2014 NCAA Tournament Preview: No. 6 Baylor vs. No. 11 Nebraska

Unfortunately, the Big Ten Tournament didn’t quite go as planned for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Even fans of other teams expected them to plunk the Ohio State Buckeyes and move on to the next round. An 18-point lead should be enough to guarantee victory, but Brutus’ boys won by four. Spartan Nation’s Hondo Carpenter put it best:

Refs have been terrible, but this loss is on Huskers who melted. Great game plan, just have to learn how to win with EXPECTATIONS.

— Hondo Carpenter (@HondoCarpenter) March 14, 2014

The Huskers get a second shot with their entry into the 2014 NCAA Tournament. Nebraska can create another historic moment in a season full of them for the Lincolnites. They’ve been here before, but they’ve never won.

What to Watch For:

First team All-Big Ten sophomore Terran Petteway, the highlight of the Huskers, puts up 18 points per game on average. Fellow sophomores Walter Pitchford and Shavon Shields can also be counted on for Big Red offensive sparks.

On the other end of the court, the Big 12 Tournament runner-up Baylor Bears bring some major height and talent including second team All-Big 12 senior Cory Jefferson. The Bears have struggled with ranked teams all season, and had trouble on the road much like Nebraska.

Prediction:

That this piece has even been penned is amazing for Nebraska basketball, a team picked to finish dead last in the conference at the beginning of the year. Nebraska fans have gotten their hopes built up for so many years only to have them dashed. Their boys are back in the Big Dance. There’s one final piece of business.

This should be a fantastic game as these two teams look evenly matched on paper. Much respect to the Huskers’ former conference buddies, but Nebraska finally gets that tourney win. Let the debate about if Tim Miles is the Bob Devaney or Tom Osborne of Big Red basketball begin.

Nebraska 67 Baylor 63

Brandon Cavanaugh is a Big 10 writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @eightlaces, like his Facebook page and add him to your Google+ network.