Nebraska Cornhuskers vs Northwestern Wildcats Prediction, 1/17/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Nebraska Cornhuskers vs Northwestern Wildcats

Date: Saturday, January 17, 2026

Location: Welsh-Ryan Arena in Evanston, IL

TV: BTN

The Nebraska Cornhuskers (17-0) are on their way to Welsh-Ryan Arena on Saturday where they will attempt to defeat the Northwestern Wildcats (8-9).

The Nebraska Cornhuskers stepped onto the hardwood against Oregon and took home the win by a score of 90-55 in their last contest. Nebraska finished the game having earned a 53.3% field goal percentage (32 out of 60) and knocked down 17 of their 36 three-point shots. At the free throw line, the Cornhuskers converted 9 of their 11 tries for a percentage of 81.8%. In relation to grabbing boards, they earned 29 with 6 of them being on the offensive end. They also dished out 20 assists for the matchup while forcing 15 turnovers and earning 11 steals. When discussing the defense, Nebraska allowed their opponent to shoot 41.7% from the floor on 20 out of 48 shooting. Oregon earned 11 assists and had 3 steals for the game. Furthermore, Oregon had 27 rebounds (5 offensive, 22 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Oregon finished 52.9% from the free throw line by burying 9 of their 17 attempts. They also converted 6 of their 23 shots from downtown. When discussing personal fouls, the Cornhuskers left the arena with 14 and Oregon finished the game with 14 personal fouls.

Pryce Sandfort is one guy who came through for this game. He totaled 28 points on 9 out of 15 shooting. He played for 31 mins and snagged 4 rebounds. He walked away from this one shooting 60.0% from the floor and also dished out 2 assists.

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Nebraska will enter this game with a win-loss mark of 17-0 on the year. They are turning it over 9.3 times per game and as a squad they commit 13.8 fouls every game. As a team, Nebraska is snagging 37.1 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 311 assists for the campaign, which is 31st in D-1 in terms of passing. The Cornhuskers are hitting 35.2% on shots from 3-point land (186 of 529) and 75.3% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 81.7 pts per contest (93rd in college) on 47.2% from the floor.

On defense, the Cornhuskers are forcing their opponents into 13.4 turnovers on a nightly basis and they draw 16.9 fouls. They are giving up 30.5% on 3-point shots and they rank 23rd in the nation in points per game allowed (65.8). The Cornhuskers are giving up a FG percentage of 38.6% (393 of 1,019) and they concede 34.9 rebounds per contest as a team. They currently rank 172nd in college in allowing assists to their opponents with 226 relinquished for the season.

When they last stepped on the court, the Northwestern Wildcats took a loss by a score of 79-68 against Illinois. The Wildcats corralled 14 defensive rebounds and 12 offensive boards totaling 26 in the game. They turned it over 7 times, while earning 5 steals for this game. Illinois committed 11 fouls in the matchup which got the Wildcats to the free throw line for a total of 17 shots. They were able to convert 15 of the free throw tries for a rate of 88.2%. In relation to shots from 3-point land, Northwestern knocked down 9 of their 25 tries (36.0%). When this game wrapped up, the Wildcats shot 22 out of 56 from the field which had them sitting at 39.3%. The Wildcats permitted Illinois to knock down 30 out of their 63 tries from the floor which left them shooting 47.6% for this contest. They shot 36.7% from three-point range by shooting 11 out of 30 and ended up shooting 8 of 8 from the free throw line (100.0%). In regard to cleaning the glass, Northwestern permitted Illinois to collect 32 overall (13 offensive).

Nick Martinelli ended up being important for the Wildcats for this game. He recorded 34 points in his 44 mins on the court and added 1 assist in this game. He converted 11 of 22 for this game for a rate of 50.0%, and earned 12 rebounds.

Northwestern has a win-loss mark of 8-9 on the campaign. The Wildcats commit 18.2 fouls per contest and they connect on 73.7% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 18.0 times per contest (27th in the nation) and they are turning it over 8.4 times per contest. Northwestern has scored 1,334 pts on the campaign (78.5 per game) and they pull in 33.4 rebounds per game. As an offensive team, the Wildcats are hitting on 47.3% from the floor, which ranks 87th in the nation.

The Wildcats on the defensive side of the court are 128th in the nation in PPG allowed with 71.6. They are forcing 11.6 TO's every game and have allowed teams to shoot 42.0% from the field (102nd in Division 1). The Northwestern defense gives up 29.7% on shots from beyond the perimeter (118 of 397) and their opponents are making 74.1% of their free throw attempts. They have surrendered 15.0 assists and 35.4 boards every game, ranking them 284th and 237th in those categories on the defensive end.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Nebraska

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