Forgive,
forget and j
have fun I
i in- is bark .1! the ho b ,
i)e\ane> : rts Center
I hat V ; ■ "f" in tun. not t.ms.
1 Cs ; : ; N Nebi asl a men N j
basket ball icmn is one of the most |
tun to warn:: m recent iiKniiire but s
the tans hm en't been responding ;
ti the fun
Fhe pi a', ers hustle, dr. e and J
ehase atte loose balls.
liiev , ' a hard whether dm Ye j
beating < oh iado bv 20 point- or 1
losing to Kansas bv 20 points. And
the\ do n 1 • r 40 minutes.
it's something Nebraska tans !
ha\en ! seen tor a couple of vears
Oh \ e- Nebraska has had sue- j
cess iuc ’ .mt time, winnine 2 1
games ai. ;.he National Imitation |
1' i:nar . 1 in I'tO.kf' an.; ; s
nI'I i'.p,,': ,lil :
Cm • ream -., w :,e;iv...
p-r; Cep! • or realm. ne;. .1
ropenrco mve Cii; percent !oi !
-ti': mmur.
Ihv u. i tha! perception,
tans !m e : dr is er. ...va\
if tit tr. mar's ie im is dii'fer
elli
1 he hard and together !
in: 40 minutes.
i have ’ten stated that it does- :
n t matter whether Nebraska is an
NT AA qtumlier. an NIT qualifier
X. or. (iod-torbid, doesn't qualify for
any tournament as long as the
team plays hard, it would be
enough for ( ornhusker fans.
But I'm quickly finding out
that I’m wrong.
Last Sunday’s Big 12
( onference opener against i
Colorado only drew 8.807 fans.
And the noise those fans made
wouldn't have upset the strictest
church pastor during his Sunday
sermon.
The Huskers are making one of
their best and strongest runs at the
NCAA Tournament since the
1993-94 season, when they won
the Big Light Tournament.
But fans haven't seen them
play yet at the Devaney Center.
Yeah, I know they were gone
for 35 days, and football kind of
dominated the focus during that
time.
But this team deserves support
especially Sunday when NU
plays host to Oklahoma at 12:05
p.m. Sunday's game should be for
second place in the conference -
with every team chasing Kansas.
A win over the Sooners, who
are tied for the lead in the Big 12
South Division, would give the
Buskers motivation as well as
respect in the conference.
Now if they can only get
respect from their fans.
It's time to forgive and forget
and become a fanatic again.
Kluck is a journalism gradu
ate student and Daily Nebraskan
sports special project reporter.
-- I
JAMI KUBIK drives through Texas A&M defenders at the Bob Devaney Sports Center Wednesday night!
I Nebraska snapped a two-game losing streak with an 88-74 win over the Aggies.
i Weary Huskers snap skid
NU survives early deficit to beat A&M
I
By Shannon Heffelfinger
Seruor Reporter
Tired legs took their toll on the
Nebraska women’s basketball team in
i the opening minutes of Wednesdav
night's game against Texas A&M.
But the weaned Huskers wore the
Aggies down with hot shooting and
few mistakes en route to a 88-74 w in
in front of 2.145 fans at the Bob
Devaney Sports Center.
“There was one time in the first
half that I told Jami (Kubik) I couldn’t
feel my body,” said senior Anna
DeForge. who led the Huskers (12-5
overall and 2-2 in the Big 12
Conference) with 24 points, nine
rebounds and eight assists.
“When you come back to school
and go on the road right away, it just
1 exhausts you But mentally, you play
through those walls.”
NU hit its first wall 40 seconds
into the contest. A&M (4-9 and 0-3)
jumped to an 11-4 lead on the
strength of a 7-0 run.
But the Huskers awoke quickly,
overcoming their fatigue to outscore
the Aggies 33-19 after the first three
minutes of the half.
Nebraska held A&M to 34 per
cent shooting in the first half, but NU
Coach Paul Sanderford was not
pleased with the Huskers' defensive
effort early.
“They were more ready to play
than we were in the first half."
Sanderford said. “I just wasn't
pleased with our team defensively.
Maybe it was their team speed or
maybe it was because we were tired,
but there w'ere a lot of things we tried
to do that w'e couldn't get done."
What the Huskers lacked defen
sively in the first half, they made up
for offensively in the second.
Holding a 46-39 lead with 15
mmutes to go in the second half, NU
turned to its transition game. Emily
Thompson chipped in four points on
two shots from five feet, expanding
the Huskers' lead to 10.
DeForge, who scored in double
f igures for the 40th consecutive game.
added a layup, then traveled the
length of the court for another and
drew a foul.
DeForge missed from the free
throw line, but Brooke Schwartz
grabbed the rebound and put it in.
Leading 54-41, Nebraska opened
a 19-point lead with a 15-9 run.
“All of the time we’ve spent on
our press offense in practice is start
ing to pay off," Sanderford said.
“A&M tried to pressure us, but we
were very unselfish and we made
good decisions.
“People don't think we can handle
pressure, but the players know what
they're doing."
Nebraska totaled a season-low 12
turnovers, committing only five in
second half while shooting 60 percent
from the floor.
“I don't think we’ve had less than
12 turnovers since I've been here,"
DeForge said. “But we really didn’t
have time to make any turnovers. We
were getting a lot of good shots off,
and our transition game was going
well.
Please see WIN on page 11
Huskers
scare OU’s
Sampson
■ The head coach says he
would savor a road win
Sunday over Nebraska.
By Darren Ivy
Assignment Reporter
In a conference where road
wans are tough to come by, the
Oklahoma men's basketball team
has been a road
warrior.
Old i 3 4
overall and 4-0
in the Big 12
Conference, has
already won two
conference road
games and will
look to continue
its road master)
of the league on Sunday when it
faces Nebraska (1 1-5 and 2-1 ) in
the Bob Devaney Sports Center.
But OU Coach Kelvin
Sampson said he is expecting a
battle from the Cornhuskers.
“We haven't played a team the
caliber of Nebraska on the road."
Sampson said. “It will be a huge
challenge."
OIJ is undefeated ir. the con
ference on ilic road, while
Nebraska, is undefeated ai home.
Something has to give.
Sampson .-.aid he thought plac
ing at home would put added pre>
s u r e o n N C because the Huskers
k n o w the i m p o r t a n c e o f h o m e
\\ ins.
ine Sooners have been able to
get comfortable playing on the
road this year and have always
tound a way to win. Sampson said.
But undefeated home and road
records won't be the only thing at
stake in the game. Based on the
preseason and current league
standings, the matchup may be a
preview of a Big 12 tournament
game later in the year.
“The teams who are going to
contend in March are the ones
who w in the most on the road."
Sampson said.
But Sampson said it’s still too
early to determine the top teams in
the league. Right nowy he is just
worried about improving his team.
Sampson said Sunday’s
matchup with the Huskers is huge.
Experience will be a key factor
in the game. Sampson said, and
the Sooners may have the advan
tage.
OU only lost Nate Erdmann
from last year’s starting lineup.
Two of Nebraska’s key
returnees are Tyronn Lue. a pre
season All-Big 12 first-team
selection, and Venson Hamilton.
Sampson said stopping Lue and
Hamilton is also a key to defeat
ing the Huskers.
"Hamilton is one ol the best
kept secrets in college basket
ball,’" Sampson said. “And there is
not a better offensive player in the
league than Lue.'"
Sampson also said defensive
rebounding on the road will be
huge. Sampson said the Sooners
are worried about NU's Andy
Markowski and Hamilton.
“Markowski and Hamilton are
so active." Sampson said. “They
w ill get some (rebounds). We just
have to limit them."
