Corvallis, Ore. - The Nebraska women's basketball team brought strong intensity and energy to a spirited 90-minute practice on Thursday ahead of the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Gill Coliseum.
The No. 6 seed Huskers (22-11) opened their official tournament responsibilities with an NCAA press conference Thursday afternoon, before taking the court at Oregon State's home gym for the first time.
"I am incredibly excited for another run with this team," Nebraska Coach Amy Williams said. "We just had so much fun at our Big Ten Tournament, really having a lot of things come together and play our best basketball. It feels like it's been a really long time since we got to tip it up. So we're just super excited for the opportunity that's in front of us. I love coaching this team so much and to have that opportunity again here tomorrow, we're incredibly excited to get it going."
Graduate guard Jaz Shelley said the Huskers are focused on the challenge at hand in facing a tough, physical and talented Texas A&M team.
"I think we have a lot of people on our team right now who were in this position two years ago, and we felt like we fell short," Shelley said. "We believe that now that we're here, we're ready to keep fighting and go deep in the tournament. We believe we can do that, and we know how to do that."
Nebraska will take on No. 11 seed Texas A&M (19-12) on Friday at 9:30 p.m. (CT) at Gill Coliseum. The game will be televised live by ESPNU, while also being carried across the Huskers Radio Network station, the Huskers App and Huskers.com.