Nebraska 80Seton Hall 57
Seton Hall 27 30 - 57 Nebraska 33 47 - 80
James Palmer Jr. scored 18 of his game-high 29 points in the second half, as No. 25 (Coaches) Nebraska improved to 3-0 on the season with a convincing 80-57 victory over Seton Hall Wednesday night in the Gavitt Tipoff Games.
Palmer shook off a slow start and shined in the second half, as his 3-pointer sparked the decisive 9-2 Husker run after Seton Hall pulled to within 44-42 with 13:32 remaining and helped build a nine-point lead, at 53-44, after a Thomas Allen 3-pointer.
Seton Hall got to within 57-48 after a Michael Nzei basket with just under 10 minute remaining, but could not cut into the Husker lead in the last 10 minutes, as Nebraska stretched out the margin in the final few minutes.
Behind the play of Palmer and fellow seniors Isaac Copeland Jr. (18 points, 10 rebounds) and Glynn Watson Jr. (14 points, eight assists), the Huskers outscored the Pirates 36-15 down the stretch to pick up their 14th straight win at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
Nebraska shot 59 percent in the second half, while holding the Pirates to 33 percent shooting after halftime. On the night, NU kept Seton Hall (1-1) to 36 percent shooting, including 2-of-16 from 3-point range.
Nebraska used 30 first-half points from Watson, Palmer and Copeland to take a 33-27 lead into the locker room.
The Huskers shot just 28 percent in the first half, but hit four 3-pointer and went 9-of-10 from the foul line in the opening 20 minutes of action.
The Huskers trailed in the early going before Watson keyed a 7-0 run, scoring five of his 10 first-half points in a 56 second spurt that gave NU a 12-7 lead.
Seton Hall, behind 15 first-half points from Myles Powell, used a 6-0 run to pull within 20-18 with 4:41 left in the half before Palmer got the Big Red on track. The senior wing scored nine of his 11 points in an 11-4 Husker run as Nebraska built its largest lead of the half at 31-22 with 2:16 before the break.
Nebraska scored the first four points of the second half to build a 37-27 lead after an Copeland putback slam with 18:31 left and led 44-36 before Seton Hall scored six straight points, the last of which was a Nzei basket to pull within 44-42 before Palmer’s 3-pointer triggered the win.
Powell led Seton Hall with 24 points, while Nzei added 13 and nine boards in a losing effort.
The Huskers return to action Monday night, as they take on Missouri State in the Hall of Fame Classic Powered by ShotTracker. Tipoff from the Sprint Center is set for 6 p.m. and the game will be carried on the Husker Sports Network and televised by ESPNU. Tickets are available for the matchup by visiting SprintCenter.com or Ticketmaster.com.
Source: University of Nebraska Athletic Dept.
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