Freshman Mikey Lewis had 23 points and Saint Mary’s overcame foul trouble from its veterans to outlast Nebraska 77-74 in a nonconference game on Sunday afternoon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Lewis was 8-of-14 from the field and 5-of-7 from 3-point range, but it was his two free throws with 5.9 seconds left that helped assure the victory for the Gaels (4-0). Nebraska (3-1) had a shot to tie it at the buzzer, but a 3-point attempt by Brice Williams, who scored a season-high 28, clanged off the rim.
Paulius Murauskas added 16 points and Mitchell Saxen had 12 points with 12 rebounds for Saint Mary’s, which saw senior guards Luke Barrett and Augustus Marciulionis foul out in the second half.
Nebraska stayed in the game by getting to the foul line and converting, hitting 25 of 29 free throws. Williams was 11-of-11 while Berke Buyuktuncel was 5-of-6 and had 15 points.
Saint Mary’s led 46-43 at the half thanks to seven 3-pointers, three each by Barrett and Lewis. Nebraska opened the second half on a 5-0 run to take its first lead on a Williams 3 with 19:15 to go.
Nebraska built a 5-point before Lewis and Marciulionis hit back-to-back 3-pointers, starting a 9-0 run to give the Gaels a 58-54 lead with 11:56 remaining. The Cornhuskers tied it at 60 with 9:40 left on a 3-pointer by Andrew Morgan only to see Murauskas hit a 3 to put Saint Mary’s back in front.
Five straight points from Lewis upped Saint Mary’s edge to 73-63 with 4:13 to go, but Nebraska got it within three twice in the final minute.
A pair of Barrett 3-pointers helped Saint Mary’s jump out to an 8-0 lead, a margin that extended to 23-9 with 13:28 left in the first half on a Murauskas 3-point play. Four in a row from Williams got Nebraska within 32-26 with 6:27 to go before halftime only to see Lewis hit consecutive 3-pointers for the Gaels.
Saint Mary’s led by 12 with 2:53 remaining in the first half but was outscored 10-3 the rest of the way.
Nebraska stays on the road, renewing its in-state rivalry at No. 14 Creighton on Friday, while Saint Mary’s is home Wednesday to face Division II Cal State-Stanislaus.
