The Nebraska Cornhuskers were 22-11 overall and 13-5 in the Big Ten, but still failed to qualify for the NCAA Tournament. They failed to record any key non-conference wins to boost their resume so they’ll be motivated this season and win over the Clemson Tigers on Monday is just the type of road win they need.
The Huskers will be the underdog in this contest against the No.16 Tigers, but they are returning a number of key players and entered the season with high expectations in the Big Ten and a solid chance to nab a spot in the Big Dance. A recent loss to Texas Tech, however, have put a bit of a damper on those expectations.
As for the Tigers, Clemson was a Sweet-16 team a year ago and they’ve played well early, but—like the Huskers—are coming off a recent loss as well, falling to Creighton. Can the Cornhuskers get the key non-conference win they need? Or will chalk win out in this one? Be sure to get involved in this one by taking part in the live betting opportunities available at BookMaker.eu.
NCAA Basketball Betting at Bookmaker.eu
Nebraska Cornhuskers at Clemson Tigers
Date and Time: Monday, November 26, 2018, 7 p.m. ET
Location: Clemson Basketball Arena, Clemson, South Carolina
College Basketball Odds: Check Back Later
Cornhuskers at Tigers TV Coverage: ESPN2
Nebraska will have less time to prepare for this game than the Tigers as the Cornhuskers take on Western Illinois on Saturday while Clemson had nearly a week after their loss against Creighton.
The Huskers had a loss earlier in the week, too, falling to Texas Tech by 18-points while only scoring 52 in the game after shooting 35.4-percent from the floor and 21.7-percent from three-point range. The team even struggled to find accuracy from the free-throw line.
Before that loss, the Cornhuskers had been shooting 50.8-percent from the floor and over 37-percent from three-point range in their first four games. Those numbers dropped after the Texas Tech game, of course.
At 4-1, Nebraska is still off to a strong start. They were a good team last year that barely missed the NCAA tournament and are much the same team. It’s hard to say how well this team will do over the long haul, but they’re certainly a talented enough team that other teams aren’t looking forward to facing them. That includes Clemson.
The Huskers are a little light in the front court after some key losses, but they’ve returned enough key players to enter the season with a rather veteran crop of players and nearly all the scoring from last year’s 22-win team.
Isaac Copeland Jr. and Isaiah Roby are a solid frontcourt while guards James Palmer Jr., Glynn Watson Jr. and Thomas Allen are a solid crop on the outside. Palmer, Watson and Copeland have all been huge in the early going and should continue to be key. After all, this team has leaned heavily on its starting five early on, asking for a ton of minutes from there. Against Texas Tech, four players saw at least 36 minutes and there were only three players to see any minutes off the bench, combining for 24.
The team is a little shallow on depth, but the starting five are strong.
Still, Mississippi Valley State, Southeastern Louisiana, Seton Hall and Missouri State haven’t been the toughest of competition. In their first real test things didn’t go well. They’ve got another shot against Clemson.
A win over the Tigers would do wonders for their NCAA Tourney resume, but the Tigers poise a lot of problems for Nebraska.
First off, Clemson has a lot more depth at its disposal. There’s also plenty of talent at the top, too.
Marcquise Reed has been amazing in the early going with 19.8 PPG and plenty of rebounds, assists and steals. In addition to him, Shelton Mitchell has been nearly as strong from the guard position with 14.7 PPG and a team lead in steals.
On the outside, Elijah Thomas is playing well. He’s leading the way on the boards and scoring more than 10 per game to boot while shooting 62.5-percent from the floor.
While the team lost to Creighton, they kept the game a lot closer than Nebraska did against Texas Tech, losing by five. In that game, they shot 53.4-percent from the floor though they did fall short beyond the arc. That’s really been one of the bigger issues for the team on the young season.
This team blew through the weaker early season non-conference matchups. Now that the competition has gotten tougher, they’ve struggled. Can they maintain their shooting against Nebraska while improving enough on the outside?
Live Betting
Both teams head into action with a recent loss on their record. For the Huskers, that came against the Texas Tech as Nebraska struggled to find any consistency shooting from the floor. Inside the paint, the team couldn’t get anything going and on the perimeter, Palmer and Watson got plenty of shots, but went a combined 7-for-24.
As for Clemson, they played Creighton close, but ultimately fell as the Bluejays beat them on the perimeter and was far more efficient shooting the ball.
Keep an eye on how Nebraska shoots early and how both fair beyond the arc. Neither have been that great shooting on the outside this year and have had missed opportunities to execute from three. If one team is able to get hot on the outside, they’re the team to back to win. Meanwhile, watch the spread as the game progresses, this should be a close game until the end. If the spread at BookMaker.eu doesn’t reflect that, take advantage.
Key Player
Keep an eye on Marcquise Reed in this game. Reed bring experience and talent to the backcourt for Clemson. In his six games this year, the 6’3” guard is averaging a staggering 19.8 PPG for a team that’s been able to put up points, but still hasn’t been averaging 90 points. Reed is responsible for 25.6-percent of the Tigers’ early scoring as the team has scored 77.2 PPG.
In addition to his team leading scoring, Reed is also first in assists, second in rebounds and second in steals. He’s the key to this offense. In the loss to Creighton, he scored 27 of the team’s 82 points, shooting 11-of-22 form the floor though he did fail to score on all five of his shots from three-point range.
On the season, he’s 9-for-31 form three. He needs to pick up his play outside and his despite is strong overall performance against the Bluejays, his inability to sink a shot form beyond the arc was key. He shot 34.6-percent form three-point range prior in the five games prior to the Creighton game.
Cornhuskers at Tigers Live Betting
Look for a good, tight game between these two quality teams, but the Tigers are a better squad and have the home court edge.
As we saw against Texas Tech, Nebraska is vulnerable against elite teams and their shooting can go cold. They should shoot better in this one than the numbers they put up against the Red Raiders, but Clemson is still the better bet. They also have a loss on their record, falling to Creighton, but even in that loss they shot more than 50-percent from the floor and only struggled from the perimeter.
Look for the Tigers to outshoot the Huskers inside and while neither team figures to thrive beyond the arc, Clemson will outscore Nebraska and win a close game that could go the other direction against the spread depending on the line.
Check out all of the live betting at BookMaker.eu for Monday’s college basketball.
NCAA Basketball Score Prediction: Clemson 76, Nebraska 70
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