Postgame Quotes/Notes vs. Idaho State

Postgame Notes
*-Derrick Walker tied his career high in points tonight with 14 points on 5-of-5 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 from the line. He also had 14 against Rutgers on March 1, 2021.
*-Nebraska shot a season-best 54.4 percent from the field, the first time the Huskers have shot 50 percent from the floor this season
*-Nebraska dished out a season-high 18 assists (previous high, 15 vs. Creighton). Kobe Webster and Alonzo Verge Jr. combined for nine assists and just one turnover.
*-Kobe Webster tied a Husker career high with his five assists tonight. He also had five assists at Northwestern on March 7, 2021.
*-Nebraska had a season-high four players in double figures (Walker-14; Verge-11; Tominaga-11; Wilcher-10).
*-Nebraska got 37 points from its bench tonight and the bench has combined for 79 points the last two games.
*-Keon Edwards earned his first career start on Friday. It marks the third different lineup Nebraska has used in its four games this season.
*-Bryce McGowens set season highs in both rebounds (seven) and assists (three).

Nebraska Coach Fred Hoiberg
What kind of difference does it make when you are moving the ball?
“That’s how it has to look and that’s when we are at our best, when we get the ball hopping out there. I thought Bryce (McGowens) did a really good job early of playing unselfish and making plays. He got the three for Lat in the right corner. I feel like he did a really good job all game long even though his numbers aren't going to jump off the page at you. It was good to see Derrick going as well. Overall, I thought our pace was really good, and we shared the ball.”
 
On the impact the bench made tonight
“All those guys made a huge impact on the game. I thought when they went in, the pace really changed and we got the ball up the court and hit four or five threes. We felt that if we secured the rebound, we would be able to get some transition opportunities. That’s what I thought that the second group did such a good job of, and they found the shooters when they were open. It’s night and day from where it was in the first half early the other night. If we can set the tone moving the ball like that, it should be a good night for us.”
 
On feeding the ball to Derrick Walker
“We wanted to get Derrick going early. We got him a fake hand off and he backed his guy down. Next possession we ran another play for him to get him a post touch. He just fed off of that and we wanted to get him going a little bit. He only got two shot attempts (on Tuesday) and he was 0-2. He does so many little things for this team, such as screening, so to get him going a little bit is big for our team because he was so good in the preseason.”
  
Nebraska Guard C.J. Wilcher
On basketball movement and feeling engaged when the ball is moving
“It keeps you locked in. You feel like you are a part of the game. Even if we are not knocking down shots, we are moving the ball and getting good shots. Shots are going to fall because energy finds the ball.”
 
On Kobe Websters’ impact other than scoring
“Those are the things that we need from guys that come off the bench. Me and Wil (Wilhelm), being guys that come off the bench, you have to bring a spark in some type of way. That was the way he did it today.
 
How good do you feel shooting the ball?
“I feel really good. My confidence is high and that’s really all I need.”
 
Nebraska Forward Wilhelm Breidenbach
On moving the basketball
“It gets everyone involved and \everyone is playing within a rhythm. When the ball sticks, we all go our separate ways and it makes it tougher to play in a rhythm. You see what happens when we move it. Everyone is involved and happy to get back on defense and play with some more energy.
 
On the improved rebounding
“It’s an emphasis in every game and it’s something we have to work on every day. Just hitting somebody first and initiating contact made a world of difference.”
 
On energy when the bench is making plays
“Coming off the bench, you have to bring energy. You have to match the energy if it’s high and bring a spark if it’s low. We take pride in doing the things that don't show up on that stat line like rotating on defense or boxing out. Everybody, regardless if they are on the bench or not, that’s what we're locked in on.”
 
Idaho State Coach Ryan Looney
On Nebraska’s Offense
“I think Nebraska did a really good job getting us in some compromising positions on defense. I thought they did a much better job sharing the ball tonight than what we watched on film prior to the game so credit to them.”
 
On what Idaho State can take from the game
“For us games like this early in the year are just kind of an opportunities to get better. I do not know that we were always doing that, but I think they kind of exploited some of our weaknesses. It gave our guys an opportunity to see where we can improve before we start playing conference games.”

NU Athletic Communications