While the Nebraska basketball team is getting ready for the NCAA Tournament right alongside Creighton, the athletic department’s attention may be divided over the next few days and weeks.
While the Huskers and Bluejays are getting ready for the Big Dance, the NCAA transfer portal for basketball players officially opened on Monday. Omaha's Frankie Fidler was among the players who almost immediately entered their names into the pool.
Now that he’s a free agent, it would appear that both schools will be going hard after the player. While Creighton likely has the edge here, no one should ignore the success Fred Hoiberg has had in the last few years of bringing in “local heroes” to the Nebraska basketball team.
Two years ago, he managed to get Sam Griesel to come back after leaving for North Dakota State out of high school. Then this past season, Hoiberg convinced Josiah Allick that Lincoln was the best place for him after three years at UMKC and one at New Mexico.
Could Hoiberg get Fidler to realize that he can stay in the state, but still get a new experience by heading to the Nebraska basketball program? It’s certainly worth a shot, even if Creighton will almost certainly pull out all the stops to get him to stay in Omaha.
Nebraska basketball almost certainly facing off against Creighton for Frankie Fidler
It’s safe to assume that Nebraska and Creighton won’t be the only teams going after him. Fidler averaged 20.7 points per game for Omaha in the 2023-24 season and nearly willed them to a Summit League Championship game appearance.
In the tournament he scored 34 points in the first round, including the game-winning shot in a 73-72 victory. He then turned around and scored 27 against Denver. In both games he played 40 minutes each.
Those numbers hardly make it a secret why Nebraska basketball would be interested in adding him to the roster next season.