Big Red Machine

Good morning! Thursday’s a great day to attend a Bellarmine hoops. Free beer and ice cream? Sold.

Let's get to Monday’s news.

1. Nebraska’s a certified basketball school

Nebraska got pushed on Monday night at Ohio State, but it simply did what it’s done in every game since March 31 — win.

Braden Frager scored 15 points off the bench as the No. 10 Cornhuskers rallied for a 72-69 win in Columbus. It was their first time as a Top 10 team since 1966, and they looked the part early on, leading by seven at halftime.

But Ohio State guard Bruce Thornton keyed a strong second half from the Buckeyes (10-4, 2-2 in Big Ten), who took the lead with 10:24 remaining. Thornton scored 14 of his 16 points in the second half. The team traded leads eight times over the next six minutes before Nebraska (15-0, 4-0) used a 9-0 run to take the lead back.

Pryce Sandfort hit a massive 3-pointer with just over three minutes left, yet it was Frager who delivered the truly back-breaking play.

“Great teams find a way to win these. Huge win for our team,” coach Fred Hoiberg said afterward.

Nebraska’s been finding a way quite a bit. Per Evan Miyakawa, the Huskers were the least-likely among the six remaining unbeaten teams to still be unbeaten at just 0.7%. (Michigan had a 13.1% chance to be unbeaten right now.)

Some other stats:

• Nebraska’s 4-0 in Big Ten play for the first time in school history

• It was their first win as a Top 10 team since beating K-State on March 1, 1966

• They’ve won 19 in a row dating back to the College Basketball Crown

Next up for the Huskers is a trip to Indiana on Saturday.

2. Spartans rough up USC + more Monday results

USC might skip its trip to the state of Michigan next season after the way Michigan State and Michigan treated it this year.

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