Vanderbilt’s season ends in heartbreak after Hail Mary shot narrowly misses

No. 5 Vanderbilt was a mere inch away from maybe the most historic shot in program history until the ball did everything but drop.

Tyler Tanner’s beyond-half-court heave to send the Commodores to the Sweet 16 went in-and-out to give No. 4 Nebraska a 74-72 win and advance to the Sweet 16.

Nebraska entered the half with a 39-32 lead and led by as many as 10 at one point, but Vanderbilt rallied back to lead by five with 5:34 to go.

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Tyler Tanner of the Vanderbilt Commodores shoots the ball against Sam Hoiberg of the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the final seconds of the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Paycom Center on March 21, 2026, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

The Cornhuskers then answered back with a 6-0 run to retake the lead, but Vanderbilt led 72-70 with less than a minute to go after a Tanner layup, which gave him 27 points on the night.

Those, however, were Tanner’s and Vanderbilt’s final points of the game. Rienk Mast tied the game with a putback with 37 seconds left, and Vanderbilt’s Chandler Bing missed a shot to take a late lead.

Nebraska then ran down the court, and Pryce Sandfort found Braden Frager, who made a contested layup to take the lead with 2.2 seconds left.

Nebraska Cornhuskers guard Sam Hoiberg (1) celebrates with fans after defeating the Vanderbilt Commodores in a second round game of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Paycom Center.  (Alonzo Adams/Imagn Images)

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Vanderbilt called a timeout, and the inbound went to the red-hot Tanner, who clearly had the groove of his shot. He pulled up from half-court, but the shot was a striking image of Gordon Hayward’s from the 2010 national title game against Duke – off the backboard, then the rim, then out.

Quite literally everybody, even the heavy-Nebraska crowd in Oklahoma City, was in disbelief, but the party was on for the red after shock and relief quickly turned into celebration.

It’s Nebraska’s first time ever making the Sweet 16 after eight prior appearances without getting there. In fact, this year is the first time they even won a game in the tournament.

Braden Frager of the Nebraska Cornhuskers celebrates after the victory against the Vanderbilt Commodores in the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Paycom Center on March 21, 2026, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

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Four Cornhuskers finished in double-digits, with Sandfort and Frager each putting up 15. Nebraska will face the winner of No. 1 Florida and No. 9 Iowa.

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