Roundball Preview: No. 6 Ohio State vs. Nebraska

Nebraska fans celebrate with players after defeating Indiana 70-69 in an NCAA college basketball game in Lincoln, Neb., Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)

Sixth-ranked Ohio State travels to Lincoln for the first time since 1987 as the Buckeyes take on Nebraska, Saturday night. Tip-off at Bob Devaney Sports Center is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised on BTN.

The Buckeyes had six days off since defeating the Hoosiers, last Sunday. Lenzelle Smith Jr. single-handedly outscored IU 18-14 in the first half alone and went on to finish with a career-high 28 points as Ohio State routed then-No. 7 Indiana, 80-63, at Value City Arena in Columbus.

For the game, the Buckeyes were 31-of-57 (54.4%) from the field and 6-of-15 (40.0%) from beyond the arc. The Hoosiers were 24-of-55 (43.6%) from the floor and just 7-of-21 (33.3%) in threes. OSU also held a 33-28 edge in rebounding. Defensively, Ohio state forced 17 turnovers while committing 12.

“Their defense today is what I dream about,” Ohio State head coach Thad Matta said following the game about his team. “We’ve shown signs of five players coming together and playing defense, but today we did a good job of playing total team defense.”

The Cornhuskers enter this weekend’s match-up with an unimpressive 10-8 overall mark and are 2-5 in the Big Ten after starting out 0-4 in league action. Of those two wins during conference play, both came at home as Nebraska has defeated Penn State (70-58) and Indiana (70-69) at the friendly confines of the Devaney Center.

Bo Spencer, a 6-foot-1 senior guard, is one of only two players averaging double digits in the scoring column this season, as he averages 15.2 points per game despite shooting just 38.7 percent from the floor. He is also the team’s leading assist man (66), and he has twice as many three-point attempts as his closest teammate, hitting 34-of-108 (.315) chances thus far. Toney McCray, a 6-foot-6 senior swingman, is second on the team averaging 10.4 points per contest and is shooting a team-best 40.7 percent from beyond the arc.

As a team, the Cornhuskers score almost the same number of points it allows (61.6 ppg to 61.7 ppg), and the team also owns near-identical figures in both field goal percentage (.425) and three-point field goal percentage (.324 to .323)

Nebraska is coming off its best performance of the season, rallying from a 13-point second-half deficit to stun No. 11 Indiana, 70-69, on Wednesday. Spencer scored 23 points to lead four Huskers in double figures, while 6-foot-11 senior center Jorge Brian Diaz hit two free throws with 11 seconds left for the winning margin.

Nebraska trailed 69-68 with 22 seconds remaining when Indiana’s Jordan Hulls missed the front end of a 1-and-1, and Brandon Richardson got the rebound to give the Huskers a final possession. NU gave the ball to Spencer, who drove the lane and found Diaz under the hoop and drew contact.

Diaz, who was 4-of-5 from the line and finished with 10 points and four rebounds, then calmly sank both free throws to give Nebraska its first lead since the 14 minute mark of the first half. Indiana had a final possession, but Hulls missed inside on a scoop shot before his long 3-pointer at the buzzer was off the mark, giving the Huskers a much-needed win over a ranked foe.

McCray added 11 points while Talley finished with 10 points and nine rebounds.

Ohio State has already defeated Nebraska once this season notching a 71-40 victory over the Huskers on Jan. 3 at Value City Arena in Columbus as Jared Sullinger scored a game-high 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for his 26th double-double of his career. Deshaun Thomas added 15 points and William Buford poured in 13 for the Buckeyes.

Though the Buckeyes won by 31 points and shot 53.6 percent from the field, it was hardly an impressive showing. Ohio State was just 2-of-17 from beyond the arc while turning the ball over a whooping 19 times.

On the positive side and thanks to OSU’s defense, the Huskers ended up with more turnovers (17) than field goals (16) as Nebraska connected on just 16-of-52 (30.8%) from the floor and were 2-of-18 from three-point range.

Ohio State also outrebounded Nebraska, 44-21.

It should be noted that the Cornhuskers played without the services of Diaz and Talley, who both sat out the first game due to injuries.

Even with those players back, it really won’t matter as Ohio State should roll to a double-digit win.

Following the Nebraska game, Ohio State will host Penn State, next Wednesday. Tip-off at Value City Arena is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. ET, and the game will be televised on BTN.

No. 6 Ohio State Buckeyes (16-3, 4-2 Big Ten)	Nebraska Cornhuskers (10-8, 2-5 Big Ten)