When talking about the Nebraska basketball team and its preparations for the 2026-27 season, head coach Fred Hoiberg mostly had a sunny disposition during his Monday media session. Even with true freshman Colin Rice out for the foreseeable future with an injury, his injured teammates Connor Essegian and Pryce Sandfort are well on the way to being 100%. There are also plenty of new players expected to step in and step up. Hoiberg talked a bit about one player, especially one he feels is picking things up quickly.
Point guard has been a bit of a problem area for the Huskers in the last few years. During the season, it's often been noticeable in the way Hoiberg carries himself that he's displeased with how ball-handling from that position has looked. The Husker coach often mentions how valuable making the simple play can be to winning. It’s a trait he wants his lead ball-handlers, especially his point guards to have. So far, Hoiberg has seen those simple-play flashes from Taj DeGourville, a transfer from San Diego State.
“What I’ve seen from Taj is, he did a great job making simple plays and finding shooters,” Hoiberg told the assembled media on Monday. “He got Sam Orme three or four wide-open shots today"
That's a big positive for a Huskers team that is hoping Orme, himself a transfer from Belmont, can be another dead-eye from downtown that could complement Pryce Sandfort and make the Cornhuskers even more deadly from beyond the arc.
Taj DeGourville earns Fred Hoiberg praise during Nebraska basketball summer work
Orme, a 6-foot-9 sophomore, averaged 12.7 points per game last season while hitting nearly 40% of three-point attempts. Nebraska fans should be licking their lips thinking about what Orme and Sandfort raining down threes this fall and winter will look like as the Huskers try to get back to the NCAA Tournament.
While Degourville came to Lincoln with the billing of being a defense-first guard, the 6-foot-6 player has shown offensive flashes before. Last season, DeGourville shot 34.5% from 3-point range. However, he only took 1.7 shots per game. In Hoiberg's offense, expect that number to go up.
“He shot a solid percentage last year, but he wasn’t a high-volume guy,” Hoiberg said. “So just really trying to get him comfortable with shooting those shots. But I love his mentality, I love his toughness. He’s going to be a good one for us.”
It's obviously still very early, but even Hoiberg seems to be a bit looser and a bit more relaxed as the Nebraska basketball season draws near. Now the team just needs to continue to play like they did last season.
Add us as a preferred source on Google