Nebeker Has Double Double in Setback
Kearney, Neb. – All five starters scored in double figures to help Newman edge Nebraska Kearney, 74-71, Friday night at the Health & Sports Center. The Jets improve to 5-6 (1-4) while UNK falls to 2-8 (0-4). The two meet again February 4th in Wichita. Newman played with a heavy heart as head coach R.J. Allen was unavailable due to a death in the family. Assistant Kyle McLeroy served as acting head coach and saw his squad have a plus 13 rebounding margin and tally 46 paint points. UNK came in as one of Division II leaders in field goal pct. (50.0) and made threes per game (10.1) but those numbers weren't met tonight. The Lopers made 25 of 62 shots (40.3%) including a 6 of 29 effort from behind the arc. The 20.7% tally is a season-low mark. "It's a tough one to lose. It's one you felt like you definitely needed to have," said UNK head coach Kevin Lofton. "I thought we got ourselves into a little bit of a hole coming out of halftime when they were able to assert themselves in the paint." Newman held nine-point leads in both halves but UNK rallied each time. A 22-13 deficit turned into a 34-32 lead after a layup from Colorado sophomore guard Sean Evans. The teams went back and forth over the final four minutes with things knotted at 39 at the break. Newman turned to 6-8 Greek sophomore post Thomas Zevgaras early in the second half to get the lead back. He tallied six of his 14 points in the first two minutes to help NU grab a two-point cushion that ballooned to nine, 54-45, by the 12:52 mark. Once again, the Lopers came back as a 14-3 spurt featured six points from Wahoo senior reserve forward Winston Cook and threes from Evans and Utah super senior forward Darrian Nebeker. However, UNK didn't lead again as NU turned around and jetted out to leads of 65-59 and 67-61. "When Winston got into the game, I thought he did a pretty good job of guarding their big (Zevgaras). But they still got some timely finishes around the basket on offensive rebounds or on drives," said Lofton. "They weren't settling for threes; they were attacking." A layup from sophomore guard Stevie Strong broke a 69-69 tie with 1:45 remaining with a UNK three from the corner rimming out soon after. Both teams went 1 of 2 at the line on their next possessions with the Jets then air balling a corner three, leading to a shot clock violation. That gave the Lopers a chance to tie or take the lead back. However, a 1 of 2 effort at the line with less than two seconds left kept it 72-71. NU then hit two straight freebies to finish the scoring. "We did find a way to step up when it counted and gave ourselves chances. But a three rimed out, another was a good look from the corner that didn't go down," said Lofton. "Six of 29 from the three-point line isn't going to win many games." Newman shot 43% from the field and 62% at the line while sinking three triples. Canadian junior lefty Khaleem Bennett had a game-high 16 on 7 of 17 shooting with Zevgaras making 6 of 9 shots and grabbing six boards. Next, Strong (12 points, seven rebs,), junior wing Stevie Smith (13 points, nine rebs.) and with 6-7 freshman wing Sam Somerhalder Jr. (12 points, six rebs.) were all productive. Nebeker had a double double (15 points, 10 rebounds) for UNK with Evans also tallying 15 thanks to three long range shots. Cook (seven) and New Zealand senior guard Matt Brien (six) combined for 13 points and six boards off the bench with Iowa freshman point guard Jamison Gruber at 11 points, four rebounds and three dimes. "Our biggest thing now is to find some confidence. We've had a rough, brutal stretch here but we just have to hang together and find a way," said Lofton. "We need to get some stops. Seventy-one points is enough to win." UNK hosts nationally-ranked Central Oklahoma on Sunday at 4 p.m. The Bronchos (9-1, 4-1) won tonight at Fort Hays, 66-61.
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