11. Nebraska (25-5)
Regardless of how the chips fall in the final weeks of this season, it’s already been a historic year in Lincoln. With that being said, Fred Hoiberg and company clearly aren’t throwing in the towel and satisfied with their work so far. The Cornhuskers were 20-0 before hitting a few road bumps in the Big Ten but have spent several months convincing us why they’re a contender for the first time in program history.
Unfortunately, Nebraska couldn’t quite complete a Los Angeles sweep. They had won at USC last weekend before falling 72-52 at UCLA earlier this week on Tuesday. It was a brutal showing for the offense, as Nebraska made just 21% of their 3-pointers and couldn’t contain the Bruins. Sam Hoiberg led their scoring with 12 points and Reink Mast added 11 points in the loss.
This team had started to find their groove again but that tough showing against the Bruins really doesn’t help matters. Nebraska has won just five of their last ten games since that unbeaten start but at least these losses have all come against Tournament teams and legitimate contenders. Before their focus moves to the Big Ten Tournament, they get one more regular season clash against Iowa in the home finale on Sunday.