Big Ten Basketball: Michigan’s rout puts them on top of Power Rankings

14. Nebraska Cornhuskers (4-8, 0-5 Big Ten)

The rebuild under Fred Hoiberg is going to take longer than Nebraska fans likely hoped. For now, the focus is just getting through the 2020-21 season.

The Cornhuskers were blown out in their first three conference games, but they’ve played their last two opponents much tighter. They lost to Michigan State – then ranked No. 17 – by just seven points and then came back from a 15-point deficit against Indiana, only to ultimately lose by eight points anyways.

The emergence of junior guard Teddy Allen has been a bright spot for the team. He played at West Virginia way back in 2017-18 before making several stops prior to his arrival at Nebraska. He’s averaging 18.4 points and 5.1 rebounds per game and looking like a legitimate star.

Nebraska’s next two games are off due to a COVID-19 pause in the program and their schedule doesn’t look much easier when they return next Wednesday night, with a home tilt against Minnesota followed by a trip to Iowa. All eyes will be on January 30, when the Cornhuskers host Penn State in their best opportunity to snag a conference win this season.

Otherwise, there’s not much to do besides look towards next season. That’s when Bryce McGowens will arrive on campus.