When Nebraska gets out in transition, keep an eye on Sam Hoiberg. Odds are, he’s scanning the floor like a quarterback with a hot read-and more often than not, he's looking for Pryce Sandfort.
That connection has become a staple of the Huskers’ offense. Hoiberg or Jamarques Lawrence pushing the tempo, Sandfort sprinting to a spot beyond the arc, and then-boom.
Catch, shoot, three. It’s fast, fluid, and increasingly familiar.
“It’s fun when you can do that and don’t have to think about scoring the ball and just try to bait the defender a little bit to give him a little space,” Hoiberg said. “He gets it off so fast and you know it’s going in.”
That rhythm was on full display in Nebraska’s 68-49 win over Northwestern. One transition three from Hoiberg to Sandfort caught the attention of Wildcats coach Chris Collins-it was a momentum-killer, stretching the Huskers’ lead to six and sparking a surge that Northwestern never recovered from.
Sandfort didn’t stop there. He drilled six triples in that game, finishing with 29 points and pushing his season total to 88 made threes-just one shy of the Nebraska single-season record set by Cary Cochran back in 2001-02. And now, with a trip to Iowa on deck-Sandfort’s former school-the stage is set for a full-circle moment.
“A school that I grew up like idolizing and having my name in the history books like that-it’s really special,” Sandfort said after the game.
As usual, he deflected the spotlight, pointing to the Huskers’ preparation and chemistry as key to his success.
“We always scout and find what skip shots are going to be open, where I can get open on the 3-point line and then we really emphasize it in practice,” he said. “Getting into those windows where the guys can make the passes. So there’s a lot of that that goes into it.”
And about that Iowa matchup?
“Same as every game,” he said. “Just another road game. Got to be locked in.”
It’s a businesslike answer, but the stakes are real. Nebraska is still jockeying for position in a tight Big Ten race, with NCAA Tournament seeding and a potential top-four finish-plus the coveted triple-bye in the conference tournament-still very much in play.
Michigan might be setting the pace at the top of the league, but the Huskers are very much in the hunt. And as long as Sandfort keeps finding daylight and Hoiberg keeps finding him, Nebraska’s upward trajectory is hard to ignore.