 Shepard |  Simon |  Wood |
-----------------------------
1 2 total
Indiana 30 29 59
NEBRASKA 24 23 47
----------------------------- | ||
With the loss, Nebraska slipped to 16-7 on the season and 7-5 in the Big Ten, while Indiana improved to 15-9 overall and 7-5 in the conference. The Hoosiers also moved to 11-0 for the first time in school history.
Nebraska's starters went 0-for-11 from three-point range in the game, the Huskers got outrebounded 45-41, and NU lost the turnover battle 26-14 against the Hoosiers. Those numbers combined to keep the Huskers from pulling within double digits in the final quarter.
Nebraska was able to hang around in the game because Indiana went just 2-for-16 from three-point range and hit just 31.9 percent (23-72) of its shots from the field overall.
The Huskers finished 35.7 percent (20-56) overall from the field, and did get three-pointers from Maddie Simon and Emily Wood off the bench in the fourth quarter.
Simon, who played seven minutes in the fourth quarter, finished with seven points on her birthday to try and spark the Huskers.
Fellow Nebraska High School Player of the Year Jessica Shepard led the Big Red with her school freshman record-tying ninth double-double of the season with game highs of 18 points and 13 rebounds. However, Shepard was also charged with a career-high 11 turnovers.
Shepard also became the leading freshman scorer in Nebraska history, pushing her career total to 466 points, passing Debra Powell (461, 1981-82). Shepard also tied Powell's freshman double-double mark.
Junior center Allie Havers managed 10 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots as the only other Husker in double figures.
Tyra Buss and Amanda Cahill both notched double-doubles to lead the Hoosiers. Buss finished with 17 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and seven steals, while Cahill added 16 points, 13 rebounds, five assists and two steals. Alexis Gassion added a third Hoosier in double figures with 15 points.
The Huskers trailed by as many as 15 points in the third quarter, falling behind 45-30 with three minutes left in the period. Nebraska scored the last five points of the quarter, but was unable to get any closer, as Indiana sealed the win in a low-scoring game.
Nebraska, which led 13-12 at the end of the first quarter, trailed 30-24 at halftime after being outscored 14-6 in the final seven minutes of the half.
In a choppy first half marred by at least 10 combined travel calls by both teams, the Huskers were led by 11 points and eight rebounds from Shepard, who went 5-of-10 from the floor. Havers and Anya Kalenta each added four points and three rebounds inside for the Huskers, but NU's guards combined for just five points on 2-for-11 shooting. The Huskers hit just 36.7 percent (11-30) from the field, including 0-for-6 from three-point range. Nebraska lost the first-half turnover battle 14-8, and the first-half rebounding battle 26-22.
Indiana hit just 28.2 percent (11-39), including 1-of-7 threes with the Hoosiers' last three points of the half coming on a three-pointer by Gassion. She led the Hoosiers with 11 first-half points on 5-of-15 shooting, while Buss scored eight points and Cahill contributed six points and eight boards. Buss and Cahill, Indiana's top two scorers on the season, combined to go just 4-of-16 from the field.
The Huskers continue Big Ten road action on Thursday when they travel to Minnesota. Tip-off between the Big Red and the Golden Gophers at Williams Arena in Minneapolis is set for 7 p.m., with free live audio available on Huskers.com. A live premium video stream will be available from BTN Plus.