Rienk Mast made his return to action a memorable one, finishing with a game-high 31 points, including 7-of-8 from 3-point range, as Nebraska topped No. 8 BYU 90-89 in a Saturday afternoon exhibition game at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Mast, who had not played since the 2024 NCAA Tournament following knee surgery, hit 11-of-15 shots from the field, including his first seven 3-pointers, on the afternoon while adding five rebounds and three assists. The 6-foot-10 senior steadied the Huskers, scoring 16 straight for Nebraska, which overcame an early double-figure deficit and withstood a BYU comeback in the final minutes.

On the day, the Huskers shot 50 percent from the field, including 16-of-34 from 3-point range, had 24 assists, including nine from senior Jamarques Lawrence, and just 10 turnovers. NU also held BYU, which was picked second in the Big 12 preseason poll, to just 45 percent shooting.

In addition to Mast, Connor Essegian added 10 points, including five 3-pointers, while Pryce Sandfort added 12 in the win.

Nebraska trailed 50-46 at the break before opening the half with seven straight points to take a 53-50 lead after a Mast 3-pointer. NU opened the second half with a 17-4 spurt over the first 5:03 as Sandfort and Essegian five points apiece as the Huskers built a 63-54 advantage.

Nebraska, which never trailed again, led by as many as 13 and built a 87-76 lead with 5:09 left after Essegian’s fifth 3-pointer of the day.

BYU chipped away behind AJ Dybantsa, who led the Cougars with 30 points, as he had seven of his points in a 9-1 spurt that pulled BYU within 88-85 with 2:25 left.

A pair of Hoiberg free throws stopped the run, but BYU continued to battle, getting to within one after a pair of free throws by Khadim Mboup with 16.8 seconds left. Berke Buyuktuncel missed the front end of a 1-an-1 with 14.4 seconds to give BYU one last chance for the win.

Aleksej Kostic missed a well-guarded 3-point attempt before Jared McGregor got the rebound, but his attempt at the buzzer was off the mark.

The Big Red will host another exhibition game against Midland University on Monday, Oct. 27. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. (CT), and tickets are available by visiting Huskers.com/tickets. The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network, with audio coverage from the Huskers Radio network.

Huskers Show Promise in Scrimmage with Mizzou

The Nebraska women's basketball team got its first taste of outside competition by squaring off with Missouri in a closed scrimmage at Johnson County Community College near Kansas City on Saturday afternoon.

Jessica Petrie led the Huskers with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field including a trio of three-pointers. The 6-2 junior forward from Gold Coast, Australia, also went 4-for-4 at the free throw line to complete an efficient performance.

Petra Bozan added double figures of her own inside with 18 points including two three-pointers. The 6-3 sophomore forward from Split, Croatia, erupted for eight points including back-to-back threes as part of a 16-2 Big Red surge to open the third quarter.

Bozan led a spirited effort by a talented group of Husker sophomores, including 12 points, six rebounds and five assists from Britt Prince. The 5-11 point guard who earned Big Ten All-Freshman honors a year ago, was matched by newcomer Claire Johnson in the scoring column. A sophomore transfer from Paducah, Ky., the 5-9 Johnson drained four three-pointers on the day, including two threes in the first quarter to help shoot the Huskers to to a fast start.

Sophomore forward Amiah Hargrove also contributed eight points for Nebraska, as the Husker quartet of second-year collegians combined for 50 points.

Graduate transfer Hailey Weaver also made a strong impact at both ends of the court for the Huskers, pumping in nine points, including six in the fourth quarter, while adding a game-high four steals. Fellow transfer Eliza Maupin also filled the stat sheet across the board with six points, while contributing rebounding, assists, steals and blocked shots.

Fellow senior Callin Hake, Nebraska's lone active fourth-year returning player, also made an undeniable impact in the Big Red victory over the Tigers, scoring six points on a pair of three-pointers while dishing out a game-high 12 assists. Hake's decision making helped a Husker offense that recorded 27 assists on the afternoon, while hitting 15-of-26 three-pointers on the way to scoring more than 100 points.

Freshmen Alanna Neale (5 points) and Kennadi Williams (4 points) rounded out the Husker contributions in a strong effort against their former conference rivals.

Illinois State transfer Shannon Dowell led Missouri with 19 points, while Grace Slaughter was the only other Tiger to manage double figures with 11 points.

Nebraska will play host to Mount Marty in its lone exhibition of the season on Friday, Oct. 24. Tip-off between the Huskers and Lancers at Pinnacle Bank Arena is set for 8 p.m. (CT).