Huskers win tournament opener, in front of pro-Nebraska crowd

LINCOLN, Neb. - Nebraska Basketball finds themselves on the right side of history. 

Nebraska rolled by Troy 76-47 to win their first ever NCAA Tournament game and one of the biggest keys was Husker Nation.

Many players noted it felt like a game Pinnacle Bank Arena. Earlier in the week, Fred Hoiberg said the Huskers couldn’t rely on the fans, but had to give them something to cheer about, which they most certainly did in one of their best all around efforts this season. 

“When I went out for the anthem, I got a little emotional, just seeing how the fans showed up for us,” Head Coach Fred Hoiberg said. “They were a huge factor for us. When we went on a run, it got loud in there.”

“This [Husker Fans] really wan’t a surprise for me,” senior Jamarques Lawrence said. “I got chills when we came out for anthem, it was crazy.”

One Husker who had the fans on their feet all game long was Pryce Sandfort. Sandfort recorded 23 points on seven three pointers - one off tying Nebraska’s single game record for the second time this season. 

“I hit a few early and I felt really locked in in warmups,” Sandfort said. “I give a lot of credit to my teammates and coaches getting me in the right spot and getting me the ball on time and on target.”

Who would put Nebraska’s name on the bracket in the postgame tradition? Berke Buyucktuncel.

“That was so exciting,” Buyucktuncel said. “I said maybe Rienk or Sam or Jamarques to do it and they said BK and I said ‘Oh yeah!’”

Sam Hoiberg has gone from a bench player and a walk-on to a crucial piece to Nebraska’s lineup. Now he’s an NCAA Tournament winner - something he calls a storybook ending to his career. 

“I been saying it all week, it feels like the last thing we needed to do to get the program to the top,” Hoiberg said. “It was tough being on the teams that weren’t winning and especially being on  the bench. I used that as! motivation when I was in the gym by myself getting shots up. Being able to reap the benefits of that has been unbelievable.”

Nebraska will now take on Vanderbilt in the Round of 32 on Saturday, after Commodores won a 5-12 matchup over McNeese State 78-68.