Not since the Creighton defeat on Dec. 3, 2023, has the Nebraska men’s basketball team lost at home inside Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln. One more win would tie the program record, which has been set two previous times.
That stretch of 19 straight victories in Lincoln — the stellar home-court advantage Husker fans create for Fred Hoiberg’s team has been an incredibly effective tool the team has used to its benefit — will be put to the test Saturday as Nebraska (11-2 overall, 1-1 in Big Ten) hosts No. 15 UCLA (11-2, 2-0) for a 1 p.m. tipoff, which will be shown on FOX with Tim Brando and Nick Bahe on the call.
Saturday’s game will mark the first time UCLA has played in Lincoln since 1955.
The Bruins, who already own top-15 wins over No. 12 Oregon (73-71) and No. 14 Gonzaga (65-62), will bring one of the best defenses in college basketball to Lincoln. They’re allowing just 58.7 points per game, seventh-best in the country. Opponents are shooting only 29.6% from 3-point range against them, which ranks 52nd in the country.
It’s a team that reminds Hoiberg of Michigan State. The head coach is hoping his team reacts differently than how it did in East Lansing earlier this season.
“Their physical toughness is as good as anybody in the country,” Hoiberg said Thursday after a practice inside PBA. “And when you look at their numbers defensively, it’s one through five — those guys guard anybody.”
But Nebraska’s defense has been strong, too. Led by lead assistant Nate Loenser’s game plans, the Husker D is holding opponents to 65.1 points per game, a top-50 mark nationally at No. 42.
Hoiberg said UCLA does a great job of limiting post touches, keeping the ball out of the paint and rotating on every pass. But one aspect of the UCLA defense Hoiberg is really hammering to his team are the steals.
Nebraska’s offense, which has had its issues with turnovers this season, will need to value the basketball on Saturday because UCLA averages 9.3 steals per game, good for 35th in the country. Kobe Johnson, a 6-6 guard and crosstown transfer from USC, is averaging a whopping 2.2 steals each contest.
“They’re going to be in gaps. We can’t play in a crowd — that’s going to be as important as anything in this game,” Hoiberg said. “If you do, they’re going to take it from you and there’s nothing you can do about it. We’re not going to be the first team all of a sudden that can get by their first line of defense, we have to make simple plays all game long.”
Starting to cut down on the self-inflicted turnovers is what Hoiberg wants to see the most. He noted two of Nebraska’s turnovers against Southern on Monday were due to stepping out of bounds — mistakes like those “eats away your insides” Hoiberg said.
“We have to clean it up if we want to win consistently in this league,” Hoiberg said. “We have to value possessions much better than what we’re doing right now, and finish possessions better than what we’re doing right now. And UCLA is going to test us in both of those areas on Saturday afternoon.”
Trying to replicate UCLA defensively isn’t an easy task. But Hoiberg has a few young, developing pieces behind the scenes — guys like Nick Janowski, Braden Frager and Justin Bolis — who do their best, and it’s not half bad according to Hoiberg.
Imitating the other team not only helps the older players in the rotation prepare for what they’ll see on Saturday, but it also continues their own development.
“Those guys, in their first year in the program, they’re learning every system in the league now,” Hoiberg said. “And when we go on the road — we’ve already been to Michigan State — next week, you go to Iowa, you go to Purdue. They’re going to experience all that. And that’s very beneficial for their futures. But I give those guys all the credit in the world, being the first ones in the gym, going out there and trying to learn all the plays that we’re going to face, and they do a really good job of executing and getting us prepared.”
The travel for the Big Ten teams coming from the coasts will be challenging, Hoiberg said. The head coach noted UCLA arrived in Lincoln on Thursday, two days before the game, in an effort to get acclimated to the different time zone.
Saturday’s game will be the first time Berke Buyuktuncel plays against his former team. Buyuktuncel spent his true freshman season at UCLA, and it didn’t necessarily go well. He got a late start due to the NCAA not clearing him by the start of the season. Then he battled injuries that kept him out of a handful of games.
Buyuktuncel wound up playing in 26 games for his former head coach Mick Cronin, including eight starts. He averaged 4.9 points and 2.7 rebounds.
“We don’t really talk about it, to be honest with you. They (players) know it. They want to go out and play well against former teams,” Hoiberg said of his players competing against their former teams.
A change in scenery was needed for Buyuktuncel, and he found it in Lincoln. While he’s fought through more nagging injuries, Buyuktuncel has healed up and become an important and versatile part of Nebraska’s team.
Since returning from a minor groin injury, he’s continuing to improve his conditioning and has played well on both ends of the court. The 6-10, 244-pounder is averaging 7.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.2 steals per game.
In the Diamond Head Classic championship game against Oregon State, Buyuktuncel scored a career-high 16 points and went 3-of-4 from 3-point range. On Monday against Southern, he tied his career-high in rebounds with nine — that was his fourth game this season with at least nine boards.
Buyuktuncel will be on the of the primary matchups with UCLA’s Tyler Bilodeau, a 6-9, 230-pound Oregon State transfer who’s averaging 14.5 points and 5.2 rebounds while shooting 41.5% from 3 (17-of-41).
“BK, I think, is playing some of his best basketball right now. He’s playing with more confidence on the offensive end and he’s been one of our better defenders,” Hoiberg said of Buyuktuncel. “When you look at it from an analytic standpoint, rebounding, he’s really helped us on the glass. And he’s a guy who can play multiple positions. He’s playing a lot of five for us right now, which is important with Bilodeau, a guy who can pick-and-pop and is their leading scorer, and a guy who can really shoot the ball.”
Staying within himself and not trying to do too much will be key for Buyuktuncel.
“I know that these are big games for these guys. When you face your former program, they want to go out and play well,” Hoiberg said. “But at the same time, you don’t want to put too much pressure on yourself. Just go out there and play with instincts, which is when Berke is at his best.”
Ahron Ulis hasn’t played since Dec. 13 against Indiana due to an ankle sprain during practice in Hawaii for the Diamond Head Classic.
Hoiberg said Ulis, the backup point behind Rollie Worster, will be a game-time decision on Saturday. The guard went thought contact drills on Thursday after going through non-contact drills on Wednesday.
Having Ulis, who can get up the court with the ball faster than anyone on the roster would be nice to have against a UCLA defense that will likely try to pressure Nebraska’s ball handlers.
“He’s still a little bit sore. Obviously it’d be great to have him because of the pressure that they’re going to apply to us, but we’re not going to take any chances,” Ulis said. “We know we’ve got a lot of games left, so we’ll see how he responds to today’s load and hopefully he can do a little bit more tomorrow.”
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