Pryce Sandfort tossed in a game-high 25 points to lead Nebraska to a 67-58 victory over Providence on Saturday in the Basketball Hall of Fame Tip-Off in Uncasville, Conn.
Sandfort was 9 of 14 from the field and made three 3-pointers.
Boden Kapke added 13 points and five rebounds for the Cornhuskers, who led by five points at halftime and pushed their lead to 16 late in the second half. Braden Frager (12) and Cale Jacobsen (11) also scored in double figures for Nebraska (2-0).
It was a miserable shooting night for Providence (1-1). The Friars shot 19 of 62 (31%) and were 7 of 38 (18%) on 3-point attempts.
Leonardo Marangon led Providence with 12 points. Devin Vanterpool had 11 points and six rebounds, and Ryan Mela finished with nine points and eight rebounds.
Nebraska had 12 steals in the win and a 30-22 advantage in points in the paint.
A 7-0 run gave Nebraska a 19-16 lead, but Providence tied the game on a Marangon 3-pointer with 5:46 remaining in the first half. A Kapke layup capped an 11-0 run that put the Cornhuskers up 30-19, but the Friars scored the final six points of the half to cut Nebraska’s lead to 30-25 at halftime.
Providence was 9 of 31 from the floor in the first half (29%), including 4 of 21 on 3-point attempts.
The Friars cut Nebraska’s lead to three points, 41-38, on two Vanterpool free throws that capped a 6-0 run with 13:31 to play, but back-to-back 3-pointers by Frager and Sandfort extended the lead to 47-38 with 10:04 left.
A Sandfort dunk was part of a 6-0 spurt that pushed Nebraska’s advantage to 53-41 with 8:19 to play, and the Cornhuskers had a 60-45 lead after a Damon Wilkinson layup made with 3:31 left. Nebraska’s largest lead was 63-47.