Braden Frager’s 20 points off the bench were not enough to secure a win, as No. 5 Nebraska fell to No. 9 Illinois, 76-69, at Pinnacle Bank Arena Sunday afternoon.
The Huskers (20-2, 9-2 Big Ten) led 42-35 early in the second half, but Illinois rallied behind Keaton Wagler, who has 23 of his game-high 28 points in the second half to lead the Illini comeback.
The Huskers put four in double figures in a losing effort, including 14 from Pryce Sandfort, 13 from Sam Hoiberg and 10 from Jamarques Lawrence, and hit 15 3-pointers but were held to 39 percent shooting in the final 20 minutes.
With the win, Illinois moved into a tie for first in the Big Ten at 10-1 and 19-3 overall with their 11th straight win. Illinois’ last loss was to the Huskers in Champaign on Dec. 13.
The Huskers, who hit 11 3-pointers in the first half, jumped out to an early 9-4 lead, including a pair of 3-pointers from Sandfort before Illinois ran off six straight points to regain the lead.
The Illini built a six-point lead twice in the opening 20 minutes, the last being at 31-25 before the Huskers took momentum in front of a sold out PBA crowd. Nebraska scored 11 straight point on 3-pointers from Sandfort, Hoiberg and Frager before a Cale Jacobson basket put NU ahead 36-31 with 1:10 left. A David Mikovic jumper stopped the Husker run, but Sandfort’s fourth 3-pointer of the half with 33 second left gave Nebraska a six-point halftime cushion.
Sandfort and Frager had 12 points apiece in the opening 20 minutes, as Nebraska went 11-of-20 from 3-point range.
While the Huskers were dialed in from 3-point range, Illinois duo of Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivisic combined for 17 of Illinois' 33 points, going a combined 7-of-7 from the field and grabbing nine rebounds.
Berke Buyuktuncel’s 3-pointer extended the Husker lead to 42-35, Illinois scored six straight points as part of an 11-2 spurt to take a 51-47 lead on a Mirkovic basket with 12:27 left.
Frager, who posted his fifth 20-point game of the season, put the Huskers within 53-52 before Jake Davis’ 3-pointer started a10-0 Illini run that put the visitors up 63-52 with 6:45 after five straight points from Wagler.
From there, the Huskers were unable to cut into the Illini lead, as Illinois went 10-of-12 from the line in the final 3:23. NU got as close as 76-69 after a Rienk Mast basket with 39 seconds left, but could not complete the comeback.
The Cornhuskers hit the road to take on Rutgers next Saturday, February 7th at 11 a.m. The game will be broadcast on the Big Ten Network and can be heard across the Huskers Radio Network.