Nebraska's last‑second shocker
Nebraska beat Vanderbilt 74–73 on Braden Frager’s buzzer‑beating game‑winner with 2.2 seconds left — Frager finished with 15 points and Nebraska shot 56% from the floor and 47% from three (youtube.com) (sports.yahoo.com). The win set a school seasonal wins record (28) and immediately turned Frager and Nebraska into Sweet 16 darlings for bracket chaos-watchers (youtube.com) (usatoday.com).
The second‑round South Region game took place at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City on March 21, 2026, with No. 4 Nebraska matched against No. 5 Vanderbilt. (espn.com) Vanderbilt’s Tyler Tanner led all scorers with 27 points and teammate Tyler Nickel added 16 as the Commodores closed the season 25‑9. (espn.in) Nebraska got supporting production from Rienk Mast (13 points) and Pryce Sandfort (15 in the matchup), and Sam Hoiberg’s offensive putback with 1:20 left tied the game at 70‑70. (espn.in) Two days earlier Nebraska recorded its first‑ever NCAA Tournament victory, a 76‑47 win over Troy on March 19, 2026, when Pryce Sandfort scored 23 points and drilled seven 3‑pointers. (espn.com) The Cornhuskers will advance to face the winner of the South Region’s Florida‑Iowa game in Houston for a spot in the Elite Eight. (espn.com) Before this run, Nebraska’s previous single‑season win total record was 26 victories by the 1990–91 team, a mark the 2025‑26 squad surpassed earlier in the tournament. (huskers.com)
