These teams went toe-to-toe for the first four minutes with the Huskers holding a slim 8-7 lead. Jaz Shelley and Sam Haiby gave Nebraska some breathing room at the media timeout with a 13-7 lead.
Out of the timeout, the six point margin mostly held as Nebraska couldn’t get a run going until late in the quarter. With 90 seconds left, some good transition work gave the Huskers a nine point lead (21-12) which soon reached double digits with a Markowski three (24-14) and then a Bourne layup (26-14). The Illini hit a buzzer beater three to end the quarter.