Maryland men’s basketball has found itself in plenty of close games over the past few weeks. Four of its last five were decided by seven points or less, and the Terps won three of them.
Nebraska
Huskers at Halfway Point of Promising Season
This is Part One of looking back at Nebraska’s first half of the 2025 season. Coming Monday: Five coolest plays of 2025, plus honorable mentions.
Back in the summer, the weather was warm and preseason expectations were running hot for Nebraska football.
This is the year, Husker fans thought. For once in recent times, there was actual evidence to back up the feelings and the faith. Look out Big Ten, here come the Huskers, many thought, back to where they belong.
The roster was experienced with increased talent. Coach Matt Rhule’s system seemed to work. He went 7-6 the year before — the first winning season in seven years — and the Huskers won their first bowl game since 2015.
The all-important quarterback position was in good hands. Sophomore Dylan Raiola was another year experienced and had shown promise and poise the previous year to instill hope of a big 2025 season. The reasonable hope was he would overcome the inconsistencies he showed in 2024.
Even the schedule cooperated. The non-conference schedule was soft with two FCS teams and a challenging game with FBS Cincinnati.
Missing from the schedule: Big Ten monsters Ohio State and Oregon, and late-blooming monster Indiana. Michigan was a home game for the Huskers, and they played Penn State so late in the season that the game either would have little bearing on the season, or it could mean everything. Penn State would be dealt with when the time came, and not something to worry about in the summer.
Recruiting picked up. Nebraska wasn’t a favorite of those internet recruiting sites, but it was attracting football players and athletes with whom Rhule could win over.
Reports from summer camp were positive. There was talk of team unity. In the summer, all was good.
Armed those good vibes and that empirical evidence, all the football team had to do was, you know, win football games.
Nebraska proved something to itself in its 34-31 win at Maryland on Saturday. The Huskers twice had 10-point leads but were down 31-24 in the fourth quarter.
Raiola, who threw three interceptions, including a pick-six, led the Huskers on two fourth-quarter scoring drives to pull out a game they could have lost.
Maryland was an uncertainty because of talented freshman quarterback Malik Washington and a program that seems headed in the right direction. Normally, in Big Ten hierarchy, this wouldn’t be a big sweat for Nebraska. But, as the Husker faithful know, everything these days can be a big sweat.
But Nebraska showed it could win on the road, and that it could win when it didn’t bring its best and brightest game. Teams accustomed to winning tend to do that — they win.
Nebraska’s opening game, against Cincinnati at neutral-site Kansas City, was a contest that could go either way and experts thought so weeks before the game was played.
The Huskers survived, 20-17, on a last-minute interception by Malcolm Hartzog Jr., in the end zone. Husker fans took a deep breath. Hey, the season wasn’t ruined! Onward!
Nebraska’s next two games were against overmatched opponents and that’s what the results revealed — 68-0 over Akron; 59-7 over FCS Houston Christian.
Now, with the Huskers sitting at 3-0, the 2025 season was ready to being in earnest.
Michigan came to town on Sept. 20 as a 2.5-point favorite. But what Michigan represented was more than a potential victory and a continued undefeated season for the Huskers. Michigan was a monster, too. The Wolverines haven’t been great every season but they were a standard for every opponent. Beat Michigan, and your season meant something.
It’s the way lower-tier Big Ten teams look up to Nebraska.
Nebraska had every chance to defeat Michigan on that beautiful Saturday afternoon. That the Huskers didn’t says more about the Huskers than the Wolverines. As in many football games, the Huskers needed to make a play, or a couple of plays, and today they would be undefeated, ranked probably in the high-teens in the AP Top 25.
Nebraska couldn’t allow Michigan, leading 27-20 in the fourth quarter, to keep the ball for 8 minutes, 46 seconds, and drive 77 yards in 16 plays for a killer field goal and a 30-20 lead. Make a play somewhere in those 16 plays.
Three times on that drive, Nebraska had Michigan in third downs and couldn’t make a stop.
The Huskers couldn’t allow Michigan to score on three excruciatingly long touchdown runs — the Wolverines’ only touchdowns of the game. Shed a block, make a tackle, have a better scheme.
Make a play.
On offense, the Huskers made an amazing play — the 52-yard Hail Mary from Raiola to Jacory Barney Jr. at the end of the first half. It wasn’t enough.
Next, Nebraska handled Michigan State — well, the Huskers won, 38-27, in a mistake-filled game. That was like a March Madness game — win and survive. The Huskers won. Aesthetics, step aside.
Nebraska is 5-1. The Huskers were 5-1 in 2024 and lost their next four games.
There are clear strengths on this year’s team (nation’s No. 1 pass defense going into the Maryland game; passing game; running back Emmett Johnson) and weaknesses (rushing defense). There is inconsistent play and some brilliant play. It feels as if Nebraska is trying to find out what kind of football team it is.
The Huskers have six regular-season games to play. Optimists might have thought the Huskers would be undefeated at this point. A measured look in August at Nebraska and its schedule might predict a 5-1 start without being accused of frenzied fandom.
Five-and-one. That’s about right.
Nebraska’s remaining schedule is fascinating — as most future Big Ten schedules will be. Can the Huskers win out? How about 5-1, or 4-2?
There are season-making or season-breaking games ahead. Let’s be optimistic and say Nebraska will defeat Minnesota — that’s going to be a dogfight. Next is Northwestern, which just won at Penn State. UCLA has joined the party with two consecutive victories after starting the season 0-4. Nebraska travels to UCLA in November.
But think about this: Nebraska still has USC, Penn State and Iowa on the schedule. USC looked unstoppable in beating Michigan on Saturday. Penn State’s wheels have fallen off with three consecutive losses and quarterback Drew Allar reportedly out for the season, but it’s still Penn State on the road. Think about what a win over one of those teams will mean to the Huskers. Or more than one win.
Nebraska met expectations in the first half of a season when much was expected. It was rarely pretty, but it didn’t have to be.
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OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – Creighton Prep senior Zaiyahn Ornelas won his fourth consecutive Nebraska state wrestling title on Saturday.
According to NSAA records, he joins 39 other wrestlers in state history to accomplish the feat.
“It’s a great feeling,” Ornelas said. “It’s a feeling everybody wants.”
Ornelas won three Class C state titles at Wilber-Clatonia at 106, 113 and 120 pounds before transferring to Creighton Prep for his senior season, where he competed in Class A at 126 pounds.
“Three state titles there and then just thought I could bump up my competition,” Ornelas said.
“Zaiyahn is one of the cleanest technicians I’ve ever seen. That’s a huge testament to his coaching staff at Wilber,” Fisher added.
Ornelas was one of four Creighton Prep wrestlers to win state titles this season, helping lead the Jr. Jays to the Class A team title. Teammates said his presence in the practice room raised their level of competition.
“I could never slack off just because my competition in the state was easy. I always had to come in this room and get better or else I was going to get beat,” said sophomore Cruzer Dominguez, a two-time Class A state champion at 106 and 120 pounds.
Sophomore Kameron Green, the Class A 144-pound state champion this year, also credited Ornelas for aiding in his development.
“Zaiyahn being a training partner has helped me in tremendous ways,” he said. “When he wrestles, he’s not the nicest or shyest kid, but he’s tenacious and tough.”
Junior JT Smith, a two-time state champion at 175 and 190 pounds, said the achievement carries weight for the entire team.
“It’s something really special to have a teammate that’s a four-time state champion,” he said. “That’s something everyone wants to be.”
Fisher said Ornelas’s attitude set the tone from the start.
“He has so many skills and then coming into our room, he’s extremely coachable. Every time he came in here he was humble, ready to work, wanting to get better and that’s why he is as good as he is,” Fisher said.
Ornelas signed to wrestle at the University of Nebraska in November. He said the move to Creighton Prep delivered what he was looking for.
“This is the reason why I came here. I went out to explore, to find the best, and this is the territory that I found. If it wasn’t for these guys — the push — I would have not been there,” Ornelas said.
“It’s hard to believe. That’s kind of what I wanted since the beginning, freshman year,” he said.
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LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – The Nebraska Chamber of Commerce & Industry has selected a former state senator and longtime board member to lead the chamber while it searches for a new president and CEO.
Board of Directors Chair Pat Keenan said Thursday that Matt Williams of Gothenburg agreed to serve as interim president.
ALSO READ: Nebraska Chamber president and CEO resigns after less than a year
“The Board is grateful to Matt for stepping into this role during a very active and productive time for the Nebraska Chamber,” Keenan said. “He has steady leadership, strong relationships and trust from his many years of advocacy for economic development, and decades of experience working with the legislature and state government on tax policy and economic development incentives.”
Williams represented District 36 in the Nebraska Legislature from 2015 to 2023.
The chamber said Williams has had a lifelong career in banking and serves as chairman of Flatwater Bank. He previously served as chair of the Nebraska Bankers Association and the American Bankers Association.
His long involvement with the chamber includes membership on the Board of Directors; he currently serves as director for District 6. In 2025, he was named to the Nebraska Business Hall of Fame.
“The Nebraska Chamber is on rock-solid footing, with the clear vision of the Board, and talented and hard-working staff hitting its stride in legislative policy and advocacy, technology, manufacturing, leadership-development, fund-raising and membership. The success of cutting-edge initiatives like 6 Regions, One Nebraska, the launch of the Go Big Future series, and the strong member engagement across the state demonstrate the success and strength of this organization. I’m excited to lend my support in whatever way I can for the Chamber. I know how strong businesses and communities make for a stronger Nebraska, and I’m glad to be part of that.”
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Copyright 2026 KOLN. All rights reserved.
Head coach Buzz Williams had ostensibly found a winning recipe in crunch time. That is, until Wednesday’s clash with No. 12 Nebraska.
Down by five with just over six minutes to play, the key ingredients for a comeback were nowhere to be found. Andre Mills, who had been superb over Maryland’s past few matches, turned the ball over to star forward Pryce Sandfort on an errant pass. Just seconds later, Sandfort splashed a 3-pointer, and Pinnacle Bank Arena went wild.
That sequence was the cap of a 9-0 run and the middle of an 0-of-4 shooting stretch for Maryland. What was largely a competitive contest soon became lopsided, and the Terps fell, 74-61.
Williams used his coach’s challenge just a minute and a half into Wednesday’s contest. The reversed call didn’t result in points right away — the Terps turned it over the very next possession — but it undoubtedly sent a crystal clear, no-nonsense message to the sideline.
And Maryland’s defense was ready for the rowdy away game occasion. The Terps notched just five points in the opening five minutes — two coming on a thunderous Solomon Washington slam — but didn’t allow Nebraska on the scoresheet. In fact, Maryland turned the Cornhuskers over twice in that span, and Guillermo Del Pino rejected a Jamarques Lawrence layup.
Nebraska started the game 0-of-6 from the field before finding the net. Sandfort channeled his shooting prowess, sinking a 3-pointer to give the Cornhuskers their first advantage of the match six-and-a-half minutes in.
Forward Braden Frager was the true catalyst for Nebraska’s sudden surge, logging seven of the team’s first 10 points and operating well in transition. His quick-hit offense didn’t allow Maryland to set up its effective half-court defense.
The Terps’ offense remained relatively cold as the midway point of the half approached. They embarked on a 1-of-8 shooting stretch, with Nebraska consistently switching on Maryland’s perimeter looks and forcing Washington into some perimeter shots.
Interestingly enough, it was Washington and his frontcourt counterpart — Elijah Saunders — that offered the team a surge from beyond the arc. The two combined for four of the squad’s first five 3-pointers — two of Saunders’ makes came in the last five minutes of the half to keep Maryland within striking distance.
The Cornhuskers took a six point advantage into the halftime locker room, up 33-27.
Rienk Mast finally got into a bit of rhythm to open the second half, burying a 3-pointer in an attempt to keep the Terps at bay. But Maryland’s offense wasn’t rattled. It didn’t revert to the same isolation playbook that it has sometimes found itself running; it instead was gritty on the glass and earned multiple second-chance opportunities.
Nebraska was being worn down on defense, and its crowd was becoming less intense. Maryland just needed to establish some prolonged momentum.
But the game remained deadlocked for the ensuing minutes. Andre Mills began to display some of the athletic lane-driving traits he’s exhibited over the past 10 contests. But he also drilled a pair of long-range jumpers, quickly becoming the team’s leading second-half scorer.
As the clock ticked below 10 minutes left with the game decided by just a matter of points, the Terps’ offense hit a stagnant stretch. Coit took four consecutive shots — and made only one — while the team’s ball movement came to a screeching halt.
After Nebraska’s 9-0 run, things didn’t realign on the attack for Maryland. Coit continued to struggle, going 2-of-6 from three in the second half. Mills also missed back-to-back looks, and from there, the result was all but decided.
1. Elijah Saunders’ big day. With Mills struggling in the first half Wednesday, Saunders picked up some of the slack. The 40% 3-point shooter made half of his looks, resulting in a season-high five 3-pointers against the Cornhuskers. That comes just one game after he set his previous season-high of four 3-pointers against Washington.
2. Paint production erased. Maryland’s frontcourt did some damage Wednesday night, but much of it came from deep. The Terps finished with just 14 points in the paint compared to Nebraska’s 26. Despite both teams grabbing seven offensive rebounds, Maryland didn’t make much of the second chance opportunities in the restricted area.
3. More Del Pino minutes. After playing 27 minutes and securing the win with an alley-oop lob against Washington, Del Pino was on the court for 15 minutes Wednesday. Though he finished without any points, he seems to have earned Williams’ trust and continues to operate the floor well from a distribution perspective.
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