(Lincoln, NE) — Braden Frager’s 21 points and eight rebounds led three Huskers in double figures, as No. 12 Nebraska used a second-half surge to earn a 74-61 win over Maryland Wednesday evening.
The Huskers (24-4, 13-4 Big Ten) trailed 48-45 with just over 10 minutes remaining before Frager and Rienk Mast combined for 11 points in a decisive 18-3 second-half run to put the Huskers in control over the feisty Terrapins.
Mast, who had 13 points, got NU going with a basket before Frager scored five straight points to give NU a lead they would not relinquish at 52-48.
Maryland got to within 52-51 after a David Coit 3-pointer, but two straight Mast baskets started an 11-0 run that gave the Huskers a 63-51 lead with 4:44 remaining.
The Huskers held Maryland (11-17, 4-13) to one field over a seven-minute stretch after the Terrapins went 8-of-14 from the field in the first eight-plus minutes, turning 33-27 deficit into a three-point lead.
Frager came off the bench and led all scorers with 21 points for his sixth 20-point game off the bench and matched his career best with eight caroms. Pryce Sandfort added 16 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while Sam Hoiberg added 12 points and had seven rebounds for the winners.
Darius Adams led Maryland with 19 points, while Elijah Saunders and Solomon Washington added 15 and 13 points, respectively.
Maryland took advantage of a slow Husker start, jumping out to a 6-0 lead as the Huskers went over 5:30 without breaking into the scoring column. Frager provided a spark off the bench with four straight points before a Sandfort 3-pointer capped a 7-0 run.
From there, the rest of the half was closer, as Nebraska eventually built a 19-13 lead, only to see Maryland respond with an 8-2 run of their own. The Huskers eventually stretched the lead to 31-24 after four straight points from Hoiberg and took a 33-26 lead into the locker room.
Nebraska led 39-32 after a Mast 3-pointer with 18:29 left, but Mills keyed a 7-0 run to even the score at 39 at 15:24 left.
The Huskers will travel west to begin a two-game road trip on Saturday afternoon when they on USC. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. (CT) and game will be televised on the Big Ten Network.
