Iowa basketball vs Nebraska recap: Hawkeyes beat Huskers, qualify for Big Ten Tournament
The Iowa men’s basketball team defeated Nebraska 83-68 on Sunday in Lincoln to qualify for this week’s Big Ten Tournament.
The Hawkeyes are 16-15 overall and 7-13 in the Big Ten.
Nebraska is 17-14 overall and 7-13 in the league. The Hawkeyes swept the Huskers this season.
See below for highlights from Iowa vs. Nebraska.
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The Hawkeyes qualify for the Big Ten Tournament. They looked good all day. The Huskers did not.
Payton Sandfort led Iowa with 22 points. Pryce Sandfort had a team-high 11 rebounds.
Payton Sandfort and Josh Dix have combined for 21 points in the second half.
Nebraska continues to shoot poorly (38% since halftime).
Starting to look like Iowa is going to win this game and advance to Indianapolis.
Not sure how Nebraska won seven games in the Big Ten, to be honest.
Iowa has held Brice Williams to seven points. He’s the leading scorer in the conference.
Josh Dix has taken over, with five straight points and nine in the half.
The Hawkeyes pick up where they left off in the first half, making 3 of their first four shots after halftime. Josh Dix has a couple of baskets since the break.
That was a really good half for the Hawkeyes as they attempt to qualify for the Big Ten Tournament with a victory.
Payton and Pryce Sandfort combined for 21 points in the first 20 minutes.
Iowa held Nebraska to 40% shooting in the first half.
Only six free throws so far, all by Nebraska.
Pryce Sandfort is red-hot, hitting 3 of his first 4 shots from 3-point land. He leads Iowa with nine points.
The Hawkeyes have a 21-6 advantage in bench points. They have six 3-pointers in the last 8 minutes.
Juwan Gary leads Nebraska with 11 points.
Iowa’s Even Brauns just does not miss. He’s made 17 of his last 18 shots from the field. The former Iowa City West player is 3 for 3 today.
Nebraska has made 4 of its last 5 shots but Iowa has the lead because the Hawkeyes are 5 for 10 from 3-point range
Iowa takes an 8-0 run into the under-12 timeout. Pryce Sandfort ties it with a 3-pointer.
Hawkeyes doing a good job on the boards, with a 13-8 rebounding advantage so far.
Sam Hoiberg, son of Fred, leads Nebraska with seven points.
The Huskers start hot from 3-point range, hitting 3 of their first 4 shots from distance.
Payton Sandfort, trying to extend his Hawkeye career, has both baskets for Iowa.
Nebraska honored former Hawkeye Ahron Ulis before the game during senior day festivities.
Iowa: Drew Thelwell, Josh Dix, Seydou Traore, Ladji Dembele, Payton Sandfort
Nebraska: Sam Hoiberg, Brice Williams, Rollie Worster, Juwan Gary, Berke Buyuktuncel
Record: 15-15 (6-13 Big Ten)
Spread: Nebraska is favored by 7.5 points (by DraftKings as of 10:30 a.m. CT)
Over/under: 155.5
Moneyline: Iowa +295, Nebraska -375
TV channel: FOX
Livestream: FUBO (free trial)
Iowa vs Nebraska will be broadcast nationally on FOX. Streaming options for the game include FUBO, which offers a free trial to new subscribers.
The Iowa vs Nebraska game starts at 11:30 a.m. CT at Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska.
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Tyler Tachman’s instant takeaways from Lincoln
Final: Iowa 83, Nebraska 68
Second half, 7:29 left: Iowa leads 69-59
Second half, 11:38 left: Iowa leads 57-49
Second half, 13:40 left: Iowa leads 54-45
Second half, 16:26 left: Iowa leads 47-43
Halftime: Iowa leads 40-35
First half, 3:51 left: Iowa 34, Nebraska 31
First half, 5:40 left: Iowa 31, Nebraska 29
First half, 10:44 left: Iowa 18, Nebraska 18
First half, 15:55 left: Nebraska 9, Iowa 4
Starting lineups
Iowa basketball schedule 2024-25
Betting odds for Iowa vs. Nebraska
What channel is Iowa vs Nebraska men on today?
Iowa vs Nebraska men’s time today
Big Ten Tournament bracket: Full TV schedule, seedings for 2025 basketball championship
For the first time in five seasons, Michigan State and Tom Izzo will enter the men’s Big Ten tournament as the No. 1 seed.
The seventh-ranked Spartans officially locked up the top seed in the conference tournament at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Thursday with a 91-84 win against Iowa. Since the start of the Big Ten tournament in 1998, the Spartans are 35-20 in conference tournament games under Izzo.
No. 15 Michigan, No. 14 Maryland and UCLA will all join Michigan State in the quarterfinals, as all four programs earned double-byes.
With the Big Ten expanding over the offseason, only 15 of the conference’s 18 programs will make the trip to Indianapolis in hopes of clinching an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Penn State and Washington enter the final day of regular season competition already eliminated from tournament contention.
With that, here’s the full schedule for the men’s Big Ten tournament, including bracket, schedule, seeding and more:
This section will be updated throughout the day as seeding is finalized.
* double-bye
** first-round bye
*** did not qualify for tournament
All times Eastern.
The 2025 Big Ten Basketball Tournament will be carried on a variety of networks and platforms. All three first-round games will be streamed exclusively on Peacock, NBC’s subscription streaming platform. The Big Ten Network will televise the second-round and quarterfinals games, while CBS will handle the semifinals and championship game.
Streaming options include the Fox Sports Go app (with a TV login) and then Fubo, the latter of which carries both the Big Ten Network and CBS and offers a free trial to new subscribers.
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Big Ten basketball tournament bracket 2025
Big Ten basketball tournament schedule 2025
First round: Wednesday, March 12
Second round: Thursday, March 13
Quarterfinals: Friday, March 14
Semifinals: Saturday, March 15
Championship: Sunday, March 16
What channel is the Big Ten basketball tournament on?
How to Watch Nebraska Men’s Basketball vs. Iowa: Preview, Breakdown, TV Channel
The Nebraska men’s basketball team experienced multiple different ways of heartbreak Tuesday in a 116-114 double overtime loss at Ohio State.
Despite Brice Williams’ program-record 43 points, the Huskers couldn’t put the Buckeyes away. Granted, the officiating was far from ideal, but the loss has put Nebraska’s NCAA Tournament hopes on life support – let alone making the Big Ten conference tournament which is now in doubt.
If NU hopes to go dancing in 2025, beating rival Iowa is the bare minimum, which also plays a big part in Nebraska’s participation in Indy for the conference tournament. With a sold-out crowd expected for Senior Day in Lincoln, the Huskers’ postseason aspirations will be on the line.
Here’s all you need to know as Nebraska takes on Iowa in the regular season finale.
Head Coach: Fran McCaffery | 15th Season at Iowa; 29th overall as HC | 295-207 (.588) at Iowa; 546-383 (.588) Career HC Record | 12 NCAA Tournament Appearances, 4x Regular Season Conference titles (1x SoCon, 3x MAAC), 6x Tournament Conference Titles (3x MAAC, B1G, SoCon, ECC) | MAAC Coach OTY (2009) | Previous head coach at Lehigh, UNC Greensboro and Siena | Previous assistant at Notre Dame, Lehigh and Penn.
2023-2024 Record: 19-15 (10-10 B1G, T-6th) | B1G Co-Freshman OTY, 1x All-Big Ten Second Team, 1x All-Big Ten Third Team, 1x All-Freshman Team, 4x Honorable Mentions | L, 91-82 in Second Round of NIT.
All-Time Series: Iowa leads 25-15 (Jan. 12, 2024 last matchup, 94-76 Iowa).
Key Returners: Payton Sandfort, F, Sr. | Owen Freeman, F, Soph. | Josh Dix, G, Jr. | Brock Harding, G, Soph. | Pryce Sandfort, G, Soph. | Ladji Dembele, F, Soph.
Key Additions: Drew Thelwell, G, Gr. (Morehead State) | Seydou Traore, F, Soph. (Manhattan College) | Cooper Koch, F, Fr. (Recruit).
Key Departures: Tony Perkins, G, Sr. (Missouri) | Ben Krikke, F (Eligibility) | Patrick McCaffery, F (Eligibility) | Dasonte Bowen, G, Jr. (St. Bonaventure).
Outlook: One could say the downturn of Nebraska’s season began when it dropped a 97-87 overtime contest to the Hawkeyes on January 7 in Iowa City. The Huskers were riding a six-game winning streak and coming off a victory in the Diamond Head Classic going into that Tuesday showdown. NU even had a 15-point lead in the game with less than 15 minutes to go, but a 15-5 run by the Hawkeyes tied the game, which ultimately led to Iowa’s one of six conference wins this season.
The Hawkeyes followed that win with an 85-80 victory over Indiana, but the season unraveled from there with Iowa posting a 4-11 record. Sunday’s game may have big implications for head coach Fran McCaffery who’s trying to avoid only his third season below .500 at Iowa. Additionally, it could also mean the only time in his Hawkeye tenure that the program would miss the conference tournament.
What will be key is limiting the offense of Iowa, which shot over 47% from the field and 17-for-35 from three-point range last time out. Plus, not allowing Payton Sandfort to score his 30 points all in the second half and overtime would help matters. The Huskers were not good defensively against Ohio State on Tuesday – allowing a 52.9 field goal percentage, but they were able to limit OSU enough from three-point range (37.5%) to think they can do better versus Iowa this time around.
I could see this one playing out very similar to the Ohio State game – minus the officiating – with both teams scratching tooth and nail to keep their postseason hopes alive. But with Nebraska having a sold-out crowd behind them at PBA, it’s hard to see the Huskers dropping the regular season finale. Mark me down for a Nebraska victory and a spot in the Big Ten tournament next week.
Stay up to date on all things Huskers by bookmarking Nebraska Cornhuskers On SI, subscribing to HuskerMax on YouTube, and visiting HuskerMax.com daily.
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