The Nebraska Cornhuskers have been one of the biggest stories of the entire 2025-26 season. Fred Hoiberg has this team rollin' at 20-1 overall on the season. Nebraska started the season unranked and worked its way up to No. 5 in the country by winning its first 20 games.
Hoiberg and the Cornhuskers lost their first contest of the year on Wednesday against No. 3 Michigan in Ann Arbor. They led for a majority of the game, but the Wolverines clutched up late and secured the three-point win at home. Nebraska led with just over two minutes remaining and led for 91% of the game against one of the best teams in the country. There is no doubt that this team is a clear March Madness contender with just over a month remaining in the regular season.
Why Nebraska is a clear March Madness contender
The Cornhuskers are elite at creating great looks offensively. Hoiberg is one of the best coaches in the sport. He puts his players in positions to be successful often. His team is currently 13th in the nation in assists per game at 18.4 and averages just 9.0 turnovers per game, 7th fewest in the country. They don't have any eye-opening stats, averaging just 80.5 points per game, but they play sound basketball and have stepped up against the elite teams.
Nebraska has wins over a good New Mexico team, against Oklahoma, Kansas State, Creighton, Wisconsin, No. 13 Illinois on the road, No. 9 Michigan State, and Indiana on the road. Coming up, they take on No. 9 Illinois at home, followed by battles with Rutgers on the road and No. 12 Purdue at home. The schedule gets much easier after that as well, taking on Northwestern, Iowa, Penn State, Maryland, USC, UCLA, and then Iowa again to end the regular season. There is a good chance that Nebraska wins all those games and finishes the season with 30 wins. With the way the Big Ten schedule lined up for the Cornhuskers, they only had to play Michigan State, Michigan, Wisconsin, and Purdue once this season.
They are capable of taking advantage of that.
Four players average double figures in scoring, led by Pryce Sandfort. In 31.5 minutes per game, he averages 17.4 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.1 steals per game. He shoots 47.6% from the field and 40% from beyond the arc. His points per game have increased lately as the forward has scored 20+ points in five straight games, including 28 against Oregon. Sandfort takes on Illinois on Sunday. He scored 32 points against them earlier this season.
Rienk Mast is second on the team in scoring at 14.6 per game. The senior big man hasn't been scoring nearly as well as of late. In his last four games, he has scored a combined 34 points. Mast scored 31 against Winthrop in November. He had a run of scoring at least 15 points in eight straight games earlier this season. The big man did not play against Michigan, as Hoiberg said he was sick and throwing up before the game. The Cornhuskers need him back, as Mast playing well is crucial to this team's success.
The third leading scorer, Braden Frager, also did not play against Michigan. He averages 12.2 points per game. So, Nebraska was able to compete against the No. 3 team in the country without two of its best players and almost escaped Ann Arbor with a win.
There are four teams at 9-1 in conference play: Nebraska, Michigan, Michigan State, and Illinois. The Big Ten is up for grabs, and with the remaining schedule Nebraska has, they have a real shot to win the Big Ten regular-season title with a shot at a 1-seed in the Big Ten Tournament and 1-2 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Michigan and Michigan State still have two games against each other this season, and if the Cornhuskers defeat Illinois at home on Sunday, then they have the advantage despite Michigan beating them this week.
