Another day, another big game against a Top 25 team for the Nebraska Cornhuskers basketball team.
The Huskers are fresh off a big upset win over the Illinois Fighting Illini. However, some of the punch of that loss was taken away by it being at Pinnacle Bank Arena. On Sunday evening, NU will have to pull off a win against the Oregon Ducks on the road.
We've seen how well that's gone for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Especially in the Fred Hoiberg era.
Truth: Oregon is one of the Nebraska Cornhuskers' best chances to flip the script on the road game woes
Homecourt advantage is definitely a thing in the Big Ten. After all, the Huskers have managed to beat two Top 25 teams in Pinnacle Bank Arena this year, despite their struggles in the middle of the season. And there's at least a spot of hope for Hoiberg's Heroes on Sunday night.
All things being relative, Oregon isn't particularly good at home. They have one of the worst home records in the Big Ten at 8-3. That's how hard it is to win on the road in this conference. Only five teams out of the conference's 18 squads have more home losses this year.
Add in the fact that two of Oregon's losses at home are to teams the Nebraska basketball team has beaten this year in UCLA and Illinois, and there's room for hope. Of course, NU still has to find a way to play better on the road than it has in years.
Truth: Reunion with an old friend could breed success
A lot has been made about Creighton's success against the Nebraska basketball team over the years, but it's worth pointing out that the vast majority of that success came after former Bluejays coach Dana Altman left town.
In fact, Altman was just 10-8 against NU when he was coaching in Omaha. He's also 2-0 at Oregon. Granted, when he last saw the Huskers, they were arguably quite a bit worse than even this admittedly flawed version.
Altman has been around for a while in general and it's not like the Huskers don't know what he wants to do on Sunday. They just have to make sure his team doesn't do it.
Lie: The Huskers turned a corner vs Illinois
Certainly, it takes better play to knock off a Top 25 team, even in your own arena. But it's not as though the Nebraska basketball team played anywhere near perfect. While they forced 17 turnovers against the Illini, they also blew a late lead and were badly outrebounded (58-42).
There were positives for sure, but the Nebraska Cornhuskers still showed some troubling signs in their last game. Anyone who thought they "snapped out of it" were fooling themselves. They're going to need a better effort on Sunday.