Nebrasketball Comes Up Short in Top-5 Battle in Ann Arbor, Suffers First Loss of the Season

Nebrasketball is perfect no more.

No. 5 Nebraska men's basketball led for more than 36 minutes on Tuesday in Ann Arbor, but the No. 3 Wolverines made the plays over the final minutes to hand NU its first loss of the season, 75-72. The Wolverines improve to 19-1 overall and 9-1 in the Big Ten Conference, while the Huskers fall to 20-1 on the year and 9-1 in the league.

The loss snaps a 24-game win streak for Nebraska.

Michigan Wolverines forward Morez Johnson Jr. shoots on Nebraska Cornhuskers forward Pryce Sandfort. | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

The Huskers were without a pair of major contributors. Braden Frager was out for the second straight game after suffering an ankle injury against Washington last week. Rienk Mast woke up in the middle of the night sick and was not well enough to play in the game.

In Mast's absence, Cale Jacobsen got the start. The Nebraska native got the start and scored the first points of the game. Michigan answered with an and-1 before Jamarques Lawrence hit a three-pointer that would put Nebraska out in front for the next 36 minutes of action.

A blistering first half of offense saw Nebraska lead by as many as 11 points, but neither side could string together runs larger than 6-0. The gap tightened to 50-48 at the half, with Michigan shooting 66% from the field and Nebraska with 10 made three-pointers.

Nebraska forward Pryce Sandfort celebrates a 3-pointer against Michigan. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The contest stayed within single digits at the midway point of the second half, with a Jacobsen bucket putting Nebraska up seven points with 8:45 to go. Then the free throws for Michigan began to add up.

The Wolverines made 10 free throws as part of a 13-6 run to tie the game with 2:16 to go. The Huskers didn't make a shot the rest of the way as Michigan got a layup with 1:07 left and one more free throw. Nebraska had shots from Pryce Sandfort, Jamarques Lawrence, and Sam Hoiberg all miss the mark in the final minute.

Michigan's free throw advantage finished at plus-19. The Wolverines were 19-of-23 at the line. The Huskers, meanwhile, shot just four free throws in the game, making three. In a physical game from start to finish, the visitors were called for 19 fouls to 11 for the home side, including two Wolverine fouls in the final 15 seconds to protect the three-point lead.

Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg reacts to a play against Michigan during the first half at Crisler Center in Ann Arbor. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Nebraska shot 46.0% for the game, including 11-of-32 on three-pointers. Michigan made 47.2% of its shots, making 6-of-26 from deep.

Michigan outrebounded Nebraska 35-23, but only grabbed two more offensive rebounds in the contest. The Wolverines had advantages in second-chance points (14-5) and points in the paint (38-32).

Nebraska's advantage, besides the three-point shooting, was in taking care of the ball. Although the Huskers had 11 turnovers, the Wolverines suffered 19, with 13 coming by way of Husker steals. Still, the home side found a way to turn those turnovers into more points, 17-13.

Michigan guard Elliot Cadeau is defended by Nebraska forward Berke Buyuktuncel and forward Leo Curtis. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Lawrence and Sandfort tied for the game-high of 20 points. Of those 40 points, 30 came in the first half. Hoiberg joined them in double figures with 13 points, with most of his damage coming in the first half as well.

After back-to-back road games, Nebraska returns home on Sunday to host No. 9 Illinois. The Huskers won the previous meeting 83-80 in Champaign in December. Tip from Pinnacle Bank Arena is set for 3 p.m. CST. The game will be televised on FS1.

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Nebraska Athletics Postgame Notes

Nebraska suffered its first loss since March 9, 2025, snapping a 24-game win streak, including 20 games in 2025-26.
Nebraska falls to 5-1 in road games and 8-1 in games away from Pinnacle Bank Arena this season.
Nebraska sees its 12-game win streak away from Pinnacle Bank Arena snapped.
Michigan snapped NU’s streak of three straight wins against top-10 opponents dating back to 2023-24.
Nebraska falls to 2-1 against ranked teams this season
Tonight’s game between No. 5 Nebraska and No 3 Michigan marks the Huskers’ first-ever top-five matchup and just the second top-10 matchup in school history.
Cale Jacobsen earned his first start of the season on Tuesday. It is the third different starting lineup of the season. The Huskers were without Rienk Mast (illness) and Braden Frager (ankle), the Huskers’ second and third leading scorers on the season.
Nebraska fell to 4-1 in games decided by three points or less.
Pryce Sandfort posted his fifth straight 20-point game and 10th of the season with xx points. He is the first Husker to have 20+ points in five straight games since Brice Williams last season.
Pryce Sandfort finished with five 3-pointers tonight, moving into 10th place on NU’s single-season list with 73.
Leo Curtis tied/set a career-high with six points, as he had six points in back-to-back games against FIU and Maryland-Eastern Shore.
Nebraska finished with 11 3-pointers, the 14thtime NU has hit 10-or-more 3-pointers in a game this season.
Nebraska’s 50 first-half points were a season high (49 vs. FIU)

Nebraska Men's Basketball 2025-26 Schedule

Oct. 18 Nebraska 90, BYU 89
Oct. 27 Nebraska 91, Midland 50
Nov. 3 Nebraska 86, West Georgia 53
Nov. 8 Nebraska 96, Florida International 66
Nov. 11 Nebarska 69, Maryland-Eastern Shore 50
Nov. 15 Nebraska 105, Oklahoma 99 (Sanford Pentagon)
Nov. 20 Nebraska 84, New Mexico 72 (Hall of Fame Classic)
Nov. 21 Nebraska 86, Kansas State 85 (Hall of Fame Classic)
Nov. 25 Nebraska 80, Winthrop 73
Nov. 29 Nebraska 72, South Carolina Upstate 63
Dec. 7 Nebraska 71, Creighton 50
Dec. 10 Nebraska 90, Wisconsin 60
Dec. 13 Nebraska 83, Illinois 80
Dec. 21 Nebraska 78, North Dakota 55
Dec. 30 Nebraska 86, New Hampshire 55
Jan. 2 Nebraska 58, Michigan State 56
Jan. 5 Nebraska 72, Ohio State 69
Jan. 10 Nebraska 83, Indiana 77
Jan. 13 Nebraska 90, Oregon 55
Jan. 17 Nebraska 77, Northwestern 58
Jan. 21 Nebraska 76, Washington 66
Jan. 24 Nebraska 76, Minnesota 57
Jan. 27 Michigan 75, Nebraska 72
Feb. 1 Illinois 3 p.m. FS1
Feb. 7 Rutgers 11 a.m. BTN
Feb. 10 Purdue 6 p.m. FS1
Feb. 14 Northwestern Noon BTN
Feb. 17 Iowa 8 p.m. BTN
Feb. 21 Penn State 1 p.m. BTN
Feb. 25 Maryland 6 p.m. BTN
Feb. 28 USC 3 p.m. BTN
March 3 UCLA 10 p.m. FS1
March 8 Iowa 4 p.m. FOX
March 10-15 Big Ten Tournament in Chicago

Home games are bolded. All times central.

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