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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 19, 1999)
Matt Muler/DN JUNIOR FORWARD CHARLIE ROGERS battles for the ball in NU's 82-62 victory over Kansas Saturday night. Nebraska snapped a two-game losing streak and now has a week off before playing again against Colorado on Jan. 23. Kubik catches fire in victory ■ The junior guard from Cambridge scores a career high 36 points, including a NU record 16 free throws, in a win over the Jayhawks. By Jay Saunders Staff writer ----*-* There really is no place like home for the No. 23 Nebraska women’s basketball team. Two road losses in five days had some questioning the team’s ability to play in big situations. And even though no one would admit it, Saturday’s game against No. 21 had a big-game feel. NU responded to the critics with an 82-62 win over die Jayhawks. “We needed a win to get back on track,” Coach Paul Sanderford said. “We were a very hungry basketball team.” The Huskers feasted on Jayhawk from the opening tip, jumping out to an 8 2 lead. The hungriest of the Huskers appeared to be junior Nicole Kubik. The NU floor leader had a career high 36 points. Twenty-five of those points came in the first half. Kubik also scored her thousandth career point with 13 minutes and 7 sec Nebraska 82 Kansas62 onds left in the first half. “I can’t say I have ever had a half like that,” Kubik said. While Kubik was scoring at will, KU junior Lynn Pride was held in check. The All-American candidate was guarded mostly by junior Naciska Gilmore and senior Con McDill. Sanderford wanted to limit the num ber of times Pride touched the ball, and the defensive strategy worked. Pride scored only 3 points and had seven turnovers in the first twenty minutes of the game. “The plan was to be physical with her,” Gilmore said. “We didn’t allow her to do the things she is used to doing.” The 20-point win in front of a season high crowd of 5,762 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center improved Nebraska’s record to 14-4 overall and 3-2 in the con ference. “Our mentality was to have fun,” junior Brooke Schwartz said. “No matter who you brought in, we would have come out with a victory anyway.” But now the Huskers must take that mentality back on the road for a pair of games. Colorado and No. 14 Iowa State are the next opponents on a hectic Big 12 schedule. - it— “Our mentality was to have fun. No matter who you brought in, we would have come old with a victory anyway.” Brooke Schwartz NU guard After three games in seven days, Sanderford said he is happy the team doesn’t have to travel to Boulder until Saturday. “This is our break week, and it is coming at a great time,” Sanderford said. The week layoff is going to help tired legs as well as injured ones. Rogers, Schwartz and senior Lisa Reitsma all have minor ankle sprains that should be healed before this weekend. On top of all of that, Gilmore contin ues to suffer with acute tonsillitis, which she played with against Kansas. p NU wrestlers battle injuries for 6th at duals ByLisaVonnahme Staff writer IOWA CITY, Iowa - In Tim Neumann’s eyes, the Nebraska wrestling team competed in the “ibuprofen bowl” Sunday rather than the NWCA Cliff Keen National Duals. Suffering from injuries and illnesses that resulted in forfeiting matches, the No. 10 Comhuskers fell to No. 3 Iowa 37-2 and No. 6 Oklahoma 31-12 in the final day of National Duals competition. The final two losses gave the eighth-seeded NU grapplers a sixth place finish in the 16-team Oklahoma 31 tournament. Nebraska 12 ,T ° p - r a n k e d ^ w Oklahoma State earned its fifth National Duals title with a 20-17 win over No. 2 Minnesota in the championship finals, giving 33-year-old OSU Coach John Smith his 100th career win. For Nebraska Coach Neumann, whose Huskers were ranked 21st during preseason, the tournament answered his questions regarding the abilities of this year’s squad. “I never claimed we were a top-five team, but I never dreamt we would be in this position at the beginning of the year,” Neumann said. “You can’t look at two matches where we got crushed and say it was a bad weekend. It was a great weekend.” The highlight dual for the Comhuskers came in the consolation quarterfinals Saturday as NU took on Arizona State. Because of injured ribs, Nebraska’s Paul Gomez forfeited at 118 pounds, which put an easy six points on the board for the Sun Devils. NU losses at 133,149,165 and 174 put the Huskers down 18-7 going into the 184-pound match between No. 7 Brad Vering and ASU’s fourth-ranked Casey Strand. In a previous meeting on Dec. 20, Vering fell to Strand 3-2. Heading into the third period, Vering led 3-1. At the one minute, 42 second mark, Strand tied the score with a two-point reversal. In turn, Vering managed an escape and came out on top 4-3. ^ For Vering (15-5 overall and 9-3 in dual competition), whose five losses have each been by one point this season, the match marked a “fine line” between himself and the wrestlers he has lost to this season. “Last year, I was out of the matches I lost,” Vering said. “This year, the matches I’ve lost were really close. I plan on being able to beat those guys at the end of the year.” Vering’s win put the team score at 18-10 in Arizona State’s favor. “When it looked like Brad was going to win, I turned around ♦ Please see DUALS on 13 Cochran arrives at guard for NlTs triumph at Baylor ByAdamKlinker t Senior staff writer There is no place like the road for the Nebraska men’s bas ketball team in the Big 12 Conference. After Saturday’s 68-55 win at Baylor, the Comhuskers have won four of their last five road contests against conference foes. : NU (10-7 overall, 2 Nebraska 68 2 in the Big 12) domi n . ’ ce nated all facets of the ^1121_game and led for all but 16 seconds, when the Bears jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the tip-off. “We’re pleased with it,” NU Coach Danny Nee said. “It was a good solid win on the road, and that’s two wins in a row.” Senior center Venson Hamilton and freshman guard Cary Cochran riddled BU (6-12,0-5) all afternoon with a medley of inside and outside, play. Hamilton scored 25 points and had seven rebounds, going 10-15 (.667) from the field&r his second highest point total of the season. “The size advantage is a factor there,” Hamilton said. “Their post players are 6-7,6-8, and I could shoot the jump hook right over them.” Please see COCHRAN on 13 /