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Nebraska Basketball Show - Pat Monaghan, Alumni Weekend Interviews

February 19, 2026·41 min·3 clips

Andy Markowski reveals the 1996 NIT Championship Nebraska team started 12-1, then lost 10 in a row, yet went on to win five straight and claim the title.

The Iowa loss comes first. Kyle Crooks builds the show around a rough road result, the short flight afterward, and the normal basketball work of watching it, owning it, and moving on to Penn State. Pat Monaghan does not dress it up. Nebraska did not meet its standard for the full 40 minutes, and Iowa had a hand in making the game look that way. The quick turn is the useful part of the conversation. Crooks asks about the strain of a Tuesday road game after playing Saturday, and how coaches read a team when shootaround can make everyone look ready. Monaghan brings it back to mental prep. Late in February, Nebraska is not spending long stretches going live. Walkthroughs, scripts, and attention to detail have to do more of the work. The Big Ten piece stays in the room. Two-day prep is just part of the league, especially when teams are tired and still need the scouting clean. Practice plans have to flex. Crooks points out that late-season travel and a coming trip out West limit how much a staff can pile on. Monaghan stays with the routine: keep skills sharp, keep players alert, and do not grind bodies down just to feel busy. The weekend gives the hour another lane. Jessica Coote talks with members of the 1996 NIT championship team, and the show points to Bryce McGowan later on. Program history is right there, with 70-plus former Husker basketball players back for the Friday banquet and Saturday game. Cheryl Burbach and others get credit for the work behind it. Then Penn State becomes the next marker, with Saturday's one o'clock tip and noon Central pregame coverage from Kemp Pavelka and Coach Jeff Smith.

As heard by us

A postloss Nebraska check-in that turns a busy weekend into a clear read on where the team is headed.

The Nebraska Basketball Show keeps its focus on the parts of the season that matter: the loss to Iowa, the quick reset for Penn State, and Pat Monahan's blunt read on what Nebraska has to clean up. The coaching detail carries the piece.

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Why you'd press play

You want the Nebraska coach's read after the Iowa loss and before Penn State.

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