Nebraska is having a basketball season for the ages right now as the Huskers are 20-0, and even when things have looked bleak in a game, they refuse to lose. Head coach Fred Hoiberg has certainly turned things around in Lincoln, each season getting better and better, and everything has led to right now, where Nebraska is set to play its biggest game of the season thus far.
The Cornhuskers will travel to Ann Arbor and take on No. 3 Michigan on Tuesday, January 27, in a game that has been circled on the calendar for weeks. Nebraska sits at the top of the Big Ten, and a loss ot Michigan would drop them below the Wolverines, and take away their undefeated record. It won't be easy, but this is the statement win it feels like the Huskers need to truly be taken seriously.
For college basketball analyst Andy Katz, he is already taking the Huskers seriously, and he certainly is loving what Hoiberg has done for Nebraska. He even made a comparison to a certain recent National Championship-winning head football coach that will have Nebraska fans dreaming about a championship of their own.
Andy Katz compared Fred Hoiberg and Nebraska basketball to Curt Cignetti and Indiana football
Katz spoke on Big Ten Network about the workings of the conference right now in college basketball, and when the topic of Nebraska and Hoiberg came up, the analyst had a lot to say. Not only did Katz predict that Hoiberg would be both Big Ten Coach of the Year and National Coach of the Year, but he even compared him and his team to Curt Cignetti and the Indiana Hoosiers.
"I think Fred Hoiberg will not just be the Big Ten Coach of the Year, but the National Coach of the Year." @TheAndyKatz shares his bold prediction on the No. 7 @HuskerMBB HC 👀#B1GToday pic.twitter.com/UYyZt044F6
— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) January 22, 2026
"These parallels with Indiana football, what Curt Cignetti did obviously this past season, I'm seeing it with Fred Hoiberg," Katz said.
Last season, Nebraska didn't even make it to the Big Ten Tournament, which in turn totally shut them out from the NCAA Tournament, and the Huskers had to go out and compete in the College Basketball Crown Tournament. They went and won that, but the season was over, and it was time to turn the page.
Now, Nebraska is 20-0 with wins over No. 9 Michigan State and No. 13 Illinois, and will now get a shot at No. 3 Michigan. The tide could totally change in the Big Ten if Nebraska gets this win, and the Huskers could turn into the new team to watch. The same happened for Indiana when they beat Oregon this past season and look where they ended up.