National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Nebraska 72, Central Michigan 69
When: 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Where: Bob Devaney Sports Center, Lincoln, Nebraska
Officials: # D.J. Carstensen, # Paul Janssen, # Frank Spencer
Attendance: 8840

Bo Spencer scored 15 points and dished out a career-high nine assists as Nebraska closed out its non-conference schedule with a 72-69 victory over visiting Central Michigan on Tuesday.

Brandon Richardson chipped in 15 points for the Huskers (8-3), who are on a season-high four-game winning streak.

Playing without two of its top three scorers – Dylan Talley and Jorge Brian Diaz – for the second straight game, Nebraska shot 50 percent and fared much better on the offensive end against the Chippewas (5-7) after a 39.6 percent effort in Saturday’s 14-point win over Alcorn State.

However, its defense struggled to shut down a Central Michigan squad that shot 52.1 percent after entering this contest as one of the worst shooting teams in the country.

After a hot shooting first half, the Huskers appeared to be pulling away when Mike Fox hit a jumper with 13:20 remaining for a 45-33 advantage, but the Chippewas clawed back into the game by hitting eight of their next 11 shots to move to within one point at the 5:01 mark.

But Spencer scored on a layup on the next possession as Nebraska held Central Michigan scoreless over the next 3:49 to stretch the lead back to eight and held on by hitting 10 of its final 12 free throws.

Trey Zeigler finished with 20 points, eight assists and eight rebounds – all team highs – to pace the Chippewas, who have lost five straight on the road.
Top Game Performances
 
Central Michigan   Nebraska
Trey Zeigler 20 Scoring Brandon Richardson 15
Trey Zeigler 8 Assists Bo Spencer 9
Trey Zeigler 8 Rebounds Toney McCray 8
Trey Zeigler 8 Free Throws Made Bo Spencer 6
Derek Jackson 2 Steals Bo Spencer 3
Andre Coimbra 1 Blocks Josiah Moore 1
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Central Michigan 69 52.1 8-17 11-20 17 21 3 7 11
Nebraska 72 50.0 6-18 20-26 17 27 2 8 14