Michael Cohen
College Football and College Basketball Writer
LAS VEGAS — The chants reverberated around T-Mobile Arena on Saturday afternoon as Nebraska, which failed to even qualify for the Big Ten Tournament, moved within a game of winning an improbable postseason title. “Go Big Red! Go Big Red!” the Cornhuskers’ faithful shouted as forward Cale Jacobsen dribbled out the clock on his team’s final offensive possession.
No team has enjoyed as much support during the inaugural College Basketball Crown as Nebraska, whose fans flocked to Las Vegas with impressive vigor, peppering the stands at both venues throughout the week. And as the waning seconds of a 79-69 victory over Boise State melted away, nudging the Cornhuskers into Sunday’s championship game, the folks backing head coach Fred Hoiberg’s squad climbed to their feet and roared with delight.
“It’s probably one of the best offensive games we’ve had in a long, long time,” small forward Juwan Gary said. “And it carries on for sure. We’re just going to carry this over and try to get a championship.”
Gary and his teammates spent the next few hours watching and waiting and contemplating the second semifinal featuring Villanova and UCF, a game that would determine the only team standing between Nebraska and the program’s first postseason title since winning the NIT in 1996, which remains the only national tournament the Cornhuskers have ever won.
What they saw was a jaw-dropping performance from UCF point guard Darius Johnson, who poured in a career-high 42 points to upend the Wildcats in an overtime showcase that ended 104-98 in favor of the Knights. Johnson’s clutch 3-pointer with nine seconds left in regulation tied the game and forced the extra session, at which point he single-handedly matched Villanova by scoring 10 points down the stretch, including four consecutive free throws to ice the game.
“It’s the first time that this tournament is happening,” Johnson said, “so we’re making a historic run right now. We’re putting our signature on this tournament.”
And now the stage is set for what could be an incredible championship game featuring the tournament’s two best scorers, Johnson and Nebraska shooting guard Brice Williams. The former has increased his scoring output from 15 points in the opener against Oregon State to 31 points in the quarterfinals against Cincinnati to the aforementioned 42-point outburst against Villanova in the semis. The latter, who ranks ninth nationally in scoring, is averaging 24 points across three games in Las Vegas while shooting nearly 53% from the floor and better than 47% from beyond the arc. Both players possess enough offensive firepower to give their respective teams a chance in nearly every game, especially if their supporting casts perform to the levels seen in the semifinals on Saturday.
That the Cornhuskers advanced despite Williams finishing more than five points below his season average in the win over Boise State speaks to how productive the surrounding players were in a performance Hoiberg described as having “great flow” offensively. Nebraska averaged a crisp 1.23 points per possession against the Broncos and shot 12-for-19 from beyond the arc despite ranking outside the top 200 in 3-point field goal percentage and outside the top 230 in percentage of points scored from the perimeter. Outside of a double-overtime loss to Ohio State on March 4, the Cornhuskers hadn’t made 12 3-pointers in a game since their non-conference win over Southern (13-for-30) on Dec. 30.
At the epicenter of Saturday’s 3-point barrage was Gary, a 28.5% career shooter who made all four triples he attempted against Boise State and finished with a team-high 21 points. Jacobsen (12.5%), Ahron Ulis (17.4%) and Sam Hoiberg (35.3%) all chipped in two made 3s apiece as Nebraska finished plus-nine from beyond the arc in a game decided by 10 points.
“Once we get that ball off the rim, we get a stop or two, [then] we get to play in a flow,” Gary said. “Everybody who is on the court can score the basketball. If we keep moving, have great pace, have great cuts, nobody in the country can stop us. That’s what we did today. Like Coach [Hoiberg] said, it’s probably one of the best offensive games we’ve had in a long, long time.”
It’s quite possible that UCF head coach Johnny Dawkins feels the same way about his team, which scorched its way to 1.33 points per possession against Villanova. A huge chunk of that efficiency can — and should — be ascribed to Johnson, the 6-foot-1, 200-pound senior in his fourth year with the Knights. Johnson unleashed a masterclass of body control and veteran savvy that manifested in the form of 13 fouls drawn and a staggering 17 made free throws on 20 attempts, the most he could recall attempting at any level of basketball. He calmly exploited a defensive switch by the Wildcats to step back behind the 3-point line for the basket that ultimately forced overtime.
“He just stepped back and he hit a tough shot,” Villanova interim coach Mike Nardi said. “I mean, it was contested. It wasn’t wide open. So we were trying to get to him, but he’s just really good. You go and get 42 [points] in a game at this level, I mean, that says a lot about who you are, right?”
It certainly does — and yet as with Williams, who only scored two points in the second half against Boise State, Johnson was both the beneficiary and lead facilitator of an incredibly balanced offensive attack. Four different Knights made at least three 3-pointers on Saturday — including four from reserve guard Jordan Ivy-Curry — to widen an obvious chasm between UCF and the Wildcats. Prior to the final four minutes of regulation and overtime, during which Villanova tacked on three 3s, the Wildcats had missed 19 of their first 24 attempts from beyond the arc, including 10 consecutive misses by star big man Eric Dixon. The end result was a 45-24 edge for UCF from beyond the arc.
For both Nebraska and UCF, the extent to which their torrid shooting and steady production from role players carry over to Sunday might well determine who wins the inaugural College Basketball Crowd and the largest chunk of NIL money that comes with it. Will chants of “Go Big Red!” fill the arena for the second consecutive game? Or does Johnson have a bit more magic up his sleeve?
“I think it’s gonna be [about] the mindset of coming out and knowing, ‘Hey, this is it. There are no more tomorrows after tomorrow’s game,'” Dawkins said. “We need to make sure we come out and give an amazing effort. I think both teams will come out and do that because of the pride that’s on the line. You have a chance to play for a championship and you don’t want to have any regrets.”
Michael Cohen covers college football and college basketball for FOX Sports. Follow him on Twitter @Michael_Cohen13.
Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily.
College Basketball
Get more from College Basketball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
