LINCOLN — Nebraska men’s basketball has made “very consistent progress” this season, NU Athletic Director Trev Alberts said Wednesday, as coach Fred Hoiberg continues a “total philosophical reboot” of the program in his fourth season.
“It’s undeniable the progress that Fred and his staff have made,” Alberts said during a wide-ranging interviews hours before NU tipped off against Michigan. “The staff additions he made, as he recreated his staff, have been really, really good. Our team is really enjoyable to watch.”
Alberts noted the size and engagement of a home crowd that watched NU beat Penn State Sunday. That improved the Huskers’ record to 11-13 overall — the most wins in any single season under Hoiberg, who has generally struggled to build a competitive program in the Big Ten. Alberts brought back Hoiberg for the 2022-2023 campaign with a restructured contract, hoping to see a team built to fit the rest of the league.
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Two of Hoiberg’s assistants from last season moved on, and Hoiberg added aides Adam Howard and Ernie Zeigler to the staff. Hoiberg also reoriented the team around aggressive defense instead of his fast-paced, finesse offense borrowed from Big 12 days.
“I think our team has responded very well to Coach Hoiberg’s leadership and changes this year,” Alberts said. “Do I wish men’s basketball had made a similar change two years ago in philosophy? Sure. But the change in approach is a 180.”
Nebraska lost its two top defenders — Emmanuel Bandoumel and Juwan Gary — to season-ending injuries, but still pushed Illinois on the road and beat PSU at home. The Huskers host four more foes inside Pinnacle Bank Arena in February.
Alberts praised the development of freshmen like Jamarques Lawrence, Denim Dawson and Sam Hoiberg, who find themselves in new roles after Gary and Bandoumel’s injuries. He said he meets with Hoiberg often, too.
NU’s AD rebuffed the idea that Nebraska needs to hire an associate-AD-level administrator to specifically work with Husker men’s basketball. The program, he said, is well-resourced with staff members.
“I don’t know that we’re going to add to the administrative bloat,” Alberts said.
Asked if Hoiberg was definitively returning for a fifth season, Alberts said he doesn’t make a habit of declaring such things during the season, although he did so last with Hoiberg, and fired football coach Scott Frost after just three games this season.
But Alberts sees things trending in the right direction.
“Recruiting’s going to be really important. Fred knows,” Alberts said. “So we’ve just to keep growing, keep building. These things rarely just flip overnight. I’m interested in watching the ‘compete’ level the rest of the year, watching the togetherness of the team.
“I was in the locker room after the win against Penn State, and it’s a really good locker room, there’s really good leadership, there’s good unity of purpose with coaches and players. So I like the trajectory that Fred’s on at the moment.”