perfectly."
 
Nebraska, meanwhile, shot 10-of-26 on 3-pointers and placed five players in double-figure scoring. The Huskers fed off the energy of the Pinnacle Bank Arena crowd, and, unlike against Rutgers, withstood Iowa's runs.
 
The Hawkeyes, down 12 in the first half, took their first and only lead at 51-50 with 12:41 remaining. It lasted about 30 seconds, as Kevin Cross made two free throws and scored on a driving layup to put the Huskers back ahead. Iowa (10-5, 1-3) forced a 59-59 tie with 5:20 to play, but that's when Thorbjarnarson hit 3-pointers on consecutive possessions to put Nebraska ahead to stay.
 
"I am really proud of the guys," Hoiberg said. "For the guys to come out and play with that type of intensity and effort after a disappointing last home game says a lot about our guys. Hopefully it is one we can build on."
 
Now the Huskers hit the road for four of their next five games, beginning Saturday at Northwestern.  By now, they're well aware of the hustle and energy they'll need to exhibit to keep their head above water.
 
"It's a hard league, and if you don't come prepared for any of the games, you can get embarrassed," Thorbjarnarson said. "The main thing for this team is to be consistent. You guys have seen that when we play good, we can play with anybody, and when we play bad, we look pretty bad. Consistency is the key."
 
Reach Brian at brosenthal@huskers.com or follow him on Twitter @GBRosenthal.