VAMOS: HAWKS BEAT NEBRASKA TO GO TO ELITE 8

The Iowa Hawkeyes (24-12) are heading to the Elite 8 after a 9-0 run with under 5:00 left to get their first lead of the game and keep it against the rival Nebraska Cornhuskers, winning 77-71. It’s the first time they’ve made the Elite 8 since the 1987 team in Tom Davis’ first season. They’re also the lowest ranked Big Ten team to advance this far.

Alvaro Folgueiras had the dramatic game winner against Florida but he saved his best stretch of the game for the final 5 minutes. His 3 tied it up at 65-65, scrapped on the boards, and then took advantage of only 4 Huskers on the court to throw down a breakaway dunk after Nebraska cut Iowa’s lead to 3. He finished with 16 points on 6/7 shooting.

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The game did not have the same feeling as Iowa’s prior upset over Florida, with the Huskers hyper-focused on getting the early lead. For the first 5-plus minutes, Iowa didn’t get a rebound offensive or defensive as Nebraska amassed a 10-point lead.

The Hawks never lost contact, with Stirtz scoring 5 straight points and Folgueiras hitting his first the of the game to close the gap to 16-14. It was a back-and-fort half as Nebraska continued to accordion their lead to 10 points multiple times but Iowa continued to hit enough shots to keep it on the rails.

Most notably, Tate Sage had the best game of his young career with 3 first half 3s. This really undersells his impact as Iowa was +7 with him on the floor throughout the frame. His final 3 was reminiscent of Bennett Stirtz breaking down the Gators’ press, as the senior guard draw Sage’s defender and he calmly sank the 3 to cut the Nebraska lead to 46-43 going into half. Iowa was able to set the play up after forcing a shot clock violation on the Huskers’ final possession of the frame.

Despite yielding 58% shooting from the field and 7/14 shooting from deep, the game was in range thanks to the Hawks shooting 60% from the field and 7/11 from 3.

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Coming out of half, there was very much the same feel of…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/vamos-hawks-beat-nebraska-elite-022249613.html

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Publish date : 2026-03-27 02:22:00

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