The first meeting of ranked Big Ten Conference teams this season is on tap for Saturday afternoon when No. 13 Illinois hosts No. 23 Nebraska in Champaign, Ill.
The visiting Cornhuskers (10-0, 1-0 Big Ten) carry a 14-game win streak dating back to last season, the longest active run in college basketball and tied for the longest in school history.
Illinois (8-2, 1-0) is playing its first home game since before Thanksgiving, having just finished a stretch in which it split neutral-site games with No. 5 UConn and No. 20 Tennessee before winning at Ohio State on Tuesday to open Big Ten play.
“It’s like stealing gold when you can win on the road in this league,” Illinois coach Brad Underwood said of the 88-80 victory at Ohio State.
Nebraska is coming off a 90-60 home win Wednesday over Wisconsin, its largest margin of victory in a conference game since 2016. The Cornhuskers held a team that was averaging more than 87 points per game to 34.4 percent shooting including 7 of 32 from 3-point range.
“I thought our defense was really good after the first five minutes,” Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg said. “We started getting active. We had zero deflections in the first eight minutes of that game. Once we had some activity going, going out on the break, that’s what fuels everything with our team.”
The Fighting Illini have four players averaging at least 14.6 points per game, led by senior guard Kylan Boswell at 15.7. That group features two freshmen, with guard Keaton Wagler scoring 23 at Ohio State in his Big Ten debut.
“He’s not afraid of the moment,” Underwood said of Wagler.
Nebraska is led by senior forward Rienk Mast, the team’s top scorer (18.0 points per game), while junior forward Pryce Sandfort is second at 15.6. They have combined to make 49 of the Huskers’ 111 3-pointers this season.
The 10-0 start has been all at home or in neutral sites with pro-Nebraska crowds, making the trip to Illinois stand out even more. The Cornhuskers haven’t won in Champaign since 2016.
“We now have to go into our first fully hostile environment and we’ll see what we’re made of,” Hoiberg said. “I believe in these guys, and I believe in our group. We have experience, we have age, and they’re battle-tested.”
Maximizing free-throw opportunities will be huge for both teams. Nebraska is allowing 13.1 foul shots per game, while Illinois yields just 14.1. The Illini make 18 free throws per contest and shoot 78.9 percent.
Illinois went 7-3 at home in league play last season and this year have already beaten a ranked Texas Tech team in the State Farm Center. Nebraska is seeking its first 2-0 start in Big Ten play since 2016-17 which was also the last time it won its first conference road game. Last season the Cornhuskers were 3-7 on the road in league action.
