Northwestern Offense Goes Ice-Cold vs. Nebraska in 5th Straight Loss

Northwestern's poor shooting has been an issue all season long. Even when the Wildcats have been able to hang close with the Big Ten's elite teams, such as Wednesday against No. 2 Michigan, an anemic offense has prevented them from coming out on top.

Those same woes struck again on Sunday afternoon, when No. 7 Nebraska (22-3, 11-3 B1G) blew past the Wildcats in the second half on the way to a 68-49 victory. Northwestern's loss marked its fifth consecutive and dropped the 'Cats to a 10-16 (2-13 B1G) record on the season.

It is also the eighth time in 15 Big Ten games that Northwestern has lost by at least 10 points, and the second time in the last four games that NU has not broken the 50-point threshold.

Northwestern shot just 38.4% from the floor in the second half and had a season-high 16 turnovers. Nick Martinelli was the only Wildcat to crack double figures, though he scored just 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting.

Pryce Sandfort hit six threes and led Nebraska with 29 points. Sam Hoiberg chipped in 14 points in the winning effort, while Cale Jacobsen had 10. The Cornhuskers similarly tied their season-high with 18 giveaways.

The game was uncharacteristically sloppy from the jump. Northwestern and Nebraska ranked No. 2 and No. 9 in the nation in turnovers entering the day, respectively, but each team either matched or exceeded its season average in the first half alone. The 'Cats turned the ball over on their first three possessions, though Nebraska's similar struggles kept NU within reach.

Northwestern managed to take the lead with several quick scoring spurts. An 8-0 run broke a 12-12 tie, then when Nebraska responded with one of its own, Jordan Clayton scored five consecutive points to regain the Wildcats' advantage. However, the Cornhuskers brought a 28-27 lead into the break after Sandfort's third three-pointer of the half.

Both teams traded buckets to start the second, but cold stretches from the Wildcats' offense put Chris Collins' squad in an inescapable hole. After Angelo Ciaravino finished a layup through contact to put Northwestern up, 38-35, Nebraska went on a 10-1 run and didn't look back. Not even Martinelli finding his rhythm could fix the 'Cats' scoring drought.

A barrage of three-pointers from Sandfort, Jacobsen and Hoiberg put the game away. That, combined with a stretch of nearly eight minutes without a made Northwestern basket, resulted in the 19-point rout. Tyler Kropp finally put an end to NU's misery with a second-chance layup with 17 seconds remaining.

Just five conference games remain for the Wildcats, who currently sit 17th in the Big Ten standings.