July 16, 2025.
That was the day that Nebraska men’s basketball forward Rienk Mast made his return to full practice action after the knee surgery that cost him the entire 2024-2025 season and a big chunk of the offseason as well.
The seventh-year senior forward had been working to get back, participating in noncontact drills and shooting, but he wasn’t fully cleared until July.
“It was a great feeling to just be back on the court, and just be allowed to do more,” Mast told Hail Varsity. “It wasn’t like an all of the sudden, ‘Oh, you’re just good to go.’ We built up to it pretty slowly, but just to share the court again with the guys was awesome.”
The recovery process was a long one with a lot of rehab. After the surgery, Mast spent time learning to walk without crutches before eventually being able to run again. He took small steps leading him to where he’s at now.
“I think it was like a year since I’d shot a jump shot, from when I first got on the gun,” Mast said. “Just those things, that’s what keeps you motivated, that’s what keeps you going. You just want that next progression, next small victory.”
While sidelined, Mast became more of a vocal leader, helping and encouraging his team throughout the 2024-25 season.
“I think with the experience that I’ve had on the court, I see a lot of things, but sometimes I don’t always say them,” Mast said. “It’s just being more comfortable saying what’s on my mind. I’ve seen a lot of different offenses, defenses. Using my experience and my basketball knowledge to try and help people in that way, instead of only showing work ethic, or showing how to make a read, or stuff like that, but also leading with experience of the situations I’ve been in before.”
The 6-foot-10 post spent four years at Bradley, including a medical redshirt, before transferring to Nebraska in 2023.
During his junior campaign, he started 32 games, averaging 12.3 points, 7.5 rebounds and 3.0 assists, helping lead Nebraska to its first NCAA Tournament berth since 2014. He also led the program in assist and rebounds and was third in scoring while totaling six doubles, the most by a Nebraska player since the 2007-2008 season.
Now, the Husker is back in red this season.
“When I was in the portal, I’d watched a lot of film on a lot of teams that contacted me,” Mast said. “I looked at what coaches told me versus what their actual play style was, and how that aligned. We played a system at Bradley where I was pretty successful. To find a system that was similar, and I’d say Fred (Hoiberg’s) system here, I saw the film and I saw myself kind of playing in it. I watched a lot of Derrick Walker and what he did, and just to see that, I felt very confident that I was able to fit in that system and give a very positive contribution to the program.”
Hoiberg runs an egalitarian offense that spreads the playmaking responsibilities around, and Mast’s ability to run dribble handoffs and find cutters out of the high post fits well into that system.
“I like the spacing,” Mast said. “We have a lot of free movement on the court, and just by the way they recruit guys that want to pass. I love passing myself and playing with other guys that want to share the ball. That makes basketball so fun.”
Mast made his return to live action in Nebraska’s 90-89 exhibition victory over No. 8 BYU on Oct. 18. He played 29 minutes, finishing with a team-high 31 points.
“I’m happy for Rienk,” coach Fred Hoiberg said after the game. That shows maturity, I think, of Rienk Mast, to go out there and do the things that he did. Do you know how hard that is to go out there and play for the first time after not playing any competitive basketball against another opponent for as long as he did, and then to step in like he did?”
Last season, the Huskers won the first-ever College Basketball Crown Tournament, but with mast back in the lineup, they have bigger goals this season.
“I think we have the talent and the pieces to (make the NCAA Tournament), but we also can’t start smelling ourselves if we have a really good win,” Mast said. “We’re going to have some really good wins, but to bounce back and do the same thing the next game, never get too high, never get too low, and just have the same focus, preparation for every game. If we play really well, we can beat anybody, but if we don’t play well, we can also lose to anybody. So, we’ve got to stay focused and dialed in for every game.”
For more on Mast’s journey, check out Mike Sautter’s preseason sit-down with him.
