Rutgers scores first Big Ten win over Nebraska

PISCATAWAY, N.J. _ Rutgers waited until the final second to secure its first Big Ten win of the season as a Corey Sanders putback gave the Scarlet Knights a 65-64 victory over Nebraska in front of a raucous home crowd on Saturday afternoon.

That go-ahead bucket came off a Sanders miss that he actually rebounded after it was tipped and kept alive by center CJ Gettys.

“I just tried to get the ball up on the rim because I know CJ is out 7-footer and he could keep the ball alive for me,” said Sanders who, finished with a game high 25 points. “That’s what he did today. Last time, he was able tio tip it in. This time, he kept it alive so I was able to just finish it.”

That final field goal came off a Sanders' steal and the plan for the final shot was pretty simple. Put the ball in the hands of Sanders, who had been scorching the Huskers all day long.

“There was space on that side of the floor and I love the way he just attacked,” head coach Steve Pikiell said of Sanders’ final shot.

Sanders was steady all game as Nebraska had no answer for him on defense.

However, it was not smooth sailing the whole day for Rutgers.

After Rutgers took a 31-21 lead into halftime, the Huskers roared back and wound up taking a 53-46 lead. At that point, another Big Ten loss appeared to be looming.

“We have struggled playing 40-minute games,” said junior Deshawn Freeman, who ended the game with 10 points and seven rebounds. “We play a good 20-minute half against every team and we let it slip away. But we are going to hit adversity and that is what happened today. We just stuck with it.”

Rutgers would not quit and led by Sanders’ 18-point second half, the Scarlet Knights erased a seven-point deficit and were on the see-saw for the final few minutes.

However, the team never seemed to believe a win was out of reach.

“It was really coach [Pikeill] in the huddles. He said let’s just band together and we are going to win this game,” Sanders said. “That’s what we did and I am thankful to have him keep us poised.”

The win moved Rutgers to 12-8 on the season and it also marked Pikiell’s first career Big Ten win in seven tries this season.

“This is not about me winning, this is about these guys that have been through the war,” Pikiell said afterward. “This is what you have to do in this league to win games. Play 40 minutes, relentless pursuit of the basketball. It is another team we outrebounded.”

After the game, Pikiell was able to do a little bit of celebrating when the team made its way into the locker room.

“Pikiell was the last guy in and we just all started jumping,” Sanders said. “It was great feeling. We are going to celebrate today, get some rest and then get back to work.”