No. 19 Sooners Squeak By Huskers

Lincoln -- J.R. Raymond scored 14 points, including a 3-pointer with 48 seconds remaining, as No. 20 Oklahoma built a 15-point lead and held off a charge as the Sooners downed Nebraska, 62-54, Monday evening at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

With the win, the Sooners improve to 20-4 overall and 8-3 in the Big 12 Conference, while the Huskers dipped to 10-14 overall and 3-8 in league play.

After Nebraska closed to within 54-53 on a Larry Florence jumper with 1:18 remaining, Raymond's 3-pointer extended OU's lead to 57-53. The Huskers closed to within 57-54 after a Florence free throw on their next possession, but the Sooners converted 5-of-6 free throws in the final 30 seconds to hold on for the win, their sixth in the last seven games.

Florence finished with a game-high 17 points, but was the only Husker to finish in double figures, as Nebraska dropped its fourth game in a row.

Raymond and Nolan Johnson shared high honors for the Sooners with 14 points as the OU survived a poor shooting performance from all-conference forward Eduardo Najera, who was just 3-of-14 from the floor and finished with 10 points, nine below his season average. Najera led OU with 13 rebounds as the Sooners outrebounded Nebraska 42-36.

OU used a 12-2 run, triggered by five of Johnson's 11 first-half points, to build its largest lead of the game, at 28-13, before the Huskers began to mount a comeback. Trailing 32-17, the Huskers trimmed the lead to 32-26 with a 9-0 run to close the half. Junior Rodney Fields scored five of his seven points in the run, including a 3-pointer with 48 seconds remaining to cut the OU lead to 32-26, as OU was held scoreless for the final 4:57 of the first half. The drought continued early for the Sooners, as Nebraska scored the first four points of the half, cutting the OU lead to 32-30 after a short Florence jumper.

From that point on, Nebraska stayed within striking distance, as the Sooners could never get the lead back to double figures. Trailing 53-44 with five minutes remaining, the Huskers used a 10-1 run to close to within within 54-53, setting up Raymond's 3-pointer.

Neither team was unable to get on track offensively, as both teams were held under 40 percent from the floor. The Sooners hit just 34 percent from the field and had their lowest point total since a 72-57 loss to Cincinnati on Dec. 22.

Nebraska returns to action this Saturday, Feb. 19, as the Huskers travel to Stillwater, Okla., to take on the eighth-ranked Cowboys beginning at 6 p.m. The game will be televised by ESPN.

Nebraska Postgame Notes vs. Oklahoma (Feb. 14, 2000)
*-- Nebraska held Oklahoma to just 34.4 percent shooting, only the third time all season that OU was held to less than 40 percent from the floor (also vs. Cincinnati and Texas - both losses). It is the 12th time this season that NU had held an opponent to less than 40 percent from the floor and the third time this season a Husker opponent was held to less than 35 percent shooting (also vs. Northwestern and Oral Roberts).

*--Senior Larry Florence made his 99th career start tonight, tying Cookie Belcher for third place on NU's career starts list. He also led Nebraska in scoring for the ninth time this season with 17 points - his fourth straight game with 16 or more points - while adding six rebounds.

*-- Florence was the only Husker to finish in double figures, only the second time all season that Nebraska had just one player in double figures (vs. Southern Miss when Florence finished with 16 points).

*-- Oklahoma out-rebounded Nebraska 42-36, marking the fifth straight game that NU has been out-rebounded after the Huskers out-rebounded its previous five opponents. NU is now 2-9 when being out-rebounded this season.

*-- The five home losses in a season are the most since NU posted a 11-5 home record in 1995-96. All five home losses have been decided by eight points or less - a total of 19 points.

*--Kimani Ffriend posted his seventh double-figure rebounding game with 10 rebounds, while also finishing with six points and four blocks. He now has 74 blocks on the season, moving past Mikki Moore (71 in 1995-96) for fifth place on NU's single-season blocked shot chart.

*--Nebraska fell to 0-5 against ranked opponents this season. The Huskers' next two games are also against ranked foes.

*-- Louis Truscott earned his second straight start tonight and finished with seven points and five rebounds.

*--Oklahoma improves to 12-11 all-time at the Bob Devaney Sports Center and becomes the first former Big Eight team to have a winning record in the Devaney Center.

*-- Nebraska's four straight losses are a season high as the Huskers fall to 10-14 on the season.

*-- Oklahoma ends a two-game losing streak against Nebraska dating back to the 1996-97 season.

Nebraska vs. Oklahoma Post Game Quotes

NU Head Coach Danny Nee
"I was really pleased with our effort and approach in the game. We battled well out there, but just couldn't make the plays."

"We felt one key to the game was Najera. Our big guys banged well with him and shut him down pretty well, except for the rebounds."

"I thought the crowd was great. They were nice and loud, but we just couldn't finish them off. That's why they are a Top 20 basketball team."

Forward Steffon Bradford
"They made some key baskets. When they hit that three at the end, it was an emotional shot. That's why they won the game. We had some good looks, but just couldn't get it to fall."

OU Head Coach Kelvin Sampson
"This is probably the sweetest win we've had this year. To get 20 wins this early in the season is really a milestone for our program. Our offense was non-existent, and we seemed to be tired for most of the night. This was a gut check game. It definitely wasn't a pretty game. Nebraska played us well and smart for most of the game. I have a lot of empathy for Coach Nee, he's missing his best player and his team is still playing with a lot of courage."