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Nebraska Claims $300K, Wins College Basketball Crown on Second-Half Comeback Over UCF

The Huskers close the 2024-25 campaign on a high note with an event title in Las Vegas.

Kaleb Henry

Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg holds up the College Basketball Crown trophy after the Huskers beat UCF in the championship game.
Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg holds up the College Basketball Crown trophy after the Huskers beat UCF in the championship game. / College Basketball Crown/Intersport
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Crown them!

On the back of a 24-3 second-half run, Nebraska men's basketball won the inaugural College Basketball Crown championship at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas Sunday, 77-66, over UCF. The Huskers finish their season at 21-14 while the Knights close at 20-17.

With the win, Nebraska wins $300,000 in prize money that will be distributed to the team via NIL packages. UCF claims $100,000 as the runner-up.

Nebraska forward Juwan Gary celebrates with the team as confetti falls after winning the College Basketball Crown .
Nebraska forward Juwan Gary celebrates with the team as confetti falls after winning the College Basketball Crown in Las Vegas. / College Basketball Crown/Intersport

The Huskers used hot shooting to storm out to a 12-point lead with 12:21 to go in the first half. But from there, the momentum shifted to the Knights.

UCF closed out the half on a 9-2 run to tie the game. The second half began with a 14-0 run.

Then, the Big Red took over.

Juwan Gary shoots during the first half against Central Florida in the title game of the College Basketball Crown tournament.
Brice Williams shoots during the first half against Central Florida. / Nebraska Athletics

Juwan Gary, back in the game after having to exit with a head injury from taking an elbow to the dome, scored nine of Nebraska's next 11 points as part of a 23-3 run to go up and stay there.

Brice Williams made six free throws in the final 70 seconds to stop any chance of UCF putting together a last-minute run.

The Huskers shot 47.5% for the game, including 9-of-21 from 3. The Knights shot 39.7%, making 7-of-29 from deep.

Juwan Gary shoots during the first half against Central Florida in the title game of the College Basketball Crown tournament.
Juwan Gary shoots during the first half against Central Florida. / Nebraska Athletics

Connor Essegian and Williams finished with a team-high 21 points each. Williams passes James Palmer Jr. for the single-season scoring record.

Gary, who scored 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds, was named King of the Crown (MVP).

"King of the Crown" Juwan Gary sits with the MVP ball on the throne after helping Nebraska beat UCF and win the Crown.
"King of the Crown" Juwan Gary sits with the MVP ball on the throne after helping Nebraska beat UCF and win the College Basketball Crown in Las Vegas. / College Basketball Crown/Intersport

The win means the Huskers went undefeated west of the Rocky Mountains during the 2024-25 season. Besides the 4-0 week in Las Vegas, the Big Red also went 3-0 at the Diamondhead Classic in Hawai'i and won road games at Oregon and Washington.

Nebraska had not won a postseason event since the 1996 NIT. That is NU's only previous appearance in a final.

Nebraska forward Juwan Gary sits in front with his MVP ball as the team poses after winning the College Basketball Crown.
Nebraska forward Juwan Gary sits in front with his MVP ball as the team poses after winning the College Basketball Crown in Las Vegas. / College Basketball Crown/Intersport

All-Tournament Team

  • Juwan Gary, Nebraska (MVP)
  • Brice Williams, Nebraska
  • Tyson Degenhart, Boise State
  • Eric Dixon, Villanova
  • Darius Johnson, UCF

Box score

Nebraska Athletics Postgame Notes

  • Nebraska wins the first-ever College Basketball Crown and finishes the season with a 21-14 record.
  • Nebraska’s 21 wins this season ties for seventh on NU’s single-season list.
  • This marks Nebraska’s second postseason event title, including the 1996 NIT. NU is now 28-26 all-time in postseason games, including 2-0 in title games.
  • Juwan Gary (19.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg, 1.5 spg) and Brice Williams (23.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.5 apg) were named to the five-member all-tournament team. Gary was chosen as the MVP of the event following his 20-point, eight-rebound effort on Sunday.
  • Brice Williams (21), Connor Essegian (21) and Juwan Gary (20) all finished with 20-or-more points, the first time NU had three 20-point scorers since NU had three 20-point scorers at Iowa on March 10, 2019.
  • Nebraska overcame a 14-point second-half deficit, the fourth time NU has overcome a double-digit deficit this season. It is NU’s second double-figure comeback of the College Basketball Crown (11 vs. Arizona State).
  • Juwan Gary posted his 10th 20-point game of the season and fifth in the last seven games dating back to March 1, as he finished with 20 points and eight rebounds. His 20-point effort was the 13th of his career.
  • Gary finished the season averaging a career-high 14.6 ppg and 5.1 rpg while shooting a career-best 34 percent from 3-point range.
  • Gary finishes with 510 points this season and ends his Husker career with 996 points at Nebraska and 1,299 points in his college career.
  • Brice Williams became NU’s single-season scoring leader with 713 points after his 21-point performance on Sunday. Williams passed both Dave Hoppen (1984-85, 704) and James Palmer Jr. (708, 2018-19) on Sunday vs. UCF.
  • Williams finished the season averaging 20.4 ppg, the most by a Husker since Tyronn Lue in 1997-98.
  • Today marked Williams’ 20th game with at least 20 points. He finishes one shy of Dave Hoppen’s school record of 21.
  • Williams finished with 1,168 points at Nebraska to finish 22nd on NU’s career list in just two seasons. His 16.9 ppg in two seasons at Nebraska ties Stu Lantz for seventh in career scoring average.
  • Connor Essegian posted his fifth 20-point game of the season and seventh of his career with 21 points off the bench.
  • Essegian’s 21 points marked the 31st double-figure effort by a Husker reserve this season and the 11th 20-point game by a Husker reserve in Fred Hoiberg’s six seasons at Nebraska. Essegian had three of them this season.
  • Essegian has 78 3-pointers, moving past Keisei Tominaga (76, 2023-24) for eighth place on NU’s 3-point list.
  • Nebraska finished 20 assists, the most by the Huskers since Feb. 20. Sam Hoiberg dished out a career-high seven assists without a turnover on Sunday. His previous best in a game was five against Southern. Hoiberg’s seven assists were the second-highest total by a Husker this season. In addition, Hoiberg helped limit Darius Johnson to four points on 1-of-11 shooting after he had 43 points in the semifinal win over Villanova.
  • Nebraska held UCF to 39.7 shooting and is now 14-2 this year when holding an opponent under 40 percent.
  • Andrew Morgan dished out four assists, matching his career high done two previous times at North Dakota State.

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Kaleb Henry
KALEB HENRY

Kaleb Henry is an award-winning sports reporter, covering collegiate athletics since 2014 via radio, podcasting, and digital journalism. His experience with Big Ten Conference teams goes back more than a decade, including time covering programs such as the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Oregon Ducks, and USC Trojans. He has contributed to Sports Illustrated since 2021. Kaleb has won multiple awards for his sports coverage from the Nebraska Broadcasters Association and Midwest Broadcast Journalists Association. Prior to working in sports journalism, Kaleb was a Division I athlete on the Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville Track and Field team where he discussed NCAA legislation as SIUE's representative to the Ohio Valley Conference Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. 

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