• What: Michigan State at Nebraska
• When: 9 p.m. (ET) Friday
• Where: Oracle Bank Arena, Lincoln, Nebraska
• TV/Radio: Peacock/Spartan Sports Network radio, including WJIM 1240-AM and WMMQ 94.9-FM; SiriusXM Ch. 195 (MSU broadcast), 85 (Nebraska broadcast)
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• Records/Rankings: MSU is 12-1 and ranked No. 9 in both the Associated Press and USA TODAY Coaches polls, No. 15 in the NET rankings used by the NCAA tournament selection committee, and No. 15 per the college basketball analytics site Kenpom.com. Nebraska is 13-0, No. 13 in both the AP and Coaches polls, No. 14 in the NET rankings and No. 23 per Kenpom.
• Betting line: Nebraska -1.5
• Coaches: Michigan State — Tom Izzo is 748-303 in his 31st season as a head coach, all with the Spartans. Nebraska — Fred Hoiberg is 212-164 in his 12th season as a collegiate head coach, including 97-108 in his seventh season with the Cornhuskers.
• Series: MSU leads 24-10 all-time, including 17-4 since the Huskers joined the Big Ten. MSU won the only meeting last season, in East Lansing.
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Projected lineups
MSU
C (15) Carson Cooper (6-11) 10.4
PF (0) Jaxon Kohler (6-9) 13.7
SF (55) Coen Carr (6-5) 12.2
SG (99) Divine Ugochukwu (6-3) 5.5
PG (1) Jeremy Fears Jr. (6-2) 11.5
Nebraska
C (51) Rienk Mast (6-10) 16.5
PF (9) Berke Buyuktuncel (6-10) 8.5
SF (21) Pryce Sandfort (6-7) 16.5
G (10) Jamarques Lawrence (6-3) 9.1
G (1) Sam Hoiberg (6-0) 8.6
• MSU update: The Spartans dive back into Big Ten play full-go, off to their best start in eight seasons. Their defensive efficiency ranking took a slight hit after their 114-97 win over Cornell on Monday night — the Spartans now have the sixth-best defense in college basketball, per kenpom.com. They are, however, now No. 2 in defensive rebounding, only allowing 22.8% of their opponents’ misses to fall back into their opponents’ hands. MSU is No. 6 in offensive rebounding percentage, hauling in 40.9% of its own missed shots. The Spartans’ 3-point percentage is up to 36.8 on the season, 60th out of 365 teams in Division I. Over the last 10 games, MSU is at 41% from beyond the arc. This is only MSU’s second true road game this season and first in a difficult environment.
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• Nebraska update: The Huskers are off to their best start in program history and might have their best team in at least 35 years. That began with the return of center Rienk Mast, the anchor of the Huskers two years ago (including a 14-rebound, six-assist performance in a win over MSU) before he missed last season following knee surgery. Getting guard Jamarques Lawrence back from Rhode Island (where he transferred for one year) was also a big get. Same with landing Iowa transfer Pryce Sandfort, the Huskers’ second-leading scorer and top 3-point shooter. Nebraska’s start includes neutral-court wins over Oklahoma, New Mexico and Kansas State and decisive home wins over top-50 Kenpom teams Creighton (by 21) and Wisconsin (by 30). The win that most validates the Huskers’ record thus far is an 83-80 win on the road at Illinois on Dec. 13.
• Matchup analysis: Nebraska’s roster appears to fit Fred Hoiberg’s offense perfectly. A lot of the offense runs through the Huskers’ two big men, Mast and Berke Buyuktuncel. Mast is a top-tier center in the Big Ten. This won’t be a game where MSU needs a small lineup. Nebraska relies on dribble-handoffs by Mast and Buyuktuncel and off-the-ball screens more than the traditional ball-screen most Big Ten teams feature offensively. Hoiberg has always been a good offensive mind. He just hasn’t always had the right pieces. Nebraska is a capable 3-point shooting team, getting lots of volume at a good percentage from Sandfort. Mast can step out and hit them, as well. But this is one of the more efficient teams scoring inside the arc in college basketball, helped also by the presence of freshman Braden Frager, a savvy and skilled 6-6 wing off the bench, who averages close to 12 points per game. Guard Sam Hoiberg gives the Huskers a feistiness to their personality. He’s also become a solid playmaker.
This could be MSU’s toughest test yet, including Duke, because Nebraska is close enough to that level that the environment at Oracle Bank Arena will make up the difference. For a football school, Huskers fans support the heck out of their basketball team. It’s one of the better environments in the Big Ten, certainly more difficult than anything the Spartans have faced yet.
• Prediction: We’ll learn a lot about this MSU team’s composure and problem-solving in this one. The Spartans are going to need to keep hitting outside shots and stay out of foul trouble, especially Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper. I’d be surprised if this isn’t a close game, but ultimately MSU’s lack of experience this season in challenging road environments bites them.
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• Make it: Nebraska 75, MSU 71
Contact Graham Couch at gcouch@lsj.com. Follow him on X @Graham_Coch and BlueSky @GrahamCouch.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU basketball at Nebraska prediction, preview, TV info, betting line
