Penn State vs Nebraska Prediction 2/21/2026 Today’s College Basketball Picks

The Penn State Nittany Lions and the Nebraska Cornhuskers meet Saturday in college basketball action from Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln. Here’s a Penn State vs Nebraska prediction. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best Penn State vs Nebraska pick. We will examine the recent form and player performances for both teams, as well as the recent betting trends and streaks pertaining to this matchup. As we conclude, we will tie it all together with a summary that produces a sensible pick for a favorable betting outcome in this game.

Penn State Nittany Lions Betting Preview

The Nittany Lions were able to log a 9-4 record over their first 13 games this year. Penn State would take losses to Illinois, Michigan, Purdue, UCLA, Maryland, Wisconsin, Ohio State and Northwestern in the next eight. A 2-3 run came next with losses to Michigan, USC and Oregon among wins over Minnesota and Washington. That would give Penn State an 11-15 record through 26 games.

On Wednesday versus Rutgers, the Nittany Lions got whipped in the first half on a 39-20 disadvantage. Penn State recovered in the second on a 52-46 run but it wasn’t enough to prevent the double-digit loss on their home court 85-72. Topping the scorers was Josh Reed with 22 points and six rebounds while Kayden Mingo had 16 points with six assists.

Nebraska Cornhuskers Betting Preview

Over on the Nebraska side, they were able to post a great run to start off the season. The Cornhuskers took 20 straight wins in their first 20 games, finishing off with Minnesota on January 24. The next five were a 2-3 stretch with losses to Michigan, Illinois and Purdue among a pair of wins versus Rutgers and Northwestern. Over the first 25 outings of the year that gave the Cornhuskers a 22-3 run.

Matched up against Iowa on Tuesday the Cornhuskers went into the locker room at halftime with a 33-28 deficit. Nebraska was able to keep the pace from there on a 24-24 run but eventually took the loss in the end 57-52 in a road matchup. Pryce Sandfort was tops on 13 points and Jamarques Lawrence added 11 points with four assists and three rebounds.

Penn State Nittany Lions @ Nebraska Cornhuskers Betting Trends: February 21, 2026

Why the Nebraska Cornhuskers will win

• Nebraska has won each of its last 10 day games against non-AP-ranked opponents.
• Penn State has lost nine of its last 10 games against AP-ranked opponents.
• Nebraska has won the first half in seven of its last eight games at Pinnacle Bank Arena against non-AP-ranked opponents.

Why the Penn State Nittany Lions will win

• Nebraska has lost five of its last six home games following a road loss.

Penn State vs Nebraska Prediction

I’ll lean toward Nebraska, but they’ve got to have a bounce-back game here. In the road loss to Iowa this week, the Cornhuskers shot just 40.9 percent from the field and 20.8 percent (5-of-24) form outside. Nebraska had a 26-18 advantage in the paint but trailed on the boards 33-22 and had 12 turnovers. It’s been a tough 2-4 stretch for Nebraska over the last six outings, but they were pretty competitive in at least three of those losses.

As for Penn State, they shot a nice 55.3 percent from the field in their home loss to Rutgers this week, but also gave up 56.6 percent on defense and had 15 turnovers. The Nittany Lions weren’t great from outside (17.6 percent on 3-of-17) either. Penn State is just 1-4 in their last five games and they’ve got another tough matchup coming up here.

Andrew Jett's Pick: Nebraska Cornhuskers -19.5