Keisei Tominaga’s departure left a significant void in the Nebraska men’s basketball program, in more ways than one.

Aside from his infectious energy on the court and popularity with fans within the fan base and beyond, Tominaga also led the huskers with 15.7 points per game and was sixth in the Big Ten in 3-pointers made, sinking 76 of them at a 37.6% clip.

Brice Williams’ return (50 3-pointers made, 38.8%) helps to soften that blow, but Nebraska also lost C.J. Wilcher (50 3-pointers made, 39.4%), Jamarques Lawrence (36, 35.6%) and Eli Rice (10, 37%) to the transfer portal. Adding perimeter shooting was a priority for the Nebraska men’s basketball coaching staff during the offseason, and Fred Hoiberg said at Big Ten Media Days that he thought the Huskers landed two of the best in Connor Essegian and Gavin Griffiths.

“Connor will be a very important piece for us, especially with what we lost not only with Keisei but a couple of the players we lost to the portal that put the ball in the basket for us, especially from behind the arc,” Hoiberg said. “Getting players that could knock down shots and space the floor was a big objective for us in the poral. With Connor and with Gavin Griffiths, you get two guys who have played in the league that can really get it going from the outside.”

Essegian, a 6-foot-4 guard from Indiana, spent his first two seasons at Wisconsin. He made the Big Ten All-Freshman team after averaging 11.7 points and shooting 35.9% from 3, setting a freshman school record with 69 made 3-pointers. Essegian saw his playing time cut by 20 minutes per game as a sophomore as he struggled to crack the lineup following a back injury he suffered in the season-opener that impacted him throughout the Badgers’ nonconference slate. He averaged 3.2 points and shot 30.3% from 3 in 7.3 minutes per game, logging just nine games with double-digit minutes all season.

Essegian opted to enter the transfer portal in the spring and chose to continue his career in Hoiberg’s shooter-friendly offense.

“Connor, he’s got such a level approach to everything, and I’ve been really impressed with that,” Hoiberg said. “He’s picked things up defensively. He played for a great program and Greg Gard obviously demands a lot on that end. When you get guys from programs like that, they pick things up quicker. He’s done a nice job on the defensive end as well. It’s a very different style than Wisconsin and he’s picked things up very quickly. I’ve loved what Connor’s brought to us. He’s a great locker room guy, another guy that can give us leadership out there, and he’s played in the league and he knows what it’s all about.”

Essegian logged 24 double-digit scoring games as a freshman including nine games with three or more 3-pointers, and Nebraska is hoping to see him return to that level of performance with a fresh start.

Griffiths also transferred from another Big Ten school as he spent his freshman year at Rutgers. The Connecticut native was a consensus four-star recruit ranked in the top 50 by On3, ESPN and Rivals. He played 20 games at Rutgers, averaging 5.8 points per game. Griffiths shot 28.2% from 3 overall, but that included a 37.5% mark (12-of-32) over his last six games. The 6-foot-7 wing scored 16 points and shot 4-of-8 from 3 in two games against the Huskers last season.

“He’s going to be on the court for us,” Hoiberg said. “He’ll have days where he’ll run off four, five, six 3s in a row, and making contested ones as well. Shot selection is something that I’ve talked with him a lot about, taking the right shots. Early on last year he took some really, really tough ones, but then at the end of the year he figured it out and shot almost 40% the last month of the season. So having success playing against teams in this league, I think he’s primed for a really nice year.”

While shooting has been Griffiths’ calling card thus far (he attempted more than twice as many shots from beyond the 3-point line than at the rim as a freshman), Hoiberg said there’s far more than meets the eye with him.

“The thing I’ve been really pleasantly impressed by with Gavin, I knew he could shoot — he did it against us in PBA last year; he hit one from the logo — but his athleticism has been off the charts,” Hoiberg said. “He finishes above the rim. He’s not going to back down from anybody. He’s an unbelievable worker; he’s in the gym nonstop. Just a lot, a lot of raw talent and ability. He’s still young, he’s a true sophomore, but he learned from a great guy in Steve Piekell. You get some of those early learning curve situations out of the way when you play for another great coach and we’re just trying to do the best we can to put him in a position for success based on his unique skill set. We love Gavin.”

Williams has also impressed his teammates during the offseason workouts and early preseason practices.

“Gavin’s a grasshopper,” Williams said. “Gavin is stronger than what you would think. Gavin is a better shooter than what you would think. Gavin can go on a heater and hit five in a row, but Gavin can also put his head at the rim easily. He’s the only one at the end of the week that still looks like he’s fresh.”

At a listed 193 pounds, Griffiths is the fourth-lightest player on the Nebraska roster, and the three players lighter than him are all 6-foot-4 and under guards. Continuing to add strength to his frame will be a key for Griffiths moving forward, but Hoiberg cautioned against judging a book by its cover in this case.

“He’s working extra in the weight room,” Hoiberg said. “Some guys come back and work on their game and shot, which he certainly does that, but he also puts in extra time in the weight room with our strength coach. So he’s made really good gains in the weight room. I don’t think he’ll ever be Arnold, but he’s wiry strong. I played with maybe the best wiry strong guy of all time, Reggie Miller. He could lift a lot of weight but he never put on size. Gavin’s a strong kid, but it’s not going to show up in his body. It shows up in his athleticism and he’s going to put the work in, there’s no doubt about that.”

With a fresh start in a shooter-friendly system, Essegian and Griffiths are looking to live up to their potential as Cornhuskers. Nebraska led the Big Ten in 3-pointers in 2023-24, and the two transfers will play a significant part if the Huskers are to repeat that feat this season.

LINCOLN — U.S. Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., and his Democratic challenger, State Sen. Tony Vargas, spent much of Tuesday evening trading barbs in a debate over “lies,” civility, criminal justice and character.

Bacon, who is seeking his fifth congressional term serving Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, repeatedly chastised Vargas for “baloney” and a “bunch of platitudes but no meat behind him.”

Vargas, who challenged Bacon in 2022, as well, repeatedly linked Bacon to former President Donald Trump and said Bacon’s constituents couldn’t afford to reelect Bacon.

“Don’t listen to Tony, the guy is deceptive, he’s not being honest. He’ll do anything to win election,” Bacon said.

Said Vargas: “Staying in power sounds like it’s more important to you than it is standing up for democracy and the independence of our district.”

The two candidates addressed about 10 questions in an hourlong debate sponsored by Nebraska Public Media at its Lincoln studio in partnership with the Nebraska Examiner, Lincoln Journal Star, Omaha World-Herald and KRVN Rural Radio Network. No live audience was present.

Aaron Sanderford, the Nebraska Examiner’s political reporter, moderated the debate, with a panel of three journalists: Kassidy Arena (Nebraska Public Media), Erin Bamer (Omaha World-Herald) and Dave Schroeder (KRVN).

Abortion

Bacon and Vargas differed on major topics, including abortion, where Bacon said he supports Nebraska’s current 12-week ban on abortion tied to gestational age, which was passed in 2023, with exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. Bacon said he would defend that law.

Vargas criticized Bacon for co-sponsoring national legislation that Vargas said would have banned abortion nationally with no carve-outs for in vitro fertilization. The legislation would have recognized a fertilized egg as a person with equal protections under the 14th Amendment. Vargas said the issue ultimately comes down to a woman’s “right to choose.”

“This is a decision that politicians, especially Don Bacon, should have absolutely no say in telling them what they can and cannot do with their bodies,” Vargas said.

Bacon criticized Vargas as “deceptive” because the legislation he supported never mentioned “abortion.” Bacon did not sign on to a 2023 version of the law he had previously joined.

“At what point, Tony, does that unborn child deserve a sense of humanity?” Bacon said. “I would think a science teacher for two years would know that.”

Bacon said that abortion is “ranked very low” among priorities when he talks to voters and that Vargas is “trying to create an issue that does not belong.” 

Bacon told reporters after the debate that Congress will likely never address abortion, unless Democrats win the presidency, control of both chambers of Congress and get rid of the 60-vote filibuster threshold in the U.S. Senate.

“That should be a warning sign because with that 60-vote threshold we are forced to be more bipartisan in whatever we get passed,” Bacon said.

Vargas pointed to his daughter, who he said has fewer rights than his wife did, and urged Congress to restore Roe v. Wade, which set certain constitutional protections for abortion instead of a patchwork of different state laws since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned that opinion in 2022.

Israel and Ukraine

The two candidates did find agreement on foreign aid, with both stating the United States needed to remain a good ally to Ukraine and Israel, in good times and bad, and not risk war spreading to surrounding regions.

Bacon touted his military background in the U.S. Air Force and said antisemitism “is not being an American” and is “antithetical to what we support.”

Both said they stand with Israel and said the war should end on Israel’s terms, with the eradication of Hamas terrorists and the release of all hostages. 

Asked if any limits should be placed on humanitarian aid to Israel, for Palestinian citizens or citizens in Lebanon, each candidate said no.

“I understand that the Palestinian people are hurting, but the most important thing to me is that this end to the war happens on the terms for Israel,” Vargas said.

Added Bacon: “The fault lies with Hamas.… Israel has the obligation to try to target just Hamas, or just Hezbollah in Lebanon, but when they’re hiding amongst the people, it is very hard.… If we were attacked, and we were on 9/11 in a similar way, we would go in and try to destroy Hamas and Gaza.”

Public safety and immigration

A large portion of the debate honed in on gun violence, public safety and criminal justice, with Bacon criticizing Vargas’ record in the Nebraska Legislature that the congressman said made his district less safe, such as legislation for early parole for certain inmates.

Bacon said he supports “due process” when it comes to reducing gun violence and suggested cracking down on “straw” purchases, in which someone purchases a gun for someone who shouldn’t be able to buy a gun.

Vargas said after the debate that any legislation that passes the Legislature, where Republicans hold a supermajority of seats in the officially nonpartisan body, needs Republican support. Vargas said the bigger concern is who would actually fight for public safety and vote for bipartisan border safety and gun violence legislation, which Bacon had opposed.

Vargas and Bacon each said the border needs to be addressed but disagreed on how.

Bacon said the administration under President Joe Biden can act now but hasn’t and said he supports a pathway to permanent “legal status” for some immigrants who came to the United States illegally, but not for criminals, and no pathway to citizenship.

Vargas, whose parents are immigrants, said something must be done to secure the border, stop fentanyl and prevent human trafficking in order to support the American dream. Vargas said Democrats are willing to compromise, and he blamed Republicans for inaction.

2nd District independence

Vargas and Bacon each told reporters that, if elected this fall, each would be an independent voice for Nebraska’s 2nd Congressional District, which is composed of Douglas County, Saunders County and rural Sarpy County.

Vargas said his eight years on the Legislature’s Appropriations Committee showed him the importance of passing a lean, balanced budget that invests in needed priorities, including law enforcement.

As an example where he disagrees with Democrats, Vargas said he opposes widespread student loan forgiveness that doesn’t benefit all Nebraskans.

“We need somebody that will have real independence when it matters, a problem solver when it actually matters the most,” Vargas told reporters. “I think that’s the reason why we bring up Donald Trump because he is on the ballot and was really proud of his endorsement of Don Bacon.”

Vargas said he appreciates Nebraska’s current process for distributing Electoral College votes, two for the popular vote winner and one for the winner of each of the state’s three congressional districts. 

Bacon said he wishes all states followed Nebraska’s model but joined on to a letter last month with Nebraska’s other four Republican members of Congress urging the Legislature to move to “winner take all,” in which the statewide winner would receive all five votes.

Only Nebraska and Maine have the district system, Bacon said, criticizing the model as a Democratic “cash cow” that helps Vargas and other Democratic candidates. 

Vargas said it’s about the independence of the district and criticized Bacon for trying to change the system so close to the election. Vargas said Trump’s endorsement of Bacon came shortly after Bacon endorsed the switch to winner take all, which didn’t have enough legislative support.

Bacon told reporters he has faced Trump’s hostility for voting for the 2021 bipartisan infrastructure bill, for the certification of the 2020 election and saying Biden won and supporting Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) for young undocumented immigrants.

“I’ve done my own thing that I think is right for the country,” Bacon said after the debate. “The fact that he [Trump] called and still wanted to make peace. I think he knows that, in reality, it doesn’t help him to be at odds with the folks in this district.”

Tyson Terry has been one of the longest commits in Nebraska football’s 2025 class. The 6-3, 270-pound defensive lineman out of Omaha North committed to the Huskers in June of 2023.

A four-star prospect from Rivals, Terry has held firm in his commitment to staying home. Terry talked more on his high school season and recruitment with HuskerMax.

“Season is going pretty well. I’m playing pretty well myself, on defense I’m getting after it,” Terry said. ”I had to help my team out on offense this year as well, have been playing center and left guard. It’s been a fun year so far. With it being senior year, I’m just trying to have fun and do everything I possibly can to help my team.”

Omaha North is currently 4-2 on the season. The Omaha World-Herald rates the Mustangs No. 4 in Class A.

Terry says even though his decision was made so long ago, he remains locked in to being a Husker.

“My commitment to Nebraska is still fully locked in. Every week I talk with multiple coaches, and to me I’m over satisfied. I feel like they are still recruiting me like I’m not committed,” Terry said. “I committed to Nebraska after my sophomore year in June before my junior year. So there were some schools in early junior year trying to have me take visits and just talking with me. But as of now, my recruitment is totally shut down.”

Terry has been to every home game so far this season. Even when the Big Red aren’t at home, he doesn’t plan to visit elsewhere.

“I try to make it down to Nebraska whenever I can,“ Terry said. “They’re very open to having recruits down whenever. I don’t plan on visiting any other schools other than Nebraska.”

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