1997–98 Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball team


The 1997–98 Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball team represented the University of Nebraska, Lincoln during the 1997–98 college basketball season. Led by head coach Danny Nee (12th season), the Cornhuskers competed in the Big 12 Conference and played their home games at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. They finished with a record of 20–12 overall and 10–6 in Big 12 Conference play. After placing 4th in the conference standings, and losing in the semifinals of the Big 12 tournament, Nebraska received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament – the fifth and final appearance under Coach Nee – as No. 11 seed in the West region. The Cornhuskers were beaten by No. 6 seed Arkansas in the opening round.

1997–98 Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball
NCAA tournament, First Round
ConferenceBig 8 Conference
Record20–12 (10–6 Big 8)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Jimmy Williams
  • Scott Howard
  • Bill Johnson
Home arenaBob Devaney Sports Center
Seasons
1997–98 Big 12 men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 2 Kansas 15 1   .938 35 4   .897
Oklahoma State 11 5   .688 22 7   .759
Oklahoma 11 5   .688 22 11   .667
Nebraska 10 6   .625 20 12   .625
Baylor 8 8   .500 14 14   .500
Missouri 8 8   .500 17 15   .531
Texas Tech 7 9   .438 13 14   .481
Kansas State 7 9   .438 17 12   .586
Colorado 7 9   .438 13 14   .481
Texas 6 10   .375 14 17   .452
Iowa State 5 11   .313 12 18   .400
Texas A&M 1 15   .063 7 20   .259
1998 Big 12 Tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll [1]

Roster

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1997–98 Nebraska Cornhuskers men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G 3 Cary Cochran 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr Tri-Center Minden, IA
C 4 Venson Hamilton 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr Oak Hill Academy Forest City, NC
F 5 Larry Florence 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jr Central Phenix City, AL
G 10 Tyronn Lue 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Jr Raytown Mexico, MO
G 11 Rodney Williams 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr The Kinkaid School Houston, TX
F 15 Chad Johnson 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Fr Florida A&M Monticello, FL
G 20 Todd Smith 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr Baldwin Milledgeville, GA
G 24 Michael Johnette 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Sr Millard North Omaha, NE
G 30 Cookie Belcher 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) So Mexico Mexico, MO
F 34 Troy Piatkowski 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Stevens Rapid City, SD
G 35 Ryan Phifer 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr North Platte North Platte, NE
F 40 Chad Burbach 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Scotus Columbus, NE
F 44 Andy Markowski 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr Ord Ord, NE
C 52 Brant Harriman 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Fr Mason City Mason City, IA
Head coach

Danny Nee

Assistant coach(es)
  • Jimmy Williams
  • Scott Howard
  • Bill Johnson

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Regular season
Nov 16, 1997*
UNC Greensboro W 75–51  1–0
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Nov 19, 1997*
Western Illinois W 86–57  2–0
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Nov 22, 1997*
New Orleans W 81–66  3–0
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Nov 25, 1997*
Colorado State W 64–57  4–0
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Nov 29, 1997*
UTSA W 68–59  5–0
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Dec 1, 1997*
at Tulsa L 68–85  5–1
Tulsa Convention Center 
Tulsa, Oklahoma
Dec 5, 1997*
UNC Wilmington W 85–68  6–1
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Dec 6, 1997*
Grambling W 85–48  7–1
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Dec 10, 1997*
at Creighton L 73–84  7–2
Omaha Civic Auditorium 
Omaha, Nebraska
Dec 13, 1997*
at Minnesota W 70–66  8–2
Williams Arena 
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Dec 27, 1997*
9:30 p.m.
vs. Virginia
Rainbow Classic
W 80–65  9–2
Special Events Arena 
Honolulu, Hawaii
Dec 28, 1997*
at Hawaii
Rainbow Classic
L 62–87  9–3
Special Events Arena 
Honolulu, Hawaii
Dec 30, 1997*
vs. Vanderbilt
Rainbow Classic
L 69–80  9–4
Special Events Arena 
Honolulu, Hawaii
Jan 3, 1998
at No. 2 Kansas L 76–96  9–5
(0–1)
Allen Fieldhouse 
Lawrence, Kansas
Jan 7, 1998
at Oklahoma State W 67–62  10–5
(1–1)
Gallagher-Iba Arena 
Stillwater, Oklahoma
Jan 11, 1998
Colorado W 87–72  11–5
(2–1)
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Jan 18, 1998
Oklahoma W 53–43  12–5
(3–1)
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Jan 21, 1998
at Texas L 91–105  12–6
(3–2)
Frank Erwin Center 
Austin, Texas
Jan 24, 1998
12:45 p.m.
Iowa State W 63–49  13–6
(4–2)
Bob Devaney Sports Center (10,565)
Lincoln, Nebraska
Jan 28, 1998
at Kansas State L 49–72  13–7
(4–3)
Bramlage Coliseum 
Manhattan, Kansas
Feb 1, 1998
No. 5 Kansas L 71–82  13–8
(4–4)
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Feb 4, 1998
at Missouri L 76–81 OT 13–9
(4–5)
Hearnes Center 
Columbia, Missouri
Feb 7, 1998
Kansas State L 63–69  13–10
(4–6)
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Feb 11, 1998
at Texas A&M W 75–58  14–10
(5–6)
G. Rollie White Coliseum 
College Station, Texas
Feb 14, 1998
Baylor W 66–55  15–10
(6–6)
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Feb 18, 1998
Missouri W 67–66 OT 16–10
(7–6)
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Feb 21, 1998
at Colorado W 79–71  17–10
(8–6)
Coors Events Center 
Boulder, Colorado
Feb 25, 1998
Texas Tech W 82–65  18–10
(9–6)
Bob Devaney Sports Center 
Lincoln, Nebraska
Feb 28, 1998
7:00 p.m.
at Iowa State W 70–62  19–10
(10–6)
Hilton Coliseum (13,465)
Ames, Iowa
Big 12 Tournament
Mar 6, 1998*
(4) vs. (5) Baylor
Quarterfinals
W 65–46  20–10
Kemper Arena 
Kansas City, Missouri
Mar 7, 1998*
(4) vs. (1) No. 3 Kansas
Semifinals
L 59–91  20–11
Kemper Arena 
Kansas City, Missouri
NCAA tournament
Mar 12, 1998*
(11 W) vs. (6 W) No. 17 Arkansas
First Round
L 65–74[2]  20–12
BSU Pavilion 
Boise, Idaho
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
W=West.
All times are in Central Time.

[3] [4] [5]

Team players drafted into the NBA

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Round Pick Player NBA Club
1 23 Tyronn Lue Denver Nuggets

[6]

References

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  1. ^ 2019-20 Big 12 Men's Basketball Record Book (PDF). Big 12 Conference. pp. 26–30. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  2. ^ "Arkansas Prevails Over Nebraska in Sloppy Game". The New York Times. March 13, 1998. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  3. ^ "1997-98 Men's Basketball Schedule". University of Nebraska Athletics. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  4. ^ "2019-20 Men's Basketball Media Guide (PDF) - University of Nebraska" (PDF). University of Nebraska Athletics. p. 198. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  5. ^ *ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. p. 1048. ISBN 0-345-51392-4.
  6. ^ "1998 NBA Draft". Sports Reference. Retrieved July 9, 2022.