Huskers Sweep to Big 12 Semifinals
Senior guard Nicole Kubik produced a Big 12 Tournament record with 32 points to lead four Huskers in double figures to lead fifth-seeded Nebraska to an 80-67 win over fourth-seeded Kansas in front of 3,559 fans at the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Conference Women's Basketball Tournament in Kansas City on Wednesday.
Nebraska stretched its winning streak to six games, while improving to 18-11 overall on the season. The Huskers advance to the tournament semifinals for the second straight season to take on No. 1 seed Iowa State at 5 p.m. The Cyclones improved to 23-5 overall with a 93-58 thumping of ninth-seeded Oklahoma State in Wednesday's opening game of the second round.
In Wednesday's second game of the afternoon, the Huskers overcame a 14-point first half deficit to pull away from the Jayhawks in the second half. The Huskers improved to 3-0 against Kansas this season, marking the first time in school history that Nebraska won three games against the Jayhawks in a single season.
Paul Sanderford, who improved to 5-2 against Kansas as Nebraska's head coach, said he was pleased with his team's ability to overcome a strong first half performance by the Jayhawks.
"We looked a little rattled early in the ball game," Sanderford said. "Their defense pushed us out a little further on the floor than we normally are. We didn't show a lot of patience early in the game, and I think that is a credit to Kansas. At halftime we made some good adjustments. We spread the floor in certain places. We went for some backdoor cuts where they were doubling, and we got some good shots and made our free throws."
Although Nebraska made offensive adjustments in the second half, Sanderford said defense was the crucial piece to the Husker victory.
"The key to the second half was that defensively we stepped it up," Sanderford said. "We didn't give up any easy baskets, and we outrebounded a very good rebounding team, which I'm extremely proud of."
The Huskers used a 26-16 rebounding advantage to slow the Kansas offensive in the second half. Nebraska's fullcourt pressure also stymied the Jayhawks. The Huskers forced 20 turnovers on 13 steals, led by Kubik's five steals.
After giving up 41 points in the first half to trail 41-37 at intermission, the Huskers held the Jayhawks to just 26 points in the second half, including a stretch of more than eight minutes without a field goal. After Brooke Reves' jumper with 11:52 remaining, KU's next field goal came on Suzi Raymant's runner in the lane with 3:41 left. KU missed eight consecutive shots and committed five turnovers during that stretch. Nebraska outscored Kansas 16-7 during that span.
Kubik, who scored 18 points to keep the Huskers close in the first half, scored a season-high 32 points, which marked the fifth time in her career that she scored 30 or more points. She hit 10-of-20 field goals, including 2-of-4 3-point attempts, while connecting on 10-of-11 free throw attempts. She also distributed four assists and pulled down four rebounds. The previous Big 12 Tournament scoring record was held by former Husker Anna DeForge, who scored 29 points against Oklahoma State in 1998. Kubik posted a career high with 36 points against Kansas in Lincoln on Jan. 16, 1999.
Senior guard Brooke Schwartz scored nine of her 11 points in the second half and pulled down five boards, while senior forward Naciska Gilmore scored 10 points, which marked just her third double-figure performance this season. Junior center Casey Leonhardt scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds, while junior point guard Melody Peterson scored five points to go along with a career-high 10 boards, four assists and three steals.
The Huskers shot 45.2 percent from the field, including 50 percent from 3-point range. Nebraska also knocked down 80 percent of its free throws. Kansas shot 39.3 percent from the field and 40 percent from 3-point range, while connecting on 73.9 percent of its free throw attempts.
Jaclyn Johnson led the Jayhawks with 20 points and seven rebounds. All-American Lynn Pride scored 14 points, but managed just two rebounds, while Brooke Reves contributed 13 points and Suzi Raymant managed 12 points for the Jayhawks, who fell to 20-9 on the season.