The Minnesota Gophers had the upset brewing. For 20 minutes on Saturday, they looked like the team that might finally hand No.
7 Nebraska its first loss of the season. But then the second half happened-and it wasn’t pretty.
Up 36-30 at halftime inside Williams Arena, Minnesota had the energy, the shot-making, and the crowd behind them. It was Alumni Day at The Barn, with more than 30 former players in the building.
But by the final minute, it was Nebraska fans making the most noise, chanting “Go Big Red!” as the Cornhuskers stormed to a 76-57 win.
That second half was all Huskers. Nebraska outscored Minnesota 46-21 after the break, turning a six-point deficit into a 19-point win and pushing their record to a perfect 20-0 (9-0 Big Ten). For the Gophers, now 10-10 (3-6 Big Ten), it was a fifth straight loss-and a missed opportunity to take down a top-10 team for the first time since 2021.
Early on, Minnesota looked sharp and confident. They knocked down nine threes in the first half, compared to just two for Nebraska.
Jaylen Crocker-Johnson and Bobby Durkin each poured in 12 points before the break, helping the Gophers build their lead. But the momentum didn’t carry over.
Crocker-Johnson was held scoreless in the second half, and while Durkin added four more points to finish with 16, the offense as a whole dried up.
Meanwhile, Nebraska’s Pryce Sandfort caught fire. After scoring just two points in the first half, he exploded for 20 in the second, finishing with a game-high 22. Every time Minnesota tried to find its footing, Sandfort was there to snatch the rhythm away.
The Gophers struggled to find consistency, and foul trouble didn’t help. Freshman guard Isaac Asuma picked up two fouls in the game’s opening minutes and spent most of the first half on the bench. He picked up his third early in the second half and had to sit again, limiting his impact on both ends of the floor.
Then came another blow: Cade Tyson, Minnesota’s leading scorer, appeared to tweak his foot midway through the second half. He headed to the locker room and didn’t return to the court, though he did remain on the bench for the rest of the game. His absence was felt immediately, as Minnesota’s offense stalled and Nebraska took full control.
The Cornhuskers were missing a key piece of their own-third-leading scorer Braden Frager was out with an ankle injury suffered in their win over Washington earlier in the week-but it didn’t slow them down. They looked every bit the top-10 team they’re ranked as, especially after halftime.
Minnesota, on the other hand, remained shorthanded. The Gophers were once again without four scholarship players, including two starters: guard Chansey Willis Jr. and center Robert Vaihola. Depth has been an issue all season, and it showed again in the second half when Nebraska’s pressure ramped up and the Gophers ran out of answers.
This wasn’t the first time Minnesota had flirted with a big win this season. They already knocked off No.
22 Indiana in early December and edged No. 19 Iowa earlier this month.
But making it three ranked wins proved a step too far against a Nebraska team that’s rolling through the Big Ten with confidence and cohesion.
For the Gophers, it’s back to the drawing board. The flashes are there-especially in the first half-but putting together a full 40 minutes remains the challenge.