Huskers To Face Oregon State for Diamond Head Title

Huskers To Face Oregon State for Diamond Head Title
The Nebraska men's basketball team looks for its first tournament title since 2000 on Christmas evening, as the Huskers take on Oregon State in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. (central) and will be carried nationally on ESPN2 and on the Huskers Radio Network. The radio feed will also be available on Huskers.com and the Huskers app, while the TV feed will be available on ESPN.com.

The Huskers (9-2) relied on their veterans in posting a 69-55 win over host Hawai'i in the semifinals. Brice Williams matched his career high with 32 points on 10-of-18 shooting, while Juwan Gary added a season-high 21 points as he hit 8-of-10 from the field. The pair combined for 34 second-half points, as Nebraska shot 59 percent in the second half to pull away. The win snapped a five-game losing streak to the Rainbow Warriors and sent NU into the Diamond Head Classic title game for the first time.  

Williams has been one of the Big Ten's top scorers, as he is third in the Big Ten in scoring at 19.2 points per game entering Wednesday's game. The 6-foot-7 senior has had two 30-point efforts in Nebraska's last three contests and has been in double figures in 14 of the last 15 games dating back to last season. Gary has been playing well as of late, averaging 14.2 ppg on 51 percent shooting over the last five games after playing just two minutes against South Dakota because of an injury.

Oregon State (10-2) advanced to the finals following a wild 80-74 overtime win over Oakland. The Beavers rallied back from a 12-point deficit in the final 4:30 of regulation to force an extra session before closing out the win with a 9-0 run in overtime. Liutauras Lelevicius led four Oregon State players in double figures with 17 points and nine rebounds.

Semifinal Recap
Behind season highs from Brice Williams and Juwan Gary, Nebraska advanced to the championship game of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic with a 69-55 victory Monday evening. Williams tied career high with 32 points on 10-of-18 shooting, including a career-high tying four 3-pointers, while Gary finished with a season-high 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting along with four rebounds and two blocked shots to power the Husker attack. Williams and Gary combined for 34 of the Huskers 40 second-half points, as Nebraska shot 59 percent from the field in the second 20 minutes.

After Hawai’i pulled to within 56-50 with 6:20 left, Gary’s tip-in started a 14-5 Husker run to close out the victory. The pair combined for 11 of Nebraska’s final 13 points, as NU snapped a five-game losing streak to the Rainbow Warriors (7-4). NU limited Hawai’i to two field goals in the final six minutes and just 43 percent shooting in the win. NU forced 16 Hawai'i turnovers and converted them into 14 points.

Notes from the Hawai'i Game
• Nebraska picked up its first win at Hawai’i since 1976, snapping a five-game losing streak to the Rainbow Warriors.

• Brice Williams tied his career high with 32 points, matching his career high against UAB on March 4, 2023 when he was at Charlotte.  Williams now has two 30-point games this season and five for his career. 

• Juwan Gary finished with a season-high 21 points, topping his previous best of 19 vs. FDU. It marked his fourth career 20-point game. 

• NU had two players score 20+ points for the second time this year and first time since Nov. 27 against South Dakota.

• Nebraska improves to 2-1 in true road games on the season with both wins coming by double figures. 

• Nebraska’s 15-0 run in the first half was the Huskers’ 10th double figure run of the season

• Nebraska held Hawaii to a season-low 55 points, as its previous low was 67 vs. Hawai’I Pacific on Nov. 26.

Worth Noting
• Wednesday's game will mark NU's third Christmas game, as NU played in 2014 in Hawaii (def. Ohio) and 2020 (lost to Michigan). NU Head Coach Fred Hoiberg will be coaching on Christmas for the fifth time in his career. In addition to the 2020 Michigan game, his Iowa State team won the 2013 Diamond Head Classic on Christmas, and he coached twice on Christmas during his stint with the Chicago Bulls. This will be the final Diamond Head Classic game on Christmas as the 2025 event will take place on Thanksgiving week. 

• Nebraska Coach Fred Hoiberg looks to become the first coach to win multiple Diamond Head Classic titles. He is 5-0 in Diamond Head Classic games.

• Nebraska's most recent tournament title was the San Juan Shootout in 2000, a tournament where NU won three games (vs. Iona, Kent State and SMU) by a total of four points. 

• With Monday's win at Hawai'i, Nebraska has won multiple road non-conference games for the first time since the the 2011-12 season and just the second time in the last 25 years. 

• With his 32-point game at Hawai'i, Brice Williams became just the sixth Husker in the Big Ten era to post multiple 30-point games. In addition, he is now tied for the Big Ten lead in 30-point games this season with two, joining Rutgers' Dylan Harper and Wisconsin's John Tonje.

• Nebraska has held Murray State (49) and Hawai'i (55) to season-low point totals this week. Entering Wednesday's game, NU is now 16th nationally in KenPom's defensive efficiency.

• Entering this week's tournament, NU led the Big Ten in free throw attempts per game (25.7). In Hawai'i, NU has gotten to the line just 20 times but the Huskers are 18-of-20 from the charity stripe.

• This is the second straight year Nebraska and Oregon State have meet at a neutral site. Last year's game took place at the Stanford Pentagon, which is 3,782 away from the SimpliFi Arena.