Nebraska needed to get off to a good start, and it was an ok one. The Huskers used an 8-0 run to take and early three point lead, but then the back-and-forth battle began. Nick Martinelli, scourge of Nebraska and one of the nation’s leading scorers, started to get plenty of looks early. The Wildcats would hit 5 straight field goals and 7 of their first 11 to start the game.
Nebraska
Nebraska MBB Recap: Huskers Cruise to 18-0 with a 77-58 Win
Martinelli was already in double figures shortly after the 10-minute mark. Both teams would go scoreless of 2:30 at the same time, leading to a little bit of a lull. Nebraska would start to keep Northwestern at bay, keeping the lead between three and seven points. Nebraska would take a 34-29 lead into the locker room.
Nebraska shot 13-28 for 46% from the floor. They went 5-15 for 33% from deep and 3-5 for 60% from the free-throw line. The Huskers collected 13 rebounds, 2 of which were offensive. Nebraska had 11 assists to just 3 turnovers. They had 14 points in the paint.
The Huskers were led by Pryce Sandfort, who had 9 points. Jamarques Lawrence and Braden Frager had 8 each. Sam Hoiberg led the way with 4 rebounds and 4 assists. Lawrence had 3 steals.
Northwestern shot 12-30 for 40% from the floor. They went 2-6 for 33% from deep and 3-4 for 75% from the free-throw line. The Wildcats collected 21 rebounds, 7 of which were offensive. Northwestern had 7 assists to 6 turnovers. They had 12 points in the paint.
The Wildcats were led by Nick Martinelli, who had 15 points. Martinelli also had 8 rebounds, including 5 of the offensive boards. Angelo Ciaravino contributed 5 rebounds. Jake West, Jayden Reid and Ciaravino each had 2 assists.
Nebraska has usually done a good job of coming out with another gear to start the second half of games, and the Huskers certainly did that. Nebraska started 3-3 from the floor to open a double-digit lead. Pryce Sandfort and Braden Frager did exactly what they did to Oregon in the previous game, shooting the ball very well to open up the lead in a big way. Nebraska officially blew the door open using a 17-3 run over a 5:49 time span.
The Huskers would lead by 19 after that, and Northwestern wouldn’t get close after that. Nebraska would shoot 60% for most of the second half, which really helped open things up. Martinelli still got his, as he would carry Northwestern again, but he definitely needs some help if the Wildcats want to win games in the Big Ten.
FINAL STATS AND THOUGHTS:
Nebraska shot 27-53 for 51% from the floor. They went 11-26 for 42% from deep and 12-15 for 80% from the free-throw line. The Huskers collected 28 rebounds, 6 of which were offensive. Nebraska had 18 assists to just 5 turnovers. Nebraska had 28 points in the paint.
The Huskers were led by Pryce Sandfort, who had 22 points. Braden Frager contributed with 20 points off the bench. Sam Hoiberg led the way with 7 rebounds. 4 different Huskers finished with 4 assists. Jamarques Lawrence had 3 steals.
Northwestern shot 23-54 for 43% from the floor. They went 5-14 for 36% from deep and 7-10 for 70% from the free-throw line. The Wildcats collected 30 rebounds, 9 of which were offensive. Northwestern had 15 assists to 11 turnovers. They had 24 points in the paint.
The Wildcats were led by Nick Martinelli, who had 22 points. Tre Singleton finished with 14. Martinelli also led the way with 10 rebounds. Jayden Reid finished with 5 assists.
This one ended up being pretty straightforward for Nebraska in the end. The Huskers did a good job of keeping Northwestern at bay throughout the first half. Nebraska would go on another huge run in the second half, which it has done most of the season to blow the door open. Nick Martinelli still scored about right at his average for the Wildcats, but it took him 20 field goal attempts to get there.
Northwestern doesn’t have much in terms of secondary scoring. 3 Huskers finished in double figures, with two others within a basket of finishing with double digits. The Huskers are back in action on Wednesday night, as they host Washington. Tip-off at Pinnacle Bank Arena is scheduled for 8:00 pm and can be seen on the Big Ten Network. Go Big Red!
NCAA Tournament softball returns to Bowlin Stadium this weekend as top-seeded Nebraska prepares to host its first regional since 2013.
The Huskers enter the postseason ranked No. 1 in both the NFCA and USA Softball polls for the first time in program history. Nebraska (46-6) earned the No. 4 overall seed after a historic season that included both the Big Ten regular-season and tournament championships.
Nebraska opens regional play Friday at 5:30 p.m. CT against Summit League champion South Dakota.
“It’s time to funnel it back down,” head coach Rhonda Revelle said. “We had a good day and a half after winning the Big Ten Tournament where the players could enjoy it, but now it’s time to focus.”
The Huskers bring the nation’s longest active winning streak into the tournament at 21 games and have established themselves as one of the country’s most complete teams. Nebraska owns 10 wins over current top-25 opponents this season, including victories over then-No. 1 Texas and Texas Tech.
A major reason for Nebraska’s success has been its pitching staff, led by back-to-back Big Ten Pitcher of the Year Jordy Frahm and freshman standout Alexis Jensen, the conference’s Freshman of the Year.
Frahm, a former national champion at Oklahoma, enters the postseason as one of the nation’s top two-way players, while Jensen leads all freshman pitchers nationally in wins and strikeouts.
“Coach has really emphasized taking it one pitch at a time,” Third Baseman Samantha Bland said. “We’re trying to slow ourselves down and stay in the moment.”
South Dakota enters with a 20-34-1 record but arrives in Lincoln with momentum after capturing the Summit League Tournament title — the first conference championship in program history.
“Forty-eight years and we’d never won a championship of any kind,” South Dakota head coach Robert Wagner said. “To be the first is really special.”
The Coyotes are led offensively by Brooke Carey, sister of Nebraska baseball player Dylan Carey, while Madison Evans has handled the bulk of the pitching duties this season.
On paper, Nebraska holds the advantage in nearly every category, including offense, pitching depth and postseason experience. Still, the Huskers know the NCAA Tournament leaves little room for error.
“Anything can happen,” Revelle said. “The key is mastering the little things and sticking to what got us here.”
Louisville and Grand Canyon will meet in the regional’s opening game Friday at 3 p.m. CT before Nebraska takes the field Friday night in Lincoln.
Nebraska’s new quarterback has high expectations for the upcoming season. Transfer Anthony Colandrea spoke with Pete Nakos of On3 (subscription required) about his decision to transfer and his goals for the Huskers this year.
Colandrea comes to Nebraska following a breakout junior year with the Rebels. The St. Petersburg, Florida, native finished the 2025 season throwing for 3,459 yards, 23 touchdowns, and nine interceptions with a 65.9 completion percentage.
The former Rebels’ play earned him the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year award. Before UNLV, Colandrea played two seasons at Virginia. In 19 games, he totaled 4,083 passing yards, 26 passing touchdowns and 20 interceptions.
The new Husker told Nakos that he has high expectations and is looking to play in big games at the end of the season.
“Expectations at Nebraska are to win. Like, you’re not here to just not win a national championship. I’m not coming here to just win eight or nine games. I want to win a national championship; I want to go to the playoffs. I have high expectations, and we have high expectations as a team.”
Colandrea joined a Nebraska team that was looking for a new opening day starter after Dylan Raiola transferred to the Oregon Ducks. The Husker quarterback room also includes sophomore and bowl game starter T.J. Lateef and former Virginia quarterback Daniel Kaelin. He also expressed excitement about playing in front of Nebraska fans.
“It’s the craziest fan base I’ve ever been around. My first impression was I went to a wrestling match. I would never think a wrestling match would be sold out. I walk in, and it’s like 35,000 to 40,000 people. I’m like, this is the craziest thing I’ve ever seen. They bring the juice. I’m excited to play for them.”
Nebraska opens the 2026 season on Saturday, Sept. 5, when the Ohio Bobcats visit Memorial Stadium. Kickoff time and broadcast network are still to be determined.
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In the past few years, Joel said Norris has tried to lower its tax levies, especially as property valuations have gone up. Additionally, the school hasn’t put as much into its special building fund with the idea that it would help taxpayers save more.
“That’s what led to that decision to not save as much to take care of the work, but to pass that savings on to taxpayers, with the hopes that we could get a bond issue approved to take care of that work all at once,” Joel said.
Although the election didn’t go in the school’s favor, Joel said he appreciated the feedback and conversations with the community throughout the process.
“If anything, it allowed us to share additional information regarding safety, security, infrastructure, all of that with the community, to create an awareness of the state of the district,” Joel said. “Now we can plan forward based on what the outcome of May 12 was.”
Plainview Public School offered voters two bond proposals on Tuesday, both of which failed. The district boundaries go into Pierce, Antelope and Knox counties.
The larger of the two proposals was for $26 million, which focused on the district’s academic spaces. It included improvements for safety and security, updating career and technical education spaces and equipment, and updating spaces for students with disabilities.
It overwhelmingly failed with 636 voters against and 239 in support.
The second proposal could only pass if the first one had. It was for nearly $6 million to add a new gymnasium. There were 650 voters against it and 220 in support.
Centura Public Schools in central Nebraska also saw its $18.95 million bond attempt fail, with 613 voting against it and 463 voting for it, according to unofficial results in Hall, Howard, Sherman and Buffalo counties. The district hoped to improve safety and security, modernize building systems and update classrooms. According to the bond website, the school hasn’t had major improvements since 1981.
Two school districts seemingly succeeded in passing their bonds: Pierce Public Schools and Stanton Community Schools.
The Pierce Public Schools bond amounts to nearly $10 million to expand and renovate the elementary school. According to the bond website, staff shared safety concerns about pickup and drop-off lanes, door and window security, insufficient security cameras, an inadequate intercom system and the need for an electronic lock system.
The bond includes renovating special education classrooms, enhancing security and building additional classrooms and spaces for students. It passed with 668 votes in support in Pierce County and 625 against, and in Wayne county eight for and 28 against — a 23-vote total difference, according to unofficial results from both counties.
Voters rejected a previous bond proposal for $29.5 million in August.
Stanton Community Schools passed a nearly $25 million bond for the construction of a new elementary school, which will include a multipurpose gym, an early childhood center and access to a storm shelter inside the building. Currently, students have to go outside to reach the storm shelter.
There were 607 votes for the bond in Stanton County and 522 against.
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