Sam Hoiberg made a free throw with less than a second left to help Nebraska win the Hall of Fame Classic championship 86-85 over Kansas State on Friday in Kansas City, Missouri.
With the game tied 85-85, Hoiberg missed a 3-pointer in desperation and botched his putback, but a foul was called on David Castillo, allowing Hoiberg to give his team the victory at the line.
He intentionally missed the second attempt.
Four players reached double figures for Nebraska (6-0), led by Pryce Sandfort with 21 points. Rienk Mast had 20 and Braden Frager had 16. Hoiberg had 13.
PJ Haggerty, who entered the game leading the nation in scoring with 28.2 points per game, scored 27 points and added seven assists and six rebounds for Kansas State (5-1). Abdi Bashir Jr. scored 26 points, hitting seven 3-pointers. Nate Johnson had 12 points, five rebounds and four assists.
Castillo hit two free throws with 2:39 left to give Kansas State an 80-78 lead. Sandfort responded with a 3-pointer, then Haggerty responded with a three-point play to put the Wildcats back in front 83-81 with 2:09 left.
Hoiberg drove the lane to tie the game with 1:36 left.
Neither team was able to score in the next minute until Mast broke the tie with a layup with 35 seconds remaining. Haggerty responded with a quick layup to make it 85-85.
Nebraska used a 15-0 run early in the first half to create space, thanks to 11 points from Sandfort. A layup by Hoiberg closed out the run and gave the Cornhuskers a 19-7 lead at the 13:38 mark.
Kansas State was haunted by nine turnovers in the opening period, as Nebraska scored 17 points on those giveaways en route to a 45-35 lead at the break.
Sandfort led all scorers with 13 points in the first half. Haggerty had 12 for Kansas State.
The Wildcats quickly erased the Huskers’ advantage to open the second half, going on an 11-0 run capped by Bashir’s back-to-back 3-pointers to go up 46-45 in less than three minutes. The game was close until the end.
New Mexico beat Mississippi State 80-78 in the consolation game earlier Friday.
–Field level media
