LINCOLN — Morgan Broekhuis can see the telltale look in the eyes of Nebraska's opponents.
One part frustration, one part exhaustion, often served with a side of disbelief that the Huskers absorbed their best swings and managed to steal another point.
This is not your older sibling's Husker volleyball team that took what it wanted above the net. Nebraska's .262 team attack percentage tied for the best in the Big Ten, but ranks near the bottom of Husker squads over the past decade.
Nebraska (24-4) won this season's Big Ten championship and will carry the No. 2 seed into Thursday night's NCAA tournament opener against Jackson State (29-9) at the NU Coliseum. The Huskers got there largely on the back of a scrappy defense that keeps a point alive long enough to figure out how to win it.
"I definitely think our defense controls matches," Broekhuis said. "When we start touching balls with our block or start digging balls, that changes the energy. That changes the flow of the game and spurs our attack into getting better."
Broekhuis flashed back to Oct. 15: The Huskers had just dropped the first two games to a Minnesota club playing in front of a fired-up home crowd. More than 9,000 fans that piled into Williams Arena — the school's basketball facility where the Gophers' play an annual match — smelled an upset.
They watched in dismay as Nebraska dominated following the intermission, allowing just 33 points total as Minnesota finished with one more attack error than kill in the final three games.
"We were down 0-2 and we came out in the third game blocking balls and digging balls," Broekhuis said. "You could kind of see that look on their face like they didn't know what to do."
Previous vintages of dominant Husker teams did their defending above the net. NU has led the nation in blocking five times in coach John Cook's 12 seasons in Lincoln.
But if Nebraska is going to advance to NCAA regional play for the 18th straight season, the Huskers' path is just as likely to be paved with floor burns from keeping potential kills off the floor. Nebraska allowed opponents to hit just .143 this season — the lowest mark in the Big Ten.
Much of that credit goes to freshman libero Lara Dykstra. The Redondo Beach, Calif., native graduated high school early to join the program for spring practice in hopes of replacing four-year starter Kayla Banwarth, who now trains with the U.S. National team.
Cook said Dykstra has surpassed expectations in being a steadying presence on the floor. She leads the team with 3.62 digs per set and is one of the toughest servers on the club.
"She's probably exceeded how I thought she would play," Cook said. "She's shown that she's a great competitor. She can change a match when we need it. I've seen that several times now. She's just very consistent."
And unlike many teams, Nebraska has outside hitters who can play in all six floor rotations, meaning that Cook is comfortable letting them handle back-row defense. Gina Mancuso and Hannah Werth each average at least 2.6 digs per set and have combined for 22 double-doubles this season.
Smaller, quicker opponents would frustrate the heavy-hitting Huskers of the past by hitting the floor and sending ball after ball back over the net, derailing pursuits of national championships.
This year's team has shown that, when at the top of its game, it's able to dish some of that medicine right back. And the Huskers know that if they are going to advance through a treacherous Honolulu Regional, there will likely be quite a few more floor burns in their future.
"When you play great defense, you can't prepare for that," Cook said. "There's nothing you can do to prepare for it. If a team is suffocating you and playing great defense, you just have to find a way to get through it."
• NOTES: Nebraska and Jackson State will have first serve 30 minutes following the conclusion of Thursday's 4:30 match between Kansas State (20-10) and Wichita State (21-10), which will be carried live on NET. If Nebraska wins, Friday's second-round match would also be carried by NET and would start at 7 p.m.
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