Venturing deep into enemy territory for one of the biggest regular-season college basketball games of the year, the No. 5 Nebraska men’s basketball team was rolling, But then No. 3 Michigan came alive — and so did the referee whistles.

Despite the Huskers leading the national-title-contending Wolverines for more than 36 minutes using a seven-man rotation, Nebraska squandered a five-point lead in the final six minutes, missing eight of its nine shots and not scoring for the final 3:20 to drop its first game of the year 75-72.

NU played like the better team for most of the night, and that was without two of its biggest stars in freshman phenom Braden Frager (injury) and Rienk Mast (illness). Plus, the Huskers fell on the wrong side of the whistles, going 3-for-4 from the charity stripe compared to the 19-for-23 showing from the Wolverines, but if all those factors only resulted in a three-point loss to the No. 3 team in the land, then Nebraska should be just fine.

But there’s no time to dwell on NU’s first setback in nearly 10 months as Nebraska continues its toughest stretch of the season by returning to a White Out-themed Pinnacle Bank Arena for another top-ten showdown against No. 9 Illinois. Here’s all you need to know for Sunday’s clash of Big Ten contenders.

How to Follow Along 

• Matchup: No. 5 Nebraska (20-1, 9-1 B1G) vs. No. 9 Illinois (18-3, 9-1 B1G)
• When: Sunday, February 1
• Where: Pinnacle Bank Arena, Lincoln, Neb. 
• Time: 3 p.m. CST 
• Watch: FS1
• Listen: Huskers Radio Network and Affiliates

No. 9 Illinois Scout

Head Coach

• Brad Underwood | 9th season at Illinois; 13th as Division I HC.
• 183-104 (.638) at Illinois; 292-131 (.690) Division I Career Record.
• 9x NCAA Tournament Apps., 1x Elite Eight.
• 2x B1G Tournament titles, 1x B1G Regular season, 3x Southland Tournament titles, 3x Southland Regular Season.
• 3x Southland Coach OTY, Joe B. Hall Coach OTY (2014), Coaches vs. Cancer Champion Award (2023.
• Previous head coach at Oklahoma State, Stephen F. Austin, Daytona Beach CC and Dodge City CC.
• Previous Assistant at South Carolina, Kansas State and Western Illinois. 

2024 Record & Awards

• 22-13 (12-8 B1G, T-7th)
• Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year. 
• All-B1G: 1x Third Team, 1x All-Freshman Team, 1x Honorable Mention.

All-Time Series

• Illinois leads 23-10.
• Dec. 13, 2025, last matchup, 83-80, NU.

Key Returners

• Tomislav Ivisic | C | Jr. | 7-foot-1 center that’s dropping in 10 points and five rebounds per game after missing the first few games of the season due to injury. 
• Kylan Boswell | G | Sr. | Illinois’ second-leading scorer at over 14 points per game this season, while adding 61 assists and being one of three players with double-digit steals (13).
• Ben Humrichous | F | Gr. | One of four players with double-digit blocks (14) for Illinois and produces 5.8 points as a key reserve. 
• Jake Davis | F | Jr. | Average playing time has increased from nine to 17 minutes since last season and adds 4.7 points per outing.

Key Departures

• Kasparas Jakucionis | G | NBA Draft | Lithuanian guard that was taken No. 20 overall in the first round by the Miami Heat after leading the Illini with 15 points per game. 
• Will Riley | F | NBA Draft | Joined Jakucionis as a freshman draftee from Illinois who went at No. 21 overall by the Utah Jazz; won Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year in his lone college season.
• Tre White | G | Transferred to Kansas after averaging over 10 points and five rebounds per game last season as a 31-game starter for Illinois. 
• Morez Johnson Jr. | Transfer | Now at in-conference foe Michigan after an impactful freshman season off the bench with nearly seven points and rebounds per game. 
• Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn | G | Transfer | Played in all 35 games last season for the Illini, but did so off the bench with a 5.9 PPG average; now at UNLV.

Impact Transfers/Newcomers

• Andrej Stojakovic | G | Jr. | Greece native who is third on the team with 13.6 PPG after transferring from Cal, where he emerged as the Bears’ best player with a team-leading 17.9 PPG (6th in ACC) and 1.2 blocks. 
• Keaton Wagler | G | Fr. | Top recruit out of Kansas that’s become the Fighting Illini’s best player by scoring a team-high 17.7 PPG with a team-high 88 assists and 52 made three-pointers.
• David Mirkovic | F | Fr. | Native of Montenegro who has competed in pro leagues around his country before moving to Champaign; 12.5 PPG and averaging a squad-leading 8.2 PPG. 
• Zvonimir Ivisic | C | Jr. | 7-for-2 center and Croatian native who transferred from Arkansas, chipping in over seven points and nearly five rebounds per game.

Outlook

Looking back now, Nebraska’s 83-80 win over No. 13 Illinois in Champaign back on December 13, 2025, has proven to be one of the most monumental wins in this history-making season for the Huskers. Mostly unproven at that point due to a subpar schedule, Nebraska announced its presence on the national stage with a thrilling win over the Illini, sparking what would be a 20-0 start to the season and a 9-0 opening record in Big Ten play.

While NU’s season surged from that point forward, Illinois was quietly building momentum just behind them. The Fighting Illini are 10-0 since that game, with the Huskers being the only blemish in Illinois’ 9-1 conference record. Granted, only two of the 10 games were against unranked opponents, but its 75-69 win over No. 19 Iowa and 88-82 victory against No. 4 Purdue have Brad Underwood and the Illini rolling among Big Ten contenders.

Ranked second in both scoring and rebounding in the conference, Illinois presents similar challenges to what ended up being the downfall for NU against Michigan. Facing off against another tall pair in 7-foot-1 Tomislav Ivisic and 7-foot-2 Zvonimir Ivisic, plus 6-foot-9 David Mirkovic and 6-foot-7 Andrej Stojakovic, the Huskers will need to rebound better than on Tuesday, which would be greatly helped by the return of Mast and/or Braden Frager. Another big development for Illinois has been the emergence of star freshman Keaton Wagler, who’s now leading his team with over 17 points per game.

Coming off a heartbreaking loss that saw Nebraska in control for most of the game, a return to PBA is exactly what the doctor ordered for the Huskers. However, I think the health of both Frager and Mast will once again play a pivotal role in a game that will be highly contested. Give me Nebraska if one or both return, but I like the Fighting Illini if both star Huskers can’t play.

More From Nebraska On SI