Recap: Nebraska Finishes Sweep Of Indiana 70-60 - Shavon Shields Scores 17 Points

Before senior night even started for Indiana, it seemed like things had gotten off to a rough start.  Noah Vonleh was seen in street clothes and would eventually not participate in the game.  When the game started, Nebraska took firm control early and never really relinquished it during the game.  Indiana did have a late 2nd Half rally to get the game tied, but Nebraska was able to kill each and every Hoosier run.  They ended up winning by a final score of 70-60.

Nebraska's star player Terran Petteway actually had a lackluster game.  He ended with 13 points and 4 fouls. Still, it is noteworthy that a Nebraska player can get 13 points and be considered to have a "bad" game.  Shavon Shields was largely the star, scoring 17 points and getting 8 rebounds.  He also made a late save in the game to keep a possession away from Indiana.  Finally, Walter Pitchford had 17 points and 9 rebounds.  He obviously had an easier time in there without Vonleh, but he defended well all game and kept IU from getting good looks.

For Indiana, nobody seemed to come up big enough.  Yogi Ferrell led the Hoosiers with 8 rebounds and scored 10 points.  Troy Williams had 18 points as well and Will Sheehey on his senior night had 13 points and 4 rebounds.  The team shot a poor 23.8% from outside the arch.  They actually won the rebounding battle and only committed 10 turnovers, but they just couldn't consistently score.  Late in the game, they had some excellent opportunities including a possession that seemed to last forever, but just couldn't close the deal.  It was very representative of what this season has become.

For Nebraska, this is a huge win.  This is the team's second best road win all season and no matter how Indiana is playing, sweeping the Hoosiers is a big deal.  Along with this, adding a solid road win to the resume is going to help quite a bit on Selection Sunday.  Nebraska clearly needs at least 1 more win to seriously hope to get into the big dance, but with Wisconsin at home and another Big Ten Tournament game remaining, they are in good shape.  Along with this, Nebraska is now in 4th place in the conference standings.  If they win their final game and Iowa loses another game, they will get a 1st round Big Ten Tournament bye.  You can check out the seeding here: Big Ten Tournament seeding.

For Indiana, this continues to be a frustrating season.  The team continues to play up against the top competition and then follow it with a disappointing loss.  If this team just had a little more consistency, it's hard not to think they would be on the right side of the bubble right now.  Some Hoosier fans were getting up hope of a late at-large bid, but I just don't see how that's a realistic thought right now.  They have big wins, but Chris Dobbertean didn't even have Indiana as one of the first 8 teams out of the bracket.  Without being in striking distance with 1 game left on the year, I just don't see how an at-large bid is realistic at all right now.  The Hoosiers are going to have to win the Big Ten Tournament to make it into the NCAA Tournament.

Other things worth noting.  This is the first time Nebraska has reached 10 conference wins in a single season since the 1998-99 season.  On the other side, this is the 4th time that Indiana has had at least 10 conference losses under Tom Crean.