Nebraska women’s basketball heads up to Minneapolis this week, looking to make some noise in the conference tournament.
The Huskers are the five seed, losing out on the four spot and double bye with their loss to Illinois in the regular season finale.
They’ll play their first game on Thursday against either Purdue or Northwestern.
Here are some storylines to watch, for both Nebraska and the bracket overall:
Nebraska’s Path
Nebraska won’t know its first opponent until Wednesday evening, but a matchup with Purdue feels likely.
The Boilermakers beat Northwestern by 26 in their lone regular season meeting, and have generally been more competitive in Big Ten play than the Wildcats. A win by the lower seed here would be surprising.
Either way, Nebraska can feel some confidence. It blew out Northwestern in the regular season and beat Purdue by double-digits twice. Sixth-year Purdue forward Caitlyn Harper, the team’s second leading scorer, is out for the season with an ACL injury.
Some added intrigue in that potential showdown comes with the two Big Ten Freshman of the Year winners facing off. Nebraska’s Natalie Potts was the coaches’ pick for the award, while Mary Ashley Stevenson surprisingly earned the media nod.
The Huskers can’t afford a letdown, or at least should really want to avoid one. As a current projected 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament, a bad loss might not knock them out of the field, but would certainly bring some unease and possibly put them in the First Four.
Should they take care of business, they’ll move on to a quarterfinal matchup against Michigan State. This matchup is the most advantageous for Nebraska’s chances of reaching the semifinals, and it has a road win over the Spartans already this season.
The Huskers led by 17 in the fourth quarter of that game, but only won by six as Michigan State forced turnovers with a full-court press and got back within a couple possessions late. They held off the Spartans late in a win last season as well before falling to them in the conference tournament.
Two wins would mark a very successful conference tourney showing for the team. The next matchup likely would come against top-seed Ohio State, which destroyed Nebraska in the lone regular season meeting. Even if the Huskers are better than they showed in that game, the Buckeyes and their stellar defensive talent may make it a one-sided matchup.
Will There be a Day Two Upset?
The most upset potential in the bracket may come on day two.
Two matchups are set — 8-seed Maryland takes on 9-seed Illinois while Penn State and Wisconsin match up in the 7/10 game. The Badgers already have a win over the Nittany Lions, while the Illini were competitive in two losses against the Terrapins.
For Wisconsin to earn another upset, it’ll likely take another outstanding statline from Serah Williams, an all-conference first-team selection and the media pick for Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. In that first meeting, she had 31 points, 15 rebounds, four steals and three blocks.
Illinois has played well to end the season, and is capable of giving most Big Ten teams trouble.
In the other two games, it’s hard to see Rutgers or Minnesota taking down Michigan. Should Purdue advance to the second round, it might have a shot at beating Nebraska. The Boilermakers have plenty of talent, and the Huskers have had a couple of significant letdowns this season.
Will the Top Three Lose to Anyone Besides Each Other?
There is a clear top tier in the Big Ten, and that is made up of the league’s three ranked teams — Ohio State, Iowa and Indiana.
It’s tough to picture that trio dropping a game to anyone but each other in this tourney, but each have been upset once by a team not in the top three. The Buckeyes lost to Michigan, the Hawkeyes fell at Nebraska and the Hoosiers were blown out by Illinois.
Interestingly enough, a repeat of any of those matchups isn’t possible until the championship game. I wouldn’t have been expecting a repeat upset anyway.
Iowa and Indiana will have to win just one game before matching up with each other in the semifinals. Ohio State avoids having to play another top-three team, but will get a few intriguing matchups in the meantime. If higher seeds win, it’ll face Maryland and Michigan State before the conference title game.
Those two haven’t produced a major upset this season, but both are capable. Keep an eye on those matchups if they do happen.
Attendance
Tickets for the conference tournament are sold out for the first time in the event’s history.
Much of that can be attributed to the ridiculous star power of Caitlin Clark, who brought sellouts pretty much everywhere she went this past season.
The increased stage is great to see, and you’d hope it continues to give people the chance to see the non-Iowa teams shine as well. Ohio State and Indiana are in the midst of very strong seasons, Michigan State is one of the more entertaining teams in the league and numerous other squads have star talent.
