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Nebrasketball Player Suffers Season-Ending Ankle Injury

Connor Essegian will miss the remainder of the 2025-26 campaign after suffering an injury against Winthrop.
Kaleb Henry|
Nebraska guard Connor Essegian celebrates with teammate Jared Garcia after a second-half bucket against BYU.
Nebraska guard Connor Essegian celebrates with teammate Jared Garcia after a second-half bucket against BYU. | Kenny Larabee, KLIN

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Nebraska Cornhuskers

Nebraska men's basketball will be without a regular rotation player for the rest of the season.

Connor Essegian and coach Fred Hoiberg announced Saturday morning that the sharpshooter suffered an ankle injury in the win over Winthrop earlier this week.

Essegian left the game midway through the second half, and tests following the game revealed a significant right ankle injury. According to Men’s Basketball Athletic Trainer Andrew McCabe, the recovery time for an injury as significant as Essegian’s is between two and three months.

Connor Essegian sends a three.
Connor Essegian shoots a three-pointer. | Amarillo Mullen

"I feel awful for Connor because of all the work he puts in and things he provides our team both on and off the court," Hoiberg said in a release. "With an injury like this, we don’t want to rush Connor back without him being 100 percent, so we have made the decision to shut him down for the rest of the season, and he will apply for a medical hardship.

"While he won’t be playing, Connor will find ways to lead and help our program. I am confident that Connor will make the most of this setback and come back stronger from it."

Essegian posted his own message to social media.

"Husker Nation, I want to thank the Lord for all of the blessings in my life," Essegian's post began. "We've had an exciting 7-0 start with a tournament championship, but in Tuesday's game with Winthrop, I suffered an ankle injury that will sideline me for the remainder of our season. Understanding the severity of the injury, I have decided to apply for a medical hardship.

"It hurts me to know that I will not be on the court to help our team, but I will be there every step of the way off of it. We still have history to make this year, so let's get it done. I am fully trusting what the Lord has in store for me and this team. His plan always prevails and outweighs our own."

Essegian played in all seven games this season and averaged 5.4 ppg, including a pair of double-figure performances. In 2024-25, Essegian averaged 10.7 ppg and led the Huskers with 78 3-pointers, the most by a Husker since 2019. For his career, the 6-foot-4 senior has 929 career points in 110 games.

With Essegian sidelined, that opens up more space in the rotation off the bench. This could mean more minutes for guys like Braden Frager, Cale Jacobsen, Jared Garcia, and Kendall Blue. Frager stepped into the starting lineup in the last game for an injured Berke Buyuktuncel.

The first look at a rotation without Essegian comes hours after the announcement. Nebraska hosts South Carolina Upstate on Saturday at 1 p.m. CST.

Have a question or comment for Kaleb? Send an email to kalebhenry.huskermax@gmail.com.

Nebraska Men's Basketball 2025-26 ScheduleEmpty heading

  • 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 South Carolina Upstate 1 p.m. B1G+
  • Dec. 7 Creighton 4 p.m. FS1
  • Dec. 10 Wisconsin 8 p.m. BTN
  • Dec. 13 Illinois 3 p.m. Peacock
  • Dec. 21 North Dakota 7 p.m. BTN
  • Dec. 30 New Hampshire 8 p.m. BTN
  • Jan. 2 Michigan State 8 p.m. Peacock
  • Jan. 5 Ohio State 5:30 p.m. FS1
  • Jan. 10 Indiana 11 a.m. BTN
  • Jan. 13 Oregon 8 p.m. BTN
  • Jan. 17 Northwestern 3 p.m. BTN
  • Jan. 21 Washington 8 p.m. BTN
  • Jan. 24 Minnesota 11 a.m. FS1
  • Jan. 27 Michigan 6 p.m. Peacock
  • 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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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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