Hats off to the Cornhuskers.
Back in the dance after a year away, Former Big 12 member Nebraska, the No. 4 seed in the South Region, thumped No. 13 Troy for the men’s basketball program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament victory in the opening round of March Madness on Thursday in Oklahoma City.
Pryce Sandfort scored 23 points on 7-of-13 shooting in leading the Huskers (27-6) over the Trojans for the first Big Ten victory of the tournament. Nebraska moves on to its first-ever second weekend to greet the winner of No. 5 Vanderbilt/No. 12 McNeese, a matchup slated for this afternoon.
Sandfort finished the day with seven different 3-point field goals, and Jamarques Lawrence added another 13 points to the box score. Sam Hoiberg, the son of Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg, matched Troy’s Thomas Dowd with a game-high nine rebounds.
A lot of coaches have come through Lincoln in hopes of being the one, but Fred Hoiberg, producing his second tournament appearance at Nebraska, will go down as the first to get it done.
Texas A&M, this year’s No. 10 seed in the South Region, paired up with No. 7 St. Mary’s later today, denied Nebraska a second-round appearance two years ago when Nebraska broke its nine-year tournament hiatus as a No. 8 seed.
Should Nebraska win again, a likely Sweet 16 matchup with No. 1 Florida awaits under the assumption that No. 8 Clemson/No.9 Iowa doesn’t come up with one of the tournament’s biggest upsets in the second round.
Enjoy it, Nebraska. You’ve certainly earned it.
