Columbia, Mo.-- Big 12 Player-of-the-Year candidate Nicole Kubik scored 34 points, but it was not enough to prevent the Nebraska women's basketball team from losing to Missouri, 74-66, in Columbia on Tuesday, Feb. 2.
Kubik's 34-point effort was two points shy of her career high and matched a 34-point performance in the Huskers' 96-91 win over Missouri in Columbia on Feb. 17, 1998.
The Huskers' loss ended a 19-game winning streak against the Tigers and an eight-game winning streak at the Hearnes Center.
Behind Kubik's hot hand, the Huskers led 29-25 at halftime but surrendered the lead for good on Kesha Bonds' jumper with 10:03 remaining in the game. Bonds led the Tigers' second-half efforts by scoring all 12 of her points after intermission.
The Huskers did manage ties at 57 and 62, but were never able to forge ahead.
Junior forward Julie Helm led the Tigers with 27 points and six rebounds, while guard Tracy Franklin posted a double-double with 11 points to go along with a game-high 11 rebounds and a game-high seven assists.
Franklin's rebounding performance helped the Tigers post a 47-36 edge on the boards. Missouri also connected on 25-of-36 free throws on the night. The made free throws was a season-high against the Huskers, while the 36 attempts also tied a season high by an opponent.
Brooke Schwartz added 14 points and grabbed eight rebounds to help the Huskers, but the other eight Nebraska players who saw action combined for just 16 points. Lisa Reitsma scored six points, grabbed four rebounds and blocked three shots, while Charlie Rogers scored four points and pulled down six boards.
The Huskers shot just 37.1 percent (26-70) from the field, including a 3-for-16 effort from 3-point range. Kubik produced a 14-for-33 shooting performance, but was just 1 of 10 from beyond the 3-point arc, with most of her long-range attempts coming in the closing minutes. Nebraska did hit 84.6 percent of its free-throw attempts, but made it to the line only 13 times, hitting 11 shots.
Missouri, which improved to 10-9 overall and 3-6 in Big 12 action, shot 42.6 percent (23-54) from the field, while hitting 37.5 percent (3-8) of its attempts from behind the 3-point line.