Listen to Nebraska’s Priceless Radio Call After First-Ever Win at NCAA Tournament

What a special moment for the longtime announcer.

Nebraska announcer Kent Pavelka was emotional as the Huskers won their first NCAA tournament game. | Sam Smith/Screengrab

Kent Pavelka has been announcing Nebraska men’s basketball games for 41 years. It took until Thursday for him to see the first NCAA win for the Huskers as Nebraska made program history with its win over Troy in the first round.

During the final 10 seconds of the game, which Nebraska pretty handedly won 76–47, Pavelka’s call of the winning moments was caught on video. He was understandably a bit emotional as he witnessed history for a team he’s followed for over four decades. He stood up during the final seconds to really soak in that winning feeling.

“There’s the game! Nebraska’s first NCAA win in history in Oklahoma City over the Troy Trojans. It’s all over,” Pavelka said. “All the years, going home from conference tournaments, sitting in front of the television and the ache in the pit of your stomach wishing you could be there, and then getting to the NCAA once in a while and not winning. All that’s history now. ... Now you don’t have to go home and watch and dream.”

41-year Nebraska basketball announcer Kent Pavelka’s (@KentPavelka) call of the final seconds as he witnesses Nebraska’s first ever NCAA Tournament win pic.twitter.com/gEX5tmrdy1

— NCAA Buzzer Beaters & Game Winners (@NCAABuzzerBters) March 19, 2026

The Nebraska fans in the crowd stayed in their seats to celebrate with the Huskers players after the game as they broke into “Go Big Red!” chants. The players stood in front of the media desk on the court, and Rienk Mast reached down to give Pavelka a hug during this sweet moment.

This is a moment Pavelka will never, ever forget.

Kent Pavelka has been broadcasting Nebraska basketball since 1975. Today he just saw Huskers win their first ever NCAA Tournament victory 🥹🥹
pic.twitter.com/I3sc9zwoSQ

— NCAA Buzzer Beaters & Game Winners (@NCAABuzzerBters) March 19, 2026

Nebraska’s NCAA tournament history

The Huskers made their ninth NCAA tournament appearance in program history this year, finally getting that elusive first win on Thursday. Here’s a look back at their now 1–8 tournament record.

Year	Opponent	Result	Record
1986	Western Kentucky	Loss, 67–59	0–1
1991	Xavier	Loss, 89–84	0–2
1992	UConn	Loss, 86–65	0–3
1993	New Mexico State	Loss, 93–79	0–4
1994	Penn	Loss, 90–80	0–5
1998	Arkansas	Loss, 74–65	0–6
2014	Baylor	Loss, 74–60	0–7
2024	Texas A&M	Loss, 98–83	0–8
2025	Troy	Win, 76–47	1–8

Four of the eight losses endured at the NCAA tournament were upsets for Nebraska. The worst upset came in 1991 when the Huskers were ranked No. 3, but then lost by five points to No. 14 Xavier.

Nebraska vs. Vanderbilt

Vanderbilt had a much tougher first-round matchup as No. 12 McNeese, a 2025 Cinderella team, kept the game close until the end. The Commodores won 78–68 to advance to set up a second-round matchup with Nebraska.

According to DraftKings Sportsbook, Vanderbilt opens as a 2.5-point favorite for Saturday’s game. No. 4 vs. No. 5 matchups are always close ones it seems, so Nebraska definitely has a chance of advancing to the second weekend of competition. They might as well keep their winning streak alive at this point.

Pryce Sandfort is the Husker to keep an eye on during Saturday’s game. He played 38 minutes on Thursday, putting up 23 points with seven three-pointers—he was on fire from beyond the arc. He led the Huskers during the season with an average of 17.8 points and 4.8 rebounds per game.

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