The No. 13 Nebraska Cornhuskers (14-0, 3-0) faced its next big test of the season, starting the new year against No. 9 Michigan State (12-2, 2-1) in a Friday night battle. In front of a home crowd, the Huskers pulled off another major win, taking down the Spartans 58-56.
This also marked Nebraska’s first win against a top ten opponent since defeating No. 6 Wisconsin during the 2023-24 season. The Huskers also continue their best start in program history and extend their winning streak to 18.
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Nebraska shut down Michigan State’s offense, holding the Spartans to 17-of-50 from the floor and 10-of-28 from beyond the arc. The Huskers also forced 19 turnovers in the win, which helped counter Michigan State’s 45 rebounds over Nebraska’s 31.
The Huskers’ offense did just enough to edge out the Spartans in the low-scoring back-and-forth bout, finishing 18-of-57 from the floor and 13-of-37 from three-point range. Nebraska suffered some late fouls, including a technical foul and six straight points from the free-throw line, allowing Michigan State to get back into the game.
But Nebraska closed the game out on a 6-1 run, which included four from Rienk Mast, who hit the go-ahead three with less than two minutes left. Mast finished the night with a team-high 19 points for the Huskers, landed 6-of-13 from beyond the arc and wrangled seven rebounds.
Pryce Sandfort, despite fouling out, scored 13 points for Nebraska, shooting 5-of-13 from the floor and 3-of-8 from beyond the arc. Jamarques Lawrence also cracked double-digits in the low-scoring win, tallying 12 points by hitting 3-of-8 in total.
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Braden Frager rounded out the Huskers’ offense, landing three shots from beyond the arc off five attempts to earn nine points on the night.
Nebraska hits the road for its next batch of games, starting in Columbus, Ohio to take on Ohio State Monday night. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. CT on FS1.
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This article originally appeared on Cornhuskers Wire: Nebraska pulls off 58-56 win over No. 9 Michigan State
