Huskers Host No. 8 BYU in Exhibition Saturday Afternoon

It’s a matchup of the Big Ten and the Big 12 Saturday afternoon in Lincoln, as Nebraska hosts BYU in an exhibition contest at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Tipoff is slated for 12:01 p.m., and the game will be carried on B1G+ (subscription required).

The radio broadcast is available on select Husker Sports Network affiliated, as well as on Huskers.com and on the Huskers app.  A limited number of 300 Level tickets are available for the matchup by visiting Huskers.com/Tickets or at the PBA Ticket Office beginning at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday. 

Saturday's game with the Cougars marks the first of two exhibition games for the Big Red before opening the regular season against West Georgia on Nov. 3. Nebraska comes off its second consecutive 20-win season, going 21-14 and winning the inaugural College Basketball Crown in Las Vegas last April.  The 2025-26 Huskers feature a blend of returnees and newcomers, including one player who is both a returnee to the program and a newcomer this season in senior guard Jamarques Lawrence. The 6-foot-3 senior began his career at Nebraska, spending his first two seasons in the program and started 23 of 34 games on the Huskers' NCAA Tournament team in 2023-24. Last season, he started 31 games at Rhode Island, averaging 9.9 points and 2.5 assists per game while shooting 39 percent from 3-point range. 

Lawrence is one of two Husker starters from 2023-24 back in action for NU this season, as Rienk Mast also returns after missing all of the last season following knee surgery in May of 2024. The seventh-year senior was a third-team All-Big Ten performer two years ago, as he averaged 12.3 points per game while also topping NU in rebounds (7.5 rpg) and assists (3.0 apg). The 6-foot-10 forward also shot 34 percent from 3-point range in 2023-24.

In addition to those two players, NU also returns two starters from last season's 21-win team in senior guard Sam Hoiberg (3.9 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.9 apg, 1.4 spg) and junior forward Berke Büyüktuncel (6.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg) along with senior Connor Essegian, who averaged 10.7 ppg and topped NU with 78 3-pointers as the Huskers' sixth man in 2024-25.

BYU comes into Saturday's game ranked eighth in the preseason AP poll following a season where the Cougars went 26-10 before losing to Alabama in the NCAA Sweet 16. All-Big Ten guard Richie Saunders (16.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg) returns while the Cougars add one of the nation's top incoming classes, featuring one of the nation's top recruits in AJ Dybantsa as well Baylor transfer Robert Wright III.

 Nebraska Exhibition History
Nebraska is 64-7 all-time in exhibition games dating back to the 1966-67 season and has won 33 of 35 exhibition games dating back to 2001. Nebraska had a 20-game win streak in exhibition games snapped in the charity exhibition at Colorado in 2022.

• Saturday's exhibition will be the first against a power conference team since a charity exhibition at Colorado in 2022.
• A rule change last year allowed teams to have exhibition games against Division I programs. Previously, they were only allowed as charity exhibitions.
• NU played three charity exhibition games since 2017, including a trip to Mississippi State in 2017-18 and a two-game series against Colorado in 2021-22 and 2022-23.
• Nebraska will have a second exhibition game on Monday, Oct. 27, against Midland. Tipoff for that game is at 6:30 p.m.

Series History vs. BYU
Nebraska is 1-4 all-time against BYU in a series that dates back to 1931, and Saturday's meeting is the first since an 88-66 BYU win in the title game of the 2009 Las Vegas Classic on Dec. 23, 2009. In that game, Jimmer Fredette led BYU with 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting.  Eshaunte "Bear" Jones paced the Huskers with 21 points off the bench, his highest point total in his three seasons at Nebraska.

• This starts a two-year home-and-home exhibition series, as Nebraska travels to Provo next October.
• Prior to the 2009 meeting, the teams met four times between 1931 and 1935, including home-and-home matchups in 1935-36. In the first meeting in Lincoln, NU posted a 52-34 win over the Cougars before BYU won in Provo, 46-39, 11 days later.
• The Huskers, who played in the Big 12 from 1996-97 until 2020-11, are 483-576 all-time against the current members of the Big 12.
• Nebraska has won its last three games against Big 12 teams, including a 2-0 mark last year. The Huskers defeated UCF (77-66) in College Basketball Crown title game and topped Arizona State (86-78) in the CBC opener. In 2023-24, Nebraska won at Kansas State (62-46).
• During the regular season, Nebraska could meet another Big 12 foe, as the Huskers and Kansas State could meet in the Hall of Fame Classic in Kansas City, which takes place Nov. 20-21.

 Scouting BYU
BYU comes to Lincoln with a No. 8 preseason ranking in the AP poll following a year where the Cougars went 26-10 and reached the NCAA Sweet 16.

Kevin Young begins his second year at BYU after leading the Cougars to a third-place finish in the Big 12 in his first year. Before taking over the BYU program, he served as an assistant coach for the Phoenix Suns from 2020-24, as he was the associate head coach of the Suns for his final three seasons. During his tenure in Phoenix, the Suns made the 2021 NBA Finals and made the playoffs all four years he was with the franchise. He also was an assistant coach with the Philadelphia 76ers from 2016 to 2020 and was in the NBA G League from 2007-16, serving as head coach of the Utah Flash (2010-11), Iowa Energy (2011-13) and Delaware 76ers (2014-16).

The Cougars return All-Big 12 performer Richie Saunders, who averaged 16.5 points and 4.5 rebounds per game and Keba Keita, who averaged 7.5 points per game and led BYU in rebounding (7.9 rpg) and blocked shots (1.2 bpg).  BYU also adds arguably the nation’s top recruit in AJ Dybantsa, who was named the Most Valuable Player at his past summer’s FIBA U19 World Cup en route to leading USA Basketball to the title. In addition, BYU also added a quartet of transfers led by Baylor transfer Robert Wright III, who was considered one of the top 10 transfers in the country by ESPN.

A Look at Nebraska
The Huskers begin their quest for a third straight postseason appearance, bringing back four players who have made at least 15 starts in NU careers. The Huskers will be led by All-Big Ten forward Rienk Mast, who returns after missing all last season following knee surgery. Two years ago, Mast averaged 12.3 points and led NU in both rebounding (7.5 rpg) and assists (3.0 apg). NU also brings back returning starters Berke Büyüktuncel (6.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg) and Sam Hoiberg (3.9 ppg; 1.9 apg) and regains the services of Jamarques Lawrence, who started 23 games on NU’s 2023-24 NCAA Tournament and started 31 games at Rhode Island last season. The Huskers also return senior guard Connor Essegian, who averaged 10.7 ppg, including 38 percent from 3-point range, as the team’s sixth man last season and Cale Jacobsen, who played in 24 games, including the final three rounds of the CBC. NU also added eight newcomers (six transfers and two freshman) to help offset the loss.