The headline calls it a costly loss, the article itself never says that. (Reporters must hate headline writers.)
I’m not so sure. Yeah, it was the 3rd loss in a row to a rated team, and that stings, and those were missed opportunities to move up the rankings and seed projections for the NCAA Tournament, but coaches who have to prep for Nebraska are gonna watch that game closely, the Huskers did NOT give up, even when they were down 22.
The Illinois loss shortly afterwards puts the Big Ten into a virtual 4 way tie for 2nd place with 3 losses. (Illinois has played one more conference game than the others.)
Nebraska should get a chance to avenge one or more of their recent losses in the conference tournament.
BTW, 4 of the top 11 teams lost last night: Iowa State, Illinois, Nebraska and North Carolina. Welcome to February and the run-up to March Madness!
Of the contenders for a double-bye in Chicago, Nebraska has by far the easiest schedule, which is both a plus and a minus, they need to run the table, and that won’t be a cakewalk.
Mike Nolan