Lincoln - Cary Cochran scored a season-high 19 points, and made 11 of 12 shots from the foul line, as Nebraska withstood a frantic rally to defeat Oral Roberts, 61-55, in front of 7,288 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center Saturday afternoon.

Cochran, a senior guard from Minden, Iowa, hit six of his seven shots from the charity stripe in the last five minutes after the visitors nearly erased a 17-point Husker lead late in the second half. NU made just one field goal, a Brian Conklin putback off a missed foul shot, in the last eight minutes, but held the visitors to just a pair of baskets in the final three minute for the win.

Cochran was the only Husker in double figures, as Nebraska improved to 6-0 on the season for the first time in six years. NU turned in an outstanding defensive effort, holding ORU to just 33 percent from the floor. The effort was a complete turnaround from last season's contest with the Golden Eagles, when ORU shot 56 percent and scored a season-high 87 points in the victory.

The Huskers survived its worst shooting performance of the year, shooting just 34 percent, but had a balanced attack, as all 10 players scored and the bench contributed 20 points and 14 rebounds.

In the first half, the Huskers capitalized from long range, hitting its first three shots from the floor to take a quick 11-1 lead. While the Huskers sharp shooting was the story early, NU stymied the Golden Eagle offense, as ORU made just one of its first 14 shots from the floor and shot 20 percent in the half.

Cochran scored 10 of his 19 points in the first half, as the Huskers built a 14-point lead and took a 31-22 lead into halftime. Luke Spencer-Gardner's jumper cut the lead to seven before NU came back, scoring eight straight points to take a 39-24 lead on a Jake Muhleisen layup, his first points of the afternoon. The freshman had been NU's leading scorer through the first five games, but was held scoreless in the first half and finished with eight points.

The Huskers eventually pushed its lead to 17 on Kendrick Ford's basket with 8:17 remaining, and were seemingly in control before the Golden Eagles made a charge. Tyrone Tiggs' single-handedly brought Oral Roberts back into the game, scoring 11 of his team-high 19 points in a 15-0 run which brought the visitors within 51-49 with his third three-pointer of the run.

ORU, which dropped to 2-6 on the season, would get no closer, as Cochran's clutch foul shooting kept the visitors at bay. He helped NU push the lead back to seven before missing his only foul shot with 11 seconds remaining.

Richie Myers joined Tiggs in double figures, scoring 17 points, as the Huskers held Markius Barnes and Luke Spencer-Gardner in check. The duo, who combined for 43 points in last season's 87-83 ORU win, were held to a combined 2-of-22 from the floor and missed all 10 shots from three-point range.

The Huskers hit the road this Wednesday, as NU heads to Omaha to take on the Creighton Bluejays at 7 p.m. at the Omaha Civic Center.

Nebraska postgame notes:
** Nebraska is 6-0 for the first time since the 1995-96 campaign, when the Huskers opened the season with a 6-0 record before going 21-14 on the year and winning the National Invitation Tournament (NIT).

** The Huskers