Lincoln -- Behind the performance of junior Brooke Schwartz, the No. 20 Nebraska women's basketball team used a record-setting first-half performance to defeat Colorado, 90-49, in front of 2,910 fans at the Bob Devaney Sports Center Tuesday evening.
Schwartz scored seven of her 15 points in the first two minutes as the Huskers outscored CU, 22-2, in the first 5:39 to put the contest out of reach. Colorado made just three field goals in the first 15 minutes as Nebraska led by as many as 36 points, at 50-14, with 2:33 remaining in the half and enjoyed a 52-19 advantage at intermission.
"I was tremendously proud of our basketball team tonight," Nebraska Coach Paul Sanderford said. "It was a totally different feel and look from Sunday afternoon. Tonight, we were a very loose, intense basketball team and we executed about as well as we could for a long time in the first half. I thought is was our best performance of the year, by far."
"I think it was a combination of our turning the ball over and their transition game," Colorado coach Ceal Barry said. "We don't have any choice, but to learn from it. There is not much else that we can do.
"They didn't do anything that we hadn't seen. They played man-to-man defense with a run and jump," Barry said. "Turnovers had been a problem and having 17 first-half turnovers ignited their break which is what they want to do."
The Huskers' 52 first-half points were the most ever against a conference opponent and the ninth-best total in school history. Nebraska, which has won 10 of its last 11 contests, improved to 13-2 overall and 2-0 in the Big 12, NU's best conference start since the 1991-92 season.
The 41-point margin was the largest in the 43-game series history, bettering the 25-point margin in NU's 78-53 victory in Lincoln last season. It is Nebraska's largest margin of victory in a conference game since an 87-39 victory over Iowa State on March 6, 1993.
Schwartz, a junior from Gering, Neb., finished with 15 points, eight assists and eight steals in 26 minutes of action. She was joined in double figures by junior center Charlie Rogers, who finished with a season and game-high 16 points and nine rebounds and sophomore guard Amanda Went, who finished with a career-high 14 points including four of five 3-pointers.
Junior guard Nicole Kubik finished with 14 points, five steals and tied her career high with 11 assists. It is the third time in the past four games that Kubik recorded a double-double. In all, 14 different players scored in the contest for Nebraska.
With the win, Nebraska extended its home court winning streak to 24 games, dating back to the 1996-97 season. The streak is the fifth longest in the nation and leads the Big 12.
Colorado, which dropped to 7-5 overall and 0-2 in conference action, was led by freshman Britt Hartshorn, who finished with 10 points and five rebounds off the bench. Hartshorn was the only CU player to finish in double figures.
The Buffs shot 28 percent from the floor, including an abysmal 6-28 first-half performance, and committed 29 turnovers compared to just 17 for Nebraska.
The Huskers travel to Austin, Texas, for a Big 12 matchup with the Longhorns this Saturday at 5 p.m. Texas leads the all-time series 3-2, but Nebraska won the last meeting, 87-75, last January in Lincoln.