An old rivalry from the Big 8 days gets renewed on Saturday night when Nebraska and Oklahoma meet in Sioux Falls, S.D.
The Cornhuskers and Sooners have only met once since 2011, before Nebraska moved to the Big Ten the following season. That came in 2022 in a Thanksgiving Week tournament in Florida, a game Oklahoma won 69-56.
The only player remaining from that matchup is Nebraska senior Sam Hoiberg, who played one minute of garbage time. A lot has changed since then, as Hoiberg is coming off a career-high 18 points in Tuesday’s win over Maryland-Eastern Shore.
“It’s good to see him knock down a couple shots,” said Fred Hoiberg, Nebraska’s head coach and Sam’s father.
Nebraska (3-0) has won each game by at least 19 points and has the nation’s longest active win streak at seven dating back to last season. Iowa transfer Pryce Sandfort has been the Cornhuskers’ top scorer at 14 points per game, shooting 51.7% overall and 40.9% from 3.
Oklahoma (2-1) has won a couple of blowouts at home around a 15-point loss at then-No. 21 Gonzaga. The Sooners have an almost completely new team from last year’s 20-14 squad that lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, with their top four scorers this season all coming in as transfers.
Guard Xzayvier Brown, a junior from Saint Joseph’s, is leading Oklahoma at 18.7 points per game while Notre Dame transfer Tae Davis is averaging a double-double with 11.7 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.
Nebraska is the second of six quality opponents Oklahoma will face on its nonconference schedule. Last year the Sooners opened 13-0 before jumping into their first season of SEC play.
“It’s another great opportunity, they’re real good,” Oklahoma coach Porter Moser said. “Even though it’s a neutral (court) game, it won’t be.”
The Cornhuskers play their next three away from home, heading to Kansas City next week for the Hall of Fame Classic. They’ll face New Mexico and then either Kansas State or Mississippi State.
“When you talk about wanting to play March, these are the games you want to get,” Sam Hoiberg said.