Sports
Travis Heymg/DN
Nebraska guard Jamar Johnson dribbles the ball in Wednesday’s game against
Sacramento State. The Cornhuskers will host Kansas State on Saturday.
Huskers foresee battle
with challenging K-State
By Jeff Singer
Senior Reporter _
Nebraska’s men’s basketball
team is hoping Big Eight life at
home will be kinder than it has
been so far on the road.
The Cornhuskcrs, who have
started off conference play at 0-2
with consecutive losses last week
end at Oklahoma and Oklahoma
Suite, will look to gel well with
their first Big Eight win Saturday
against Kansas State.
Tip-off will be at 7:08 p.m. at
the Bob Dcvancy Sports Center.
The game will be televised live by
Prime Sports.
Nebraska coach Danny Nee said
he thought the Huskers’ 0-2 start
and his team’s place at the bottom
of the Big Eight standings won’t be
a distraction from the game against
the Wildcats.
“I don’t think our record will
have any effect on them,” Nee said.
“I think if anything, it will be mo
tivational to play harder and bel
ter.”
The Huskers struggled in a non
conference tuncup on Wednesday,
gelling past 1-17 Division I inde
J- NEBRASKA
(12-5,0-2) m **
G Jarnar Johnson 11.0 3.4
G laron Boom 7.9 23
C Donfch Chsndhr 9i BA ~
|F Eric PUtfcowski 15.9 6.1
F BracoChoMcfc BA 5A
KANSAS STATE
(10-3,2-1) m m
G AsUaloMO 12A 3.7
G Anthony Boom 9.3 26
C Dotyl Cnonhufiom 10.1 7.9
F Aaron CoHor 10.4 63
F Vlncont Jackson 12.1 4.5
Scott Maurer/DN
pendent Sacramento State 86*70 to
improve their overall record to 12
5.
But one element that Nebraska
didn’t use against the Hornets was
forward Eric Piatkowski.
The 6-foot-7 junior, who is lead
ing the Huskers with a 15.9 points
per-gamc average, sat out against
Sacramento State with the flu but
will start against Kansas State.
The Wildcats are 2-1 in league
play and have compiled a 10-3
overall mark so far this season.
They have beaten both Okla
homa State and Colorado in over
time, and were beating No. 1 Kan
sas in the second half of their game
last Monday, only to lose 71-65 to
the Jayhawks in Manhattan, Kan.
Nee said it would be a challenge
to beat Kansas State.
See HOME on 8
CU game vital
for Huskers’
title chances
By Derek Samson
Staff Reporter_
If there is any question whether the
Nebraska women’s basketball team is
still in the hunt for the Big Eight title,
this weekend will provide the answer.
Nebraska coach Angela Beck said
the Comhuskcrs can’t lose to Colo
rado tonight if they want to keep their
conference title hopes alive.
The Huskcrs will be tested again
Sunday when Missouri comes to the
Dcvaney Center.
Colorado stands alone atop the Big
Eight with a 3-0 record and a 15-0
overall mark. The Tigers arc in third
at 2-1 and 10-2 overall.
“I think we have an exciting event
to publicize and that is the Colorado
> game,” Beck said. “They’re in the
Top 10 and arc one of the few
undefeated teams left in the country.”
The Lady Buffs arc winning by an
average of 22.3 points per game and
can attribute that partly to the 1992
Big Eight Newcomer of the Year,
guard Shelley Sheet/. The sopho
more is averaging 16.7 points a game.
“That is the reason for them being
so good at this point. As a freshman,
she led them to a Big Eight champion
ship in the tournament,” Beck said.
“She is one of the best players in the
league.”
Another bcncfiff&r-Qolorado is
experience. Six! seniors — Amy
Mathern, Shcrrlce King, Mindy
Henry, Missy Kraal. Stephanie Mack
and Abby Wirfs — setTpuiying time
for the Buffs.
“When I look at Colorado, one of
the differences between Colorado and
Nebraska basically is the fact that
those six girls have been playing to
gether for four years,” Beck said.
“They have a lot of continuity in those
six.”
— II
Well have a good
crowd and it will be
a great atmosphere
for womens’ basket
ball.
—Beck
Nebraska coach
-99 ~
Beck said she is pleased about her
teams’ status going into the contest.
“Our attitude is good and we’re
very healthy. We have to get the
chemistry working together for this
game,” she said.
Nebraska has won seven out of the
11 meetings with Colorado in Lin
coln, including the last two games.
However, a third straight win overthc
Lady Buffs at home will not be an
easy task. Beck said.
“I hope we can have a great crowd
and I think our players will be ready,”
Beck said. “I do think it will be an
upset if we beat them, with them
being ranked in the Top 10.”
“It will be a very difficult chal
lenge for us, but we’ll be fired up for
it,” she said. “We’ll have a good
crowd and it will be a great atmo
sphere for womens’ basketball.”
Beck said that if the Huskcrs, 2-2
in the conference, lose their third Big
Eight conference game, the chances
of winning the title arc slim. But if
Nebraska gets a victory, the Huskcrs
arc right back in the chase, Beck said.
“This is a real important game for
us,” she said. “The effort will be there.
We’ll just have to work on the basic
fundamentals to pull us through.”
NU wrestling coach
hopes for home crowd
help during duals meet
By Tim Pearson
Staff Reporter __^
Nebraska wrestling coach Tim
Neumann is hoping experience and a
home crowd will help his team per
form its best at the National Duals
Meet Championship at the NU Coli
seum this weekend.
“I’m looking for our best perfor
mance of the season,” he said. “We
ha vc a g roup of ex per icnccd wrestlers
who’ve been in big meets before.”
Neumann isalso looking for a little
help from the fans.
“When we held the Big EightTour
nament here a couple of years ago, the
crowd actually helped us win a couple
of matches,” he said. “When you get
a few thousand people cheering the
wrestlers on, it pumps them up.
The fifth-ranked Comhuskcrs will
wrestle defending NAIA national
champion Northern Montana in their
first-round match at 9 a.m. Saturday.
Action will continue throughout the
day, with the semifinals set for 8 p.m.
Sunday’s action begins at 10 a.m.,
with the championship finals at4 p.m.
Although Northern Montana is an
NAIA opponent, Neumann said the
Huskcrs would not take the Lights
lightly.
“We know a little about Northern
Montana,” he said. “They have two
former Nebraska wrestlers — Matt
Campbell, who wrestled here in 1983
and then went to the military, is their
best at 118 pounds, and Randy Street
al 150 was NAIA national champion
last year.”
If the Huskers win their first dual,
they will gel the opportunity to wrestle
Iowa State in a rematch of their Jan. 6
dual, which the Cyclones won.
Neumann said his team was look
ing forward to a rematch, but that the
Huskers were not look ing past North
ern Montana.
“I’d be disappointed if we didn’t
win our first dual,” Neumann said. “If
it should work out, with us playing
Iowa Slate, we shouldn’t have any
problems getting it cranked up after
the Jan. 6 dual.
The Huskers arc healthy, with the
exception of Tommy Robbins at 167
pounds, who is questionable for the
weekend.
Seven of the lop 11 teams in the
country will wrestle in the National
Duals, including top-ranked Iowa and
No. 2 Penn Stale.
Neumann said the Hawkeyes and
the Nittany Lions would be his pre
meet favorites.
“Both Iowa and Penn State have
been to National Duals before and
won it before,” he said. “But legiti
mately there’s six teams that can win
it: Penn Stale, Iowa, Iowa State, Ne
braska, Arizona Slate and Ohio Slate.”
Neumann is hoping to use the tour
nament as a gauge of where the team
stands.
“Whether we win it or gel in the top
four or five, each guy will face a good
opponent,” he said.