The Nebraska Cornhuskers will pay a visit to the Illinois Fighting Illini on Tuesday for a Big Ten conference clash at the State Farm Center. Tip-off from Champaign, IL, is at 7:00 p.m. ET. The Illini are 13.5-point favorites and the game total is 135.5 points.
Nebraska, 10-12 SU and 7-15 ATS, lost 82-63 at Maryland on Saturday. The Huskers are 1-4 straight-up in their past five and 3-8 straight-up in conference play this season.
Illinois, 15-6 SU and 13-8 ATS, beat Wisconsin 61-51 on Saturday. The Illini are 4-1 straight-up in their past five and 6-4 straight-up in conference play.
Illinois defeated Nebraska by 26 on Jan. 10 in Lincoln. The Illini are 15-7 all-time versus the Cornhuskers.
The Huskers, losers of six of their past eight, don't have much time to salvage their season. It won't be an easy task, given the top-to-bottom strength of the Big Ten, which features 11 teams in the top 75 of the NET rankings.
In its latest loss to the Terrapins in College Park, Nebraska played with nine scholarship players, as a slew of injuries has riddled the program. Maryland led by ten at halftime and by double digits for most of the second half, although they shot a lower percentage from the field and three-point range. The Huskers committed 18 fouls and 15 turnovers.
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— Nebraska On BTN (@NebraskaOnBTN) January 28, 2023
Nebraska scores 65.9 points (322nd) on 44.4 percent shooting (198th), including 30.6 percent from three-point range (330th). The Huskers, 189th in schedule-adjusted offensive efficiency, convert 62.9 percent of their free throw attempts (349th). They average 32.6 rebounds (152nd) with a +0.1 rebounding margin.
Senior forward Derrick Walker paces the Cornhuskers, averaging 13.8 points and 7.5 rebounds with a 60.3 field goal percentage (24th). Nebraska also relies on contributions from senior guard Sam Griesel (11.0 PPG, 5.4 RPG, and 4.2 APG), junior guard Keisei Tominaga (10.3 PPG), and junior forward Juwan Gary (9.5 PPG and 6.5 RPG).
The Huskers' defense allows 68.4 points (158th) on 42.6 percent shooting (131st), including 32.9 percent from distance (145th). They're 56th in schedule-adjusted defensive efficiency and 166th in assist-per-turnover ratio (1.02).