Braden Frager scored 15 points to help No. 10 Nebraska remain unbeaten and hold off Ohio State 72-69 in Columbus, Ohio on Monday.
Earlier in the day, the Cornhuskers (15-0, 4-0 Big Ten) reached the top 10 for the first time since being ranked No. 9 on Feb. 28, 1966.
Rienk Mast had 12 points, and Jamarques Lawrence and Pryce Sandfort tallied 11 each for Nebraska.
John Mobley Jr. led the Buckeyes (10-4, 2-2 Big Ten) with 22 points, and Bruce Thornton had 14 of his 16 points in the second half.
Mast’s three-point play put the Huskers ahead 60-58 and Sandfort’s 3-pointer off a loose ball scramble increased the lead to five. Frager then followed with a jumper plus a free throw for a 66-58 lead with 2:18 left.
The 9-0 run was stopped by a triple from Mobley and later Christoph Tilly’s steal and dunk cut the lead to 67-65 with 1:01 left.
Frager then hit a layup, was fouled and made the foul shot to go up 70-65 before Thornton’s basket trimmed the margin to 70-67 with 25 seconds left.
A lay-in by Devin Royal made it 70-69 before Lawrence hit two foul shots for Nebraska with 9.1 seconds to go for 72-69 lead.
Tilly missed a 3-pointer with four seconds remaining, and Cale Jacobsen grabbed the defensive rebound to seal the win.
Ohio State trailed by 14 in the first half but took its first lead, 49-48, with 10:24 to play on a pair of free throws by Thornton. Mast immediately responded with a jumper to regain the lead.
Nebraska led 38-31 at the half but it could have been more if not for eight turnovers that produced 11 points for the Buckeyes, who gave the ball away four times for just three points.
Ohio State did not lead in the first half and faced an early 13-5 deficit after the Cornhuskers opened 4-of-6 from the floor and a perfect 3-for-3 from beyond the arc.
After the Buckeyes pulled to within 15-13, Nebraska reeled off 12 straight points for the 27-13 advantage. During one stretch, the Huskers showed their inside presence with Frager layups sandwiching a Berke Buyuktuncel dunk.
–Field Level Media
