We’re going team-by-team across Big Ten men’s basketball to assess where everyone stands and how things could shake out in 2026-27.
Nebraska basketball enjoyed a historic campaign in 2025-26, finally winning its first-ever NCAA Tournament game. The Cornhuskers followed that with another victory to reach the Sweet 16, only to see the run end thanks to an upset loss to rival Iowa. Fred Hoiberg is losing some key pieces from that squad, but Nebraska has plenty of reason for continued optimism into 2026-27.
WHO’S GONE:
- Rienk Mast (13.3 PPG) (exhausted his eligibility)
- Jamarques Lawrence (9.8 PPG) (exhausted his eligibility)
- Sam Hoiberg (9.3 PPG) (exhausted his eligibility)
- Berke Buyuktuncel (6.5 PPG) (transfer — Vanderbilt)
- Jared Garcia (3 PPG) (exhausted his eligibility)
- Kendall Blue (0.7 PPG) (exhausted his eligibility)
- Ugnius Jarusevicius (transfer — Arizona)
- Quentin Rhymes (transfer — Fresno State)
WHO’S BACK:
- Pryce Sandfort, F, Sr. (17.9 PPG)
- Braden Frager, F, R-So. (11.7 PPG)
- Connor Essegian, G, R-Sr. (5.4 PPG in seven games)
- Cale Jacobsen, G, R-Sr. (4.6 PPG)
- Leo Curtis, F, So. (1.6 PPG)
- Will Cooper, F, R-So. (redshirt)
WHO’S NEW:
Transfer portal
- Damon Wilkinson, F, R-Jr. (13.9 PPG at South Dakota State)
- Sam Orme, F, Sr. (12.7 PPG at Belmont)
- Trevan Leonhardt, G, R-Sr. (11.9 PPG at Utah Valley)
- Boden Kapke, F, Sr. (10.6 PPG at Boston College)
- Taj DeGourville, G, Jr. (5.5 PPG at San Diego State)
- Kadyn Betts, F, R-Sr. (3.1 PPG at Montana)
Freshmen (Rankings from 247Sports)
- Colin Rice, G/F (four-star, No. 87)
- Jacob Lanier, G (four-star, No. 112)
RETURNING MINUTES: 39.9 percent (per barttorvik.com) (eighth in the Big Ten)
Why it will work
Sandfort is one of the top players in the conference, and he should be a preseason All-Big Ten first team selection. Bringing back someone like that is always huge for a team’s floor and ceiling, both. Frager and Essegian are also big returnees — particularly Essegian, who played in only seven games before suffering a season-ending ankle injury. If he can return to form and average double-figures for the Huskers, they’ll be much better off. Frager turned in a solid freshman season and could be primed for a big step forward this year with a year under his belt.
Hoiberg added four players averaging double-figure scoring in the transfer portal to bolster the roster. Orme will fit in nicely with Nebraska’s 3-point heavy offense, shooting just shy of 40 percent from beyond the arc last season at Belmont. The Carmel, Ind. native earned All-Missouri Valley honors while averaging nearly 13 points per game.
And, perhaps above all, Hoiberg seems to have this program on a roll. The Huskers have won 20 games in three straight years, with NCAA Tournament appearances in the first and third seasons and a College Basketball Crown title in between. Before this run, Nebraska had appeared in only one NCAA Tournament since the turn of the century. The reigning AP Coach of the Year has built a tough team that should compete among the top of the Big Ten again.
Why it won’t
The Huskers went from good in 2023-25 to great this past season in large part because of their defense. They finished eighth in the country in KenPom adjusted defensive rating, a much better mark than any of Hoiberg’s previous teams in Lincoln. In fact, he didn’t come close to that range back at Iowa State, either.
The pieces Nebraska lost from last season could hurt more on the defensive end than the offensive end. Veterans like Mast, Sam Hoiberg, and Lawrence played such big roles for the team, and the Huskers will have to adjust without them. If their defense falls off from where it was last season, their ceiling could be limited.
PREVIOUS OUTLOOKS:
The Daily Hoosier –“Where Indiana fans assemble when they’re not at Assembly”
- Find us on Instagram, X, and Facebook
- Seven ways to support completely free IU coverage at no cost to you.
