Rienk Mast Announces He Will Not Return To Husker Program

Rienk Mast announced today he will use a medical redshirt for the 2024-25 season because of an existing left knee injury that will require further surgery.

“This past season was one of the most fun years of my life. Thank you for taking me in and giving me another place that feels like home,” Mast wrote in a statement. “As some people know, I played most of last season with a knee that wasn’t completely healthy. Over these past couple weeks, I’ve spoken with multiple doctors about what we can do to get my knee healthy for the rest of my playing career and hopefully life.

“These have been some difficult conversations, but the best way forward for me is to undergo surgery. This was not an easy decision, as it will mean I will have to medically redshirt the 2024-25 season, while still maintaining my last year of eligibility.

“I want to thank everyone involved with our athletic department and men’s basketball team for the support they have shown me. This upcoming year will be very challenging for me individually, but I’ll try to help the team in the best possible way I can.”

Nebraska head coach Fred Hoiberg released a statement on Mast:

“Rienk has put a lot of thought into this decision and worked closely with our medical staff in looking at all of the options to get his knee healthy. He has been in contact with our staff throughout this process, and we are in agreement that this is Rienk’s best long-term option for his basketball career.

“Although he will not be on the court next season, Rienk will have a different role, one where we can take advantage of his experience and leadership skills. We know that Rienk will be diligent in his rehab and will do everything he can to return to full health.”

With Mast out of the on-court picture for next season, the Huskers still return two members of last season’s core group. On April 4, both guard Brice Williams and forward Juwan Gary announced they would return to Nebraska for their sixth seasons.

Nebraska has done well in landing five players from the transfer portal, including North Dakota State big Andrew Morgan, Utah/Utah State guard Rollie Worster, Rutgers’ wing Gavin Griffiths, Wisconsin guard Connor Essegian and 7-foot-1 Washington transfer Braxton Meah.

The Huskers also have Iowa transfer Ahron Ulis still on the roster. Ulis transferred to the program last summer with two seasons of eligibility remaining. Due to his involvement in the Iowa gambling scandal, he became ineligible to play the 2023-24 season. Ulis, a point guard, will be eligible next season, his final in college basketball.

Nebraska will also add two freshmen to the roster for next season in four-star Pewaukee (Wisc.) guard Nick Janowski and three-star Lincoln (Neb.) Southwest forward Braden Frager, who reclassified from the 2025 class.

Mast was a key piece to Nebraska’s special 2023-24 season that saw the second-most wins in school history (23) and the first NCAA Tournament appearance in 10 years. Mast transferred to the Husker program last offseason after spending his first four seasons in the Missouri Valley Conference at Bradley.

The native of Groningen, Netherlands, was a third-team All-Big Ten selection by the coaches this season and averaged 12.3 points while leading the team in rebounds (7.5) and assists (3.0). The 6-foot-10, 248-pounder shot 43.3% from the field, 34.4% from 3-point range and 83.8% from the free-throw line in his lone campaign in Lincoln.

One of the highlights of Mast’s most recent season was his 34-point, 10-rebound explosion against Ohio State on Jan. 23, a game he was white-hot from the field in, making 76.5% of his shots while going 6-of-8 from 3-point range.

Since the season ended, Nebraska’s roster was gutted by the transfer portal, though the majority of the Huskers who entered were not on-court contributors.

Since March 25 there have been six scholarship players enter the portal, including guards CJ Wilcher, Jamarques Lawrence, Eli Rice, Ramel Lloyd Jr. and centers Blaise Keita and Matar Diop.

Wilcher transferred to Texas A&M, Lawrence to Rhode Island, Rice to Penn State and Diop to Loyola Marymount. Lloyd landed at Long Beach State. Keita has yet to announce his next move.

Nebraska currently has two open scholarships available to use to build the 2024-25 roster around Williams and Gary. Here’s a breakdown of the team’s roster as it’s known today: