HOUSTON — Alvaro Folgueiras executed a pivotal three-point maneuver when Nebraska had merely four defenders on the court, and ninth-seeded Iowa sustained its unforeseen NCAA tournament journey under rookie coach Ben McCollum, prevailing over Nebraska 77-71 in a South Region semifinal on Thursday night.
Bennett Stirtz contributed 20 points and Folgueiras tallied 16 for the Hawkeyes (24-12), who had previously eliminated top-ranked Florida during the second stage, thanks to Folgueiras’ decisive three-pointer in the final moments.
Iowa is set to confront either Illinois or Houston on Saturday, contending for a berth in the Final Four. McCollum, a coach who secured four Division II national championships at Northwest Missouri State, has now guided Iowa to its fifth Elite Eight appearance, marking their first since 1987.
Fourth-seeded Nebraska (28-7) established an initial 10-point advantage versus its Big Ten competitor. Iowa managed to level the score on four occasions but did not gain the lead until Stirtz sank a three-point shot, bringing the score to 68-65 with 2:10 remaining. Sage Tate then landed another three-pointer to culminate a 9-0 scoring streak, thereby positioning Iowa in the lead at 71-65.
Braden Frager’s second-opportunity three-pointer allowed the Cornhuskers to narrow the gap to three points. However, they displayed disarray during the inbound pass, consequently leaving Folgueiras undefended close to the basket. He emphatically dunked the ball — rising and shouting after completing the play despite contact, amidst the cheers of Iowa supporters — and successfully made the free throw, securing a six-point advantage.
A further slam by Folgueiras, with merely 34 seconds remaining, extended the score to 76-68.
Pryce Sandfort, an Iowa transfer, sank six three-pointers and accumulated 25 points for Nebraska, having secured the initial two March Madness victories in the team’s history to reach this stage. Frager contributed 16 points for coach Fred Hoiberg’s Cornhuskers, who pleased a visiting group of crimson-attired supporters during their entire tournament journey.
Iowa’s second-half comeback was propelled by Nebraska’s poor shooting performance: The Huskers converted merely 9 out of 32 shots (28.1%) in the second half, with the majority of those efforts originating from beyond the three-point line, where they only succeeded on 6 out of 24 tries.
The teams divided their earlier encounters this season. Nevertheless, it will be the Hawkeyes who advance and endeavor to represent the Big Ten in the Final Four — with the potential for another conference competitor impeding their progress.