3 Things to Watch as Illinois Faces Nebraska in Top-10 Showdown

Sunday's game between the Illini and Cornhuskers has major implications on the Big Ten title race.

Illinois Fighting Illini coach Brad Underwood instructs his team against the Minnesota Golden Gophers at State Farm Center. | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

The lone top-10 matchup of this weekend's college basketball slate takes place Sunday at 3 p.m. ET at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Neb., where No. 5 Nebraska hosts No. 9 Illinois.

Both teams enter the game atop the Big Ten standings with identical 9-1 conference records. Illinois' only blemish in Big Ten play came in an 83-80 loss on Dec. 13 at home against Nebraska, but the Illini have since rattled off 10 straight wins.

The Cornhuskers are one of college basketball's most surprising stories in coach Fred Hoiberg's seventh season, as they were picked 14th in the preseason Big Ten poll. They proved everyone wrong with a 20-0 start before suffering their first loss of the season Tuesday at No. 3 Michigan, 75-72.

That sets up a highly anticipated contest Sunday afternoon, and here are three things to watch.

1. Who replaces Kylan Boswell's production from first matchup?

Illinois Fighting Illini guard Kylan Boswell (4) drives to the basket against the Nebraska Cornhuskers at State Farm Center. | Ron Johnson-Imagn Images

Though it came in a three-point loss to Nebraska in the first matchup, senior guard Kylan Boswell nearly led Illinois to victory with a team-high 20 points in 37 minutes. He consistently put pressure on the Nebraska defense with 7-for-9 free throw shooting, and had his second-best 3-point shooting game of the season.

Since Boswell went down with a broken hand, junior forward Jake Davis has stepped into the starting lineup the last three games and played 24-plus minutes in each. He's been most effective from 3-point range, where he's 7-for-15 in his last three games.

Davis should help fill the void left by Boswell, but Illinois may simply be better off continuing to put more responsibility in the hands of leading scorer Keaton Wagler and Andrej Stojakovic. Wagler has scored 68 points over the last two games, but Stojakovic has gone cold –– shooting 6-for-20 from the field in his last two games –– since his 30-point effort against Maryland on Jan. 21.

Looking back at the first Nebraska matchup, Illinois could use a boost from any of its three main front court players –– David Mirkovic, Tomislav Ivisic or Zvonimir Ivisic –– who combined for just 14 points in that game. The trio is certainly capable of more, as all three average at least 7.2 points per game.

2. What's the adjustment to limit Pryce Sandfort?

Nebraska Cornhuskers forward Pryce Sandfort (21) shoots a 3-point basket against the Washington Huskies at Pinnacle Bank Arena. | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

A major reason for Illinois' loss in the first matchup was Nebraska forward Pryce Sandfort's season-high 32 points. The 6-foot-7 junior went 6-for-11 from 3-point range and made a season-high 12 field goals.

Sandfort is making a strong case for All-Big Ten honors, as he leads the conference with 3.5 3-pointers made per game and ranks 13th with 17.4 points per game on a title-contending team. He's played especially well of late, scoring 20-plus points in five straight games on 46.3% 3-point shooting.

If Illinois is going to avenge its loss to Nebraska on Sunday, it has to find a way to limit Sandfort. Illinois coach Brad Underwood lauded Ben Humrichous' defensive improvements following Thursday's win over Washington, and at 6-foot-9, he could be a good matchup against the lanky Sandfort.

"Last year, I'm not sure Ben could guard a dead man," Underwood said. "And, I mean, probably would give up 20 to [Tom] Izzo's mom last year. This year, he's guarding everybody and just doesn't make mistakes."

Regardless of the individual matchup, Illinois will have to keep an eye on Sandfort at all times and defend the 3-point line.

3. Are Rienk Mast and Braden Frager available?

Nebraska Cornhuskers forward Braden Frager (5) and forward Rienk Mast (51) against the Florida International Panthers at Pinnacle Bank Arena. | Dylan Widger-Imagn Images

Senior forward Rienk Mast and freshman forward Braden Frager played key roles in Nebraska jumping out to a program-best 20-0. Much of Nebraska's offense runs through Mast, who can score in the low post, step out and hit a 3-pointer, and averages three assists per game. Frager is the team's third-leading scorer despite coming off the bench, thanks to his 37.3% 3-point shooting.

So when it was announced that Mast and Frager would miss Tuesday's game in Ann Arbor, it wouldn't be hard to imagine a blowout victory for No. 3 Michigan. Instead, Nebraska led for 36 minutes, only to be held scoreless over the final 3:20 in a 75-72 loss.

While it was intriguing to see Nebraska play so well without their second and third-leading scorers, coach Fred Hoiberg would certainly prefer to have them back as soon as possible. Hoiberg explained Friday that Mast went to the emergency room Wednesday with severe dehydration, but he may be well enough to play come Sunday.

"[Mast] better this morning and was able to come in, watch film with us, and then we took him through the very early non-contact portion of our practice," Hoiberg said. "So we went through stations and got up and down a little bit in some non-contact drills, did some shooting drills, and then we got him off the floor. So if he responds well the rest of the day and has a good day tomorrow, we anticipate him being out there on Sunday, not knowing exactly what he's gonna be able to give us. Obviously he's lost a ton of weight, he's still very weak. But it was good to see him back in the gym today."

Hoiberg also had an update on Frager's ankle injury.

"He was back on the floor today for a portion of the contact drills. He went through stations yesterday and did a little bit of work on the floor today. We got him out about halfway through. But it was good to get him some live reps, and we'll see how he responds to it. When we initially saw the sprain, we thought it was gonna be two to four weeks. We're eight days out right now, so we'll see how he responds to the work that he did today, and then make a decision on Sunday based on how he does tomorrow."