Nebraska Basketball: Huskers move up in bracketology after beating Indiana

Nebraska basketball knocked off Indiana Monday night and because of that marquee win, the Huskers are now a five seed in the latest bracketology.

The Nebraska basketball team didn’t need to beat Indiana. It wasn’t a must-win game for the Huskers or anything but the fact they beat the No. 25 team on the road gives this season an entirely different feel to it.

After it was starting to feel like things were slipping away for Nebraska basketball after losses in three of the first four Big Ten games, the Huskers have rebounded in a big way. First, there was a narrow win over Penn State, an effort that only added to the concern.

But Monday, Nebraska showed not only that it can beat good teams still, but it can also do it on the road and in the process, the Huskers put themselves right back in the Big Ten race. Maybe not the title race, but certainly the race to get a bye at the Big Ten tournament and the easy at-large bid to the NCAA’s that would follow.

That dream looked be falling away and a loss to Indiana would have sent the Huskers to 2-4 with Michigan State coming to the Vault Thursday night. Don’t get me wrong, that’s a game Nebraska can win, but if not, and if the Huskers lost to Indiana, they would have been looking at 2-5.

From there, it would have been a fight just to avoid the bubble. But now, if the Huskers can follow up their win Monday, with another huge victory Thursday, suddenly, they will be 4-3 in the Big Ten and in a much better position for the NCAA tournament.

As it is, the Huskers are being projected as a No. 5 seed by Joe Lunardi of ESPN, who released his latest bracket projection Tuesday, following the win over Indiana. The means Nebraska basketball is sitting in a pretty strong position right now, one that would only be strengthened further with an upset over Michigan State.

Yet, even if that doesn’t come to pass, Nebraska basketball got a very important victory Monday and one that will be a key part of the Huskers resume come March.

So while Huskers fans were in a bit of panic just last week, they can relax, at least a little. The Huskers have a great shot to pull an upset Thursday, but as far as the NCAA tournament goes, it has already been a good week for Nebraska basketball.