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Sweet 16 Bound: Nebraska wins instant classic over Vanderbilt in OKC

On3 imageby: Sean Callahan03/22/26Sean_Callahan

OKLAHOMA CITY – Nebraska delivered another March moment to remember.

In a back-and-forth battle that came down to the final seconds, Braden Frager hit a go-ahead shot with 2.2 seconds left to lift the Huskers (27-6) to a dramatic 74-72 win over Vanderbilt. The bucket capped off a gritty performance in front of a heavily pro-Nebraska crowd that once again made Paycom Center feel like a home game.

The Commodores nearly still found a way to win the game, as Tyler Tanner’s game-winning shot from beyond mid-court nearly went down.

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“That last shot, man, it just took my breath away,” Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg said of Tanner, who had a game-high 27 points. “That kid is an unbelievable player. When that thing was up in the air, I was, like, oh, man, that’s going in. Then it hit every part of the rim. Thankfully it bounced out, and we’re looking forward to next week, getting the opportunity to continue to compete.”

Said Sam Hoiberg: “My heart sank as that ball went in the hoop and went out. I think it took me a half a second to register it didn’t go in, and then I just screamed in elation. I thought it was in.”

Tanner on the final shot: “It hurts pretty bad being that close, especially in a hard-fought game. It was electric the whole time through. Big crowd presence.

“It hurts that the season is over.”

Vanderbilt controlled portions of the second half, hitting 10 three-pointers

In a game where NU had a lead as big as 10 points in the first half, Vandy hit 10 second-half three-pointers, building a lead as big as five points with 5:34 left in the game.

The Commodores put stifling pressure on the Huskers, making it very difficult to get set up in the half court. NU turned it over 12 times.

“We watched Purdue from the Big Ten Tournament. Really analyzed that,” Vandy head coach Mark Byington said of his team’s game plan.

“Then the main one that we tried to replicate was their game at UCLA. I thought UCLA did a good job, especially on the defensive end. Then we also watched the Iowa game. That’s kind of the main three.

“They’re hard to score against. I’ve gone against a lot of defenses. I think I’ve coached 13 years as a head coach and whatever as an assistant. That’s a unique, really, really good defense. Early on, we kind of had trouble finding some gaps, and I thought we did a great job in the second half of finding some creases in there and being able to make plays.”

Hoiberg switched to a late zone defense to throw Vandy off

Nebraska and Vanderbilt traded blows throughout, with neither team able to create much separation. But when it mattered most, the Huskers executed down the stretch, getting the final possession into Frager’s hands.

Fred Hoiberg even made a late switch to a zone defense to get Vandy out of sync after they made 10 second-half three pointers.

“I thought they were very resilient,” Fred Hoiberg said. “A lot of that was, you know, we had to battle and continue to fight. We put them in the bonus early in the half. You know, we were getting a little frustrated out there and found a way to regroup.

“We talked in the huddle. We still had a lead. I think it was 11 minutes when we called it. There was a timeout. I said, guys, look up there, we still have the lead. We’re not doing great right now. Hang in there. We’ll get it going again. Changed up our defense. Threw a little zone out there, which I think threw off their rhythm a little bit.”

Ironically, it was Pryce Sandfort who chose not to take the final shot and instead hit the cutting Frager to help the Huskers reclaim the lead one final time. There were four lead changes down the stretch. Frager and Sandfort led the Huskers with 15 points each.

“I saw I think all five guys ran at Pryce, and I think everybody expected him to shoot that,” Frager said. “I was calling for the ball. It was all him. He made the unselfish play, and I had wide open lane to the rim, and I just went and made a play.”

Huskers on to Houston

NU will now play Thursday night in Houston as the Huskers won their second NCAA Tournament game in school history.

They will take on the winner of the Iowa vs. Florida game in Tampa on Sunday.

“We’re flying back home at 11:00 tomorrow,” Hoiberg said. “We’re staying overnight, and we’ll get back, regroup, find out who we’re going to play after the game. I think they play tomorrow night, if I’m not mistaken, Iowa and Florida. We’ll start working right away.”

As the press conference was winding down on Saturday night in Oklahoma City, Fred Hoiberg had his guard down for a second as the questions continued to pour in.

“I need a beer,” Hoiberg joked.

Well, one thing is certain: Husker fans will make one more run at Bricktown Saturday night, before gassing up the car and heading to Houston.

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