Huskers Advance in FIBA Qualifying Rounds

Four former Huskers were in action over the weekend, as the first round of the FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifiers wrapped up. Tai Webster (New Zealand), Jack McVeigh (Australia), Keisei Tominaga (Japan) and Thorir Thorbjarnarson (Iceland) all helped their countries advance to the second round of qualifying.

New Zealand wrapped up the first round with a 4-2 record in Group A with a 129-75 win over Guam Monday morning in Auckland. Tai Webster totaled six points, five rebounds, three assists and four steals in just 19 minutes of work as New Zealand built a 63-28 halftime lead and cruised to victory.  

Australia won Group A with a perfect 6-0 mark following Monday’s 92-49 win over the Philippines. Jack McVeigh totaled three points, two assists and a pair of steals in 22 minutes as Australia raced out to a 33-14 lead in the first quarter and never trailed.

Japan, which clinched the top spot in group B with Friday’s win over China, lost to Korea 81-79. Keisei Tominaga saw limited time off the bench, going scoreless in five minutes of work.

Iceland earned a spot in the second round on Sunday following an 88-86 win over Great Britain on Sunday in the European qualifiers. Thorir Thorbjarnarson had three points, a rebound and a steal in seven minutes off the bench as Iceland rallied from a six-point deficit in the final 3:06 to finish with a 3-3 mark and earn the final spot in Group D.

The next international window takes place from Aug. 24-Sept. 1.