Nebraska tops UCF 77-66 to win College Basketball Crown championship
LAS VEGAS – Nebraska chose to play in the inaugural College Basketball Crown tournament with hopes of ending a disappointing regular season on a high note.
The Huskers achieved that goal with a 77-66 win over UCF in the tournament championship on Sunday at T-Mobile Arena. The victory marked NU’s first postseason title since the 1996 NIT.
Brice Williams had 21 points to become NU’s all-time single-season scoring leader, breaking James Palmer Jr.’s record of 708 in 2018-19.
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Williams scored 11 of his 21 in the game’s first 10 minutes, helping Nebraska jump out to a commanding 23-11 lead. The Huskers cooled off quickly, though, missing their final seven shots of the half and letting UCF tie it at 35-35 at the break.
Nebraska had a comeback for the ages
Jordan Ivy-Curry sparked the Knights’ comeback with 15 of his game-high 29 points in the opening half. Meanwhile, Nebraska didn’t score for the final 4:58 before intermission.
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NU’s cold streak continued into the second half, as it missed its next seven shots for a nearly 10-minute field-goal drought. That allowed UCF to go on a whopping 23-2 run and take a 49-35 lead with 14:55 remaining.
Just like that, though, Nebraska heated right back up and answered with a 17-3 run of its own and tied it at 52-52 after consecutive Connor Essegian 3-pointers. That run grew to 24-3 as the Huskers built a 59-53 advantage with 6:41 remaining.
Nebraska never looked back from there, sealing the victory over the final minutes.
The Huskers end with a final record of 21-14, marking their first consecutive 20-win seasons for just the third time in school history. NU’s 21 wins stand as the seventh most on the program’s all-time list.
