This State Was a Snake Pit for NCAA Basketball Finalists

Iowa women, Purdue and UConn men met their match in Nebraska

All Huskers illustration

It's no fluke that Purdue and UConn are playing Monday might for the men's NCAA basketball championship. The same goes for Iowa and South Carolina, who will vie Sunday for the women's title.

During the 2023-24 regular season, those four finalists combined for just 10 losses. All four teams earned No. 1 tournament seeds.

However, a funny thing happened any time one of these teams ventured into a particular state. That state is Nebraska, where three of these cream-of-the-crop squads temporarily lost any air of invincibility.

Three trips to Nebraska. Three trips back home with an "L."

The first Goliath to fall in the Cornhusker State was Purdue. Ranked No. 1 in the nation at the time, the Boilermakers not only lost to Nebraska, but they lost big: 88-72. The Huskers' 16-point win on Jan. 9 was Purdue's most lopsided defeat in nearly two years, and it was Nebraska's first win over a top-ranked team in more than four decades. Rienk Mast and Keisei Tominaga came up big for the Huskers, and joyous fans stormed the court at Pinnacle Bank Arena afterward. Nebraska's 88 points turned out to be the highest total surrendered in regulation by the Boilermakers all season.

Nebraska's Keisei Tominaga shoots the ball against Purdue on Jan. 9 in Lincoln. / Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports

On Feb. 11, Nebraska fans had a good reason to storm the PBA court once again. This time it was the Husker women providing the thrills by erasing a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit and upsetting No. 2 Iowa, 82-79. Jaz Shelley's three-pointer with half a minute to play gave Nebraska its first lead of the game, and Shelley sealed the victory by sinking four free throws in the final 20 seconds. Hawkeyes star Caitlin Clark didn't score a point after the third quarter.

Husker fans and players celebrate after the Nebraska women's win over Iowa in Lincoln on Feb. 11. / Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports

Next to get in on the act were the Creighton Bluejays, who knocked off No. 1 UConn in Omaha on Feb. 20. Much like Nebraska's win over Purdue, the final score wasn't close: 85-66. A key to the upset came from beyond the arc: Creighton hit 14 of its 28 three-pointers, while UConn shot 3-of-16 from deep. It was the first win over a top-ranked team in Creighton program history, and it was UConn's most lopsided loss of the season.

Creighton's Baylor Scheierman celebrates with fans after the Bluejays beat UConn on Feb. 20 in Omaha. / Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

No other state matched the Cornhusker State's 3-0 home record against the finalists. Ohio came the closest at 2-1.

Since going down to defeat in Nebraska, the Boilermakers, Hawkeyes and Huskies have rebounded for 44 wins against just three losses. The fourth finalist, the South Carolina women, steered clear of Nebraska by virtue of their schedule and happen to be the only team going into the finals with an unblemished record.

Fans of the Huskers and Bluejays would no doubt like to think that's no mere coincidence.