While he entered the game questionable with an ankle injury, junior guard Ty Berry’s impact on the offensive side was anything but in Northwestern’s (14-5, 5-3 Big Ten) 78-63 victory over Nebraska (10-11, 3-7 Big Ten). The Kansas native was simply on another planet Wednesday in Lincoln, racking up a career-high 26 points, on 10-for-17 shooting from the field, and 6-for-12 from deep.

With sophomore guard Julian Roper II ruled out with an ankle injury, it was imperative the Wildcats receive contributions on the offensive end, especially with the squad rolling out a mere eight-man rotation over its last several games. Having only scored five points in NU’s two previous games, Berry put the team on his back. Running out in transition, the guard opened scoring for the Cats with a fast break layup assisted by redshirt senior Chase Audige. In the subsequent possession, the junior nailed a pullup jumper. 

When the Cornhuskers scored their first points, the Berry show continued. Pulling up for another jumper, the junior buried a pullup shot, putting the team up by four after the first under-four timeout, scoring six of the Wildcats’ first eight points. Berry topped his hot start by drilling consecutive threes midway through the first half, scoring NU’s first 12-of-20 points on a perfect five-for-five shooting. 

Even with his excellent shooting performance, Berry kept his teammates involved as well. When the Cats’ previous six-point lead became a three-point deficit, Berry set up junior center Matthew Nicholson with an alley-oop dunk. On the subsequent play, Berry tipped a Cornhuskers pass, leading to a steal. 

Back on the offensive side, Berry buried consecutive threes — one from a second-chance opportunity and another from a pull-up corner three — without hesitation to put NU up by five with five minutes left in the first half. He scored 18 of the Cats’ first 30 points, going a perfect seven-for-seven from the field. Capping off the first half, Berry drilled a deep three off a pass from Audige to put NU up by eight and entered the intermission with a perfect five-for-five from deep.

Berry’s ability to continuously tick the scoreboard led the Cats to a thirteen-point advantage by the end of the first half, its highest of the game. With Audige failing to record any points in the first half, Berry carried the load, scoring 21 of NU’s 43 first-half points. His first-half performance was especially notable, as he was the first Wildcat to score over 20 points in a half since Pete Nance did back in 2021.

In the second half, Berry kept his roll going — when things go your way, they go your way. Getting a shooter’s bounce on a pullup jumper, followed by being left wide open in the corner, the junior guard jump-started the Cats’ second-half offense, scoring their first five of six points and extending their lead to 16. Later on in the half, Berry set up Audige with a slick pass in the paint. In addition to his career-scoring night, the player stuffed the stat sheet with three rebounds, two assists and two steals. 

If the Cats wish to continue racking up wins like they did Wednesday — and set themselves up for an NCAA tournament appearance in March — they will need more offensive contributions from players like Berry. With performances like these, the sky’s the limit for a team considered by many to finish at the bottom half of the Big Ten.

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