The No. 5 Nebraska Cornhuskers lost 75-72 to the Michigan Wolverines at Crisler Center, snapping their 24-game unbeaten run dating back to last season. Coach Fred Hoiberg’s Cornhuskers have been the story of the college basketball season so far, but they finally went down, leaving just two undefeated teams.
The Huskers have the unique distinction of having never won an NCAA Tournament game, and their spectacular form this season has come as a surprise to the college basketball world.
Nebraska Basketball Draws Comparison to Indiana Football
Nebraska’s fairy-tale season so far has won them fans across the country, and despite losing in Ann Arbor, Hoiberg’s team is still on course for a No. 1 seed in the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
During Wednesday’s segment of SportsCenter, ESPN’s Seth Greenberg compared them to newly minted college football champions, the Indiana Hoosiers, and senior guard Sam Hoiberg to talented quarterback Fernando Mendoza.
“The Nebraska Hoosiers, they remind me so much of this Indiana football team,” Greenberg said. “Every game has a life of its own. Fiercely competitive. They’re old, they’re physical, they’re tough. Sam Hoiberg, he’s Mendoza. He’s the guy that runs the show; he’s the leader.
“They’ve got a physicality, a toughness, a next-play mentality. This Nebraska team is for real. They do not beat themselves.”
Sam Hoiberg, who is the coach’s son, has emerged as the beating heart of the Nebraska team and is averaging 9.2 points on 54.3% shooting from the floor and 38% from beyond the arc, along with 5.1 rebounds and 4.2 assists this season.
KEEP READING: PFSN Men’s CBB Power Rankings: Why Purdue Might Still Be the Team to Beat
The Cornhuskers led for most of the game despite missing the services of Rienk Mast, who missed the game with an illness, and Braden Frager, who missed his second consecutive game with an ankle injury. Hoiberg’s team missed its last five shots and did not score in the final 3:20 of the game, allowing the Wolverines to steal the win.
During his postgame news conference, Hoiberg chose to see the silver lining in his team’s narrow loss to Michigan.
“That just proved, hopefully to everybody, most importantly to the guys in the locker room, that we can compete with anybody,” Fred Hoiberg said. “It’s unfortunate, but I give our guys a lot of credit for the fight they showed in the game from start to finish.”
The Cornhuskers will not get much time to ruminate on the narrow loss to the Wolverines as they face the No. 9 Illinois Fighting Illini on Friday, with the No. 12 Purdue Boilermakers also on their slate.
