The writing was on the wall that the magical start to the 2025-2026 season was over for the Nebraska men’s basketball team.

Indiana’s sharpshooting Lamar Wilkerson and MVC Player of the Year Tucker DeVries had the Huskers in a bind, shooting over 57% in the first 20 minutes to eventually build a 16-point lead with just under 18 minutes left in the game. Starring defeat in the face, NU didn’t blink, piling up 53 second-half points, including eight three-pointers to shock the Hoosiers and silence a packed Assembly Hall Saturday in Bloomington.

Jamarques Lawrence poured in 27 points while Rienk Mast (13), Pryce Sandfort (12) and Braden Frager (11) each joined their teammate in double figures. The Huskers nailed 14 three-pointers while committing six fewer turnovers, winning in areas that are key to taking victories in the Big Ten.

Standing at 16-0, Nebraska returns to Lincoln to face a conference newcomer facing their own difficulties. Here’s all you need to know for Tuesday’s late-night tip against Oregon.

How to Follow Along 

• Matchup: No. 8 Nebraska (16-0, 5-0 B1G) vs. Oregon (8-8, 1-4 B1G)
• When: Tuesday, January 13
• Where: Pinnacle Bank Arena, Lincoln, Neb.
• Time: 8 p.m. CST 
• Watch: Big Ten Network
• Listen: Huskers Radio Network and Affiliates

Oregon Scout

Head Coach

• Dana Altman | 16th season at Oregon; 37th as Division I HC
• 378-170 (.690) at Oregon; 788-413 (.656) Career DI Record
• 17x NCAA Tournament Apps., 1x Final Four (2017), 1x Elite Eight, 3x Sweet 16, CBI Title (2011)
• 4x Pac-12 Regular Season & Tournament, 6x MVC Tournament, 3x MVC Regular Season
• Jim Phelan Award (2013), 3x Pac-12 Coach OTY, 2x MVC Coach OTY, Big Eight Coach OTY (1993), SoCon Coach OTY (1990)
• Previous head coach at Creighton, Kansas State, Marshall, Moberly CC, Southeast CC
• Previous assistant at Kansas State and Western Colorado 

2024-2025 Record & Awards

• Record: 25-10 (12-8 B1G, T-7th)
• All-B1G: 2x Third Team, 2x All-Defensive

All-Time Series

• Nebraska leads 8-6
• Feb. 2, 2025, last matchup, 77-71 Nebraska

Key Returners

• Nate Bittle | C | Sr. | Returning All-Big Ten center that’s leading the Ducks with 16.8 points and second on the squad with seven rebounds per contest.
• Jackson Shelstad | G | Jr. | The second of two All-Big Ten honorees returning for Oregon this year, and he’s improved his production to over 15 points per game while leading the team in assists (59) and second in three-pointers made (33).
• Kwame Evans Jr. | F | Jr. | Key reserve last season, but has turned into an instrumental piece of the starting lineup with 13.3 PPG and 7.6 RPG, which are both nearly double the average from last year.
• Dezdrick Lindsay | F | Sr. | Missed all of last season due to injury and has returned to score 5.4 points and 3.2 rebounds per game in starting six of his 16 appearances this year.

Key Departures

• TJ Bamba | G | Graduated | Ended his college career by averaging over 10 points per game and three rebounds as a 35-game starter for Oregon in 2024-2025.
• Keeshawn Barthelemy | G | Sr. | Part-time starter that mostly played as the premier scorer off the bench with 10 PPG and Oregon’s top three-pointer shooter with 63 made.
• Brandon Angel | F | Graduated | Starting forward who chipped in over eight points and nearly four rebounds per game.
• Jadrian Tracey | G | Graduated | Another part-time starter that contributed solid minutes and added 6.9 PPG in 35 appearances.
• Supreme Cook | F | Graduated | Depth forward that scored 4.7 points and grabbed 2.6 rebounds per game in 32 appearances off the bench.
• Ra’Heim Moss | G | Graduated | Another bench contributor that averaged 10 minutes per game as a senior.

Impact Transfers/Newcomers

• Takai Simpkins | G | Sr. | Second Team All-CAA at Elon last season, and his game has translated to the Big Ten, adding 12.6 points per game as a full-time starter for the Ducks.
• Sean Stewart | F | Jr. | Transfer from Ohio State, where he was a 30-game starter, but has produced similar numbers with 6.5 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.
• Wei Lin | G | Soph. | Chinese guard who put up 21 points a game last year for the Chinese Basketball Association, but has only added 5.9 PPG in 15 contests this season.
• Devon Pryor | F | Jr. | Transfer from Texas, who’s been productive with three points and rebounds per game, but has played in only 11 of 15 games this season.
• Ege Demir | C | Jr. | 6-foot-11 center and Nigeria native who’s now at Oregon after playing in the Turkish Basketball Super League over the past couple of seasons. 

Outlook

If anything, Oregon head coach Dana Altman is mighty consistent. Dating back to the 1998-1999 season when the Nebraska native was at Creighton, his teams have reached 20 wins or more in 26 of the past 27 years, which includes a Final Four appearance for the Ducks in 2017.

Oregon more than held their own in their first season in the Big Ten, compiling a 25-10 record before bowing out in the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament. Altman and the Ducks returned the core of that group this season as All-Big Ten Third Team selections Nate Bittle (16.8 PPG) and Jackson Shelstad (15.6 PPG) are back — averaging a combined 32.4 points per game. 6-foot-10 forward Kwame Evans Jr. was a bench piece last season, but he’s grown to average 13.3 points and a team-leading 7.6 rebounds per contest to give the Ducks a trio of key returners.

UO still lost talent over the offseason, including double-digit scorers TJ Bama, who was a starter, and Keeshawn Barthelemy. Plus, they saw a quartet of key reserves all graduate. Reinforcements have come in the form of Elon transfer Takai Simpkins, who has added 12.6 points per game in all 16 contests. Ohio State transfer Sean Stewart brings plenty of experience after starting in all 30 contests last year with the Buckeyes, while Chinese import Wei Lin (5.9 PPG), Texas transfer Devon Pryor (3.4 PPG), and Nigerian center Ege Demir all replace the depth that was depleted.

Oregon’s 8-8 record could easily be more in the Ducks favor with half of its losses coming by single digits, including a three-point loss to Rutgers on Jan. 5 and a nine-point defeat to No. 7 Gonzaga on Dec. 21. Offense has been an issue for Oregon as they sit in the bottom five of the conference in scoring, field goal percentage and free throw percentage. The Ducks will want to make this a rock fight, especially if they can run the offense through seven-foot and All-Big Ten center Nate Brittles. However, with NU returning to Pinnacle Bank Arena, I don’t see Nebraska dropping its first game of the season to the Ducks.

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As we watch Indiana football destroy whatever is in its path, several Nebraska-related questions.

* Are there lessons Nebraska can learn from Indiana?

* Where does Nebraska stand in this rapidly changing, new-world Big Ten?

Indiana’s football program continues to be one of the great comeback stories in Big Ten history. That’s in football and probably in any sport.

Where did Indiana come from? In two seasons under coach Curt Cignetti, the Hoosiers are 26-2, a remarkable .929 winning percentage. Plus a Big Ten championship.

And one game away from a national championship.

Trying to learn from the Hoosiers

Nebraska and many other college teams should study Indiana’s program in great detail. Teams undoubtedly probe the Hoosiers, watch their tapes, try to glean whatever they can from IU’s amazing success.

When you watch the Hoosiers, they look like a championship team. Their body language exudes confidence, fueled by their accomplishments. In the Hoosiers’ 56-22 CFP semifinal win over Oregon, they looked faster, stronger, more intense.

Indiana was helped by Oregon’s early turnovers but the Hoosiers’ lines looked dominant. Indiana’s defense took apart Oregon, sacking Dante Moore three times and putting relentless pressure on him. It was almost unfair how the normally potent Ducks offense could do so little against the Hoosiers.

Once, that sounded like Ohio State, which might be trying to figure out Indiana this offseason, too.

Let’s face it: Until Cignetti arrived at Indiana, he largely was unknown. He was a career assistant coach until landing head-coaching jobs at Indiana University of Pennsylvania (2011-16), Elon (2017-18) and James Madison (2019-23).

He had two outstanding seasons as a head coach at James Madison, going 19-4 in the Sun Belt Conference. There was little indication he would jump into the Big Ten and turn into Knute Rockne.

What in the name of Bobby Knight is going on?

What’s next for Huskers?

If there were a sure-fire formula for Indiana’s level of success, everyone would try it. How to start for the Huskers? Recruiting, transfer-portal prosperity and luck, and the most important factors, both lines and the uncertain quarterback position.

Nebraska allowed 33 sacks this season and with Dylan Raiola at quarterback for eight-plus games, his lack of mobility was glaring. Sacks are drive-killers.

Indiana’s Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Fernando Mendoza was sacked 21 times this season but generally, it was a case of him trying to extend plays, not sitting in the pocket holding the ball too long, which was a valid criticism of Raiola.

Nebraska must improve against the rush — emphasize “must”. The Huskers allowed an average of 175.4 yards per game on the ground, 98th in the nation. What in the name of Tom Osborne was going on?

Teams gashed the Huskers on the ground and while Nebraska’s pass defense finished third in the nation at 154.1 yards per game, the run defense at times was brutal.

Another Nebraska problem, and a major one at that: Its red-zone defense ranked next to last in the nation. Opponents has 38 red-zone trips and scored on 37 of them. Incredible, if not impossible. The breakdown: 24 opponent rushing touchdowns, six passing touchdowns and seven field goals.

Look at 2025. Nebraska’s portal players made important contributions but they weren’t season-changing. The Huskers needed players who could influence a game’s outcome, or grab a game by the throat and win it.

Quarterback is an area of great uncertainty for Nebraska. Is TJ Lateef the answer? Someone from the transfer portal?

Look at Indiana. When the Hoosiers brought in Mendoza, who knew he would win the Heisman? He came from the University of California, where he had two nice seasons but gave no indication he would turn into the sport’s best player.

Mendoza stepped in and the Hoosiers followed, knowing what they had in their new quarterback and what it could mean.

Big Ten bullies and where Huskers fit in

The last two national champions are from the Big Ten — Michigan, Ohio State. Indiana is warming up in the bullpen, a win over Miami away from the title. 

Skip past Indiana for a second and you have Ohio State — the biggest of the Big Ten bullies. Yet, the Buckeyes haven’t won the Big Ten championship since 2020. Ohio State hasn’t had a losing season since 2011. The Buckeyes’ record since 2011: 165-21 with national titles in 2014 and 2024.

Eight Big Ten teams won at least nine games in 2025. A ninth team, Minnesota, won eight games. Minnesota, which beat up Nebraska in Minneapolis and dropped the Huskers to 5-2, maybe changed the trajectory of Nebraska’s season.

Nebraska (7-6 for the second consecutive season) is one of three B1G teams that won seven games. That’s 11 other Big Ten teams on the same level or having better a better record than the Huskers. And that doesn’t include two four-win teams — Wisconsin and Michigan State — with a history of success. The Badgers and Spartans won’t be dormant for long.

Ohio State and Indiana are the monsters of the midway. Big Ten teams have to deal with these two teams, and Oregon, if they ever hope to rise to the top of the conference. Michigan, Penn State and USC probably will be better next season — they aren’t going away.

That leaves Nebraska slugging it out with Iowa, Minnesota, Illinois, Washington for a place at the Big Ten big-boy table. And there’s an enormous step up to the elite teams.

Yep, the Big Ten has changed, as has college football itself.

Rhule’s changes

Nebraska coach Matt Rhule did what coaches of underachieving teams normally do — he made significant changes to his coaching staff. He fired offensive line coach Donovan Raiola and replaced him with Geep Wade from Georgia Tech.

He hired a new defensive coordinator. San Diego State’s Rob Aurich replaced John Butler, who was fired. Butler arrived in Lincoln with a ton of NFL experience. Either Butler’s message didn’t get through, or he didn’t have the talent to play his system at this level.

Nebraska also hired Roy Manning to work with the edge rushers. Got to go get the other guys’ quarterbacks.

The lines, more than anything else, are the quickest road to success —some think the only road to success — whether it’s the Big Ten or high school ball. When teams lose the line battles, they usually can kiss the game goodbye. Having a quality quarterback is a given for success but without a strong offensive line, a quarterback is limited.

Savvy football people and fans know this. Glamour positions and skill-position players get the attention. Think about this a second: Nebraska had one of the best running backs in the nation in Emmett Johnson, who gained 1,451 yards on the ground. That total was fourth in the nation and Johnson didn’t play in the bowl game.

And still, the Huskers didn’t dominate many Big Ten defenses. Nebraska was 4-5 in the conference and didn’t beat a Big Ten team with a regular-season winning record — Michigan State (4-8), Maryland (4-8), Northwestern (6-6) and UCLA (3-9).

Nebraska’s final three games looked like a program either in decline, or simply outmanned on the field and on the sideline. Penn State scored 37 points, Iowa scored 40 points, and Utah scored 44 points. In those three games, Nebraska was outscored, 121-48.

These were hugely important games for Nebraska. Going against reeling Penn State looked like an opportunity. Nebraska was long overdue for some payback against rival Iowa. You always want to win a bowl game, and the Las Vegas Bowl offered Nebraska a chance for an improved record over 2024, and the opportunity for a less stressful offseason and a jump start for 2026.

In his postgame news conference after losing to Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl, Rhule looked ahead, as he should. He talked about the coaching changes. He sounded upbeat about the portal. He talked about all of the young guys who played against Utah. To his credit, he didn’t make excuses.

All in all, Rhule talked with some level of optimism about 2026. Did he have any other choice?

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