When Nebraska heads to Evanston on Saturday to face Northwestern, it’ll be a clash of two Big Ten programs riding very different waves.
The Cornhuskers come in red-hot-literally and figuratively. At 17-0, Nebraska is off to the best start in program history, riding a 21-game win streak that dates back to last season.
They’re ranked No. 8 in the AP poll, their highest perch since 1966, and one of just three unbeaten teams left in Division I, standing alongside Arizona and Miami (Ohio). That’s elite company, and they’ve earned every bit of it.
Northwestern, meanwhile, is searching for answers. The Wildcats have stumbled to an 0-6 start in conference play, their worst Big Ten beginning since the 2007-08 season.
They’ve dropped four straight, including a 79-68 loss at home to No. 13 Illinois on Wednesday.
Frustration is mounting, but head coach Chris Collins is staying focused on the effort.
“We're doing everything we can to find a way to win,” Collins said. “We're playing really hard, and that's what's frustrating.”
Effort hasn’t been lacking-but execution has.
Statistically, the Wildcats have struggled on both ends. In Big Ten play, they’re shooting just 42.9% from the field while allowing opponents to hit at a 48.6% clip. That’s a tough gap to overcome, even with the conference’s top scorer on your roster.
Enter Nick Martinelli. The junior guard is a bright spot in what’s been a tough stretch for Northwestern.
He leads the Big Ten in scoring at 23.8 points per game and was the league’s top scorer last season as well. He’s already posted three 30-point games this year and is averaging 25.7 in conference play.
Martinelli can fill it up from anywhere on the floor, but he needs more help if Northwestern is going to turn things around.
Nebraska, on the other hand, is firing on all cylinders. The Cornhuskers are coming off a 90-55 dismantling of Oregon-their largest win since joining the Big Ten in 2011.
That kind of statement victory stood in stark contrast to their previous three games, which they won by a combined 11 points. Even so, Nebraska again started slow, finding themselves tied late in the first half before flipping the switch.
“I was really proud of how the guys responded,” said head coach Fred Hoiberg. “Coming out and throwing the first punch, and then really keeping our foot on the gas for the entire 20 minutes in the second.”
Hoiberg’s squad has already surpassed his win totals from each of his first four seasons at Nebraska, and the difference this year has been depth and perimeter firepower. The Huskers have had four different players notch 20-point games this season-15 such performances in total.
Against Oregon, it was Pryce Sandfort and Braden Frager who took center stage. Sandfort dropped 28 points, while Frager poured in a career-high 23.
Both hit seven threes, showcasing the kind of shooting that’s become Nebraska’s calling card.
In Big Ten play, Nebraska leads the conference in both made threes per game (12.5) and 3-point percentage (39.1%). That long-range efficiency has helped mask their struggles at the free-throw line, where they sit at the bottom of the league in attempts.
Saturday’s game is more than just another conference matchup. For Nebraska, it’s a chance to keep the streak alive and notch a fourth straight Big Ten road win-something the program hasn’t done since the 1975-76 season, back in the Big Eight days.
Their last 7-0 conference start? That also came in 1965-66, when they were still in the Big Eight.
But Northwestern has a history of playing spoiler, especially at home. Just two years ago, they knocked off No.
10 Illinois in Evanston. Earlier that same season, they stunned No.
1 Purdue for the second year in a row. So while Nebraska comes in as the clear favorite, the Wildcats know how to rise to the occasion when the lights are brightest.
For Nebraska, it’s about continuing a historic run. For Northwestern, it’s about finding a spark to shift the season’s momentum. One team is chasing perfection, the other is chasing a breakthrough-and that’s what makes this matchup worth watching.