In what can only be described as a historical night in Lincoln, Nebraska basketball defeated #9 Michigan State 58-56 at Pinnacle Bank Arena, improving to 14-0 on the season and 3-0 in Big Ten play. For a fanbase more accustomed to football heartbreak than basketball triumph, this victory represents something potentially transformative for a program that has long been college basketball’s forgotten stepchild.
The Nebraska vs Michigan State basketball matchup was never going to win any beauty contests.
Both teams shot miserably from the field—Michigan State at 34%, Nebraska at 32%—but what this game lacked in offensive fireworks, it more than compensated for in defensive intensity and raw competitiveness. Neither team could establish a comfortable lead, with the margin rarely exceeding six to eight points throughout the contest.
The game’s final minutes felt like an eternity, as basketball games often do when every possession becomes magnified. Nebraska went an abysmal 1-of-8 on their last eight field goal attempts, while Michigan State somehow managed worse, going 2-of-10 and failing to score a field goal in the final 4:41 of the game. A controversial foul call with 0.7 seconds remaining gave Michigan State one last gasp, but the missed free throws sealed Nebraska’s improbable victory.
Jaden Mast torched the Huskers for 15 first-half points before Nebraska’s defensive adjustments held him in check. Credit the Pinnacle Bank Arena crowd—absolutely electric all night—for getting into Michigan State’s collective head and contributing to their 20 turnovers. Sam Hoiberg, the definition of hustle, embodied everything Nebraska basketball has become under Fred Hoiberg’s leadership.
Which brings us to the bigger picture: Fred Hoiberg’s resurrection of this program. Nebraska stuck with “The Mayor” through some lean years, and that patience is paying dividends. Hoiberg is a Husker through and through, someone who genuinely cares about the broader athletic department’s success rather than just his own program. That kind of institutional commitment is rare in modern college athletics.
Nebraska entered this game ranked 13th nationally and could crack the top 10 when new rankings emerge. For a program that remains the only team in college basketball without an NCAA tournament victory, these are surreal times. Indiana has become a football school while Nebraska transforms into a basketball power—truly, we’re living in strange days.
My Advice?
You’re going to see a lot of projections be coming out like they do with basketball where they protect seed numbers and what team’s gonna make it to the Final Four my advice is to ignore all that stuff and just take this one game at a time.
The road ahead won’t be easy. A trip to Ohio State looms next, and winning Big Ten road games never comes easily. But for Nebraska basketball fans who’ve endured decades of futility, watching this team compete—really compete—against ranked opponents feels like something worth savoring. Take it one game at a time, but don’t ignore what’s happening in Lincoln. This Nebraska basketball team is fun to watch, they’re winners, and they’re writing a story we’ve never seen before in Husker hoops history.
Go Big Red.
