Huskers Hang Tough In Loss At Oklahoma State

STILLWATER, Oklahoma (Ticker) -- Ivan McFarlin recorded 20 points and 17 rebounds as 11th-ranked Oklahoma State held on for a 70-63 Big 12 Conference victory over Nebraska to avoid its first three-game losing streak in nearly three years.

Coming off consecutive lopsided defeats to Kansas and Texas Tech, the Cowboys received a tougher than expected test from the Cornhuskers, who came into the game tied for last place in the Big 12 Conference.

Nebraska (8-9, 1-5 Big 12) closed a seven-point deficit to 58-57 on Jake Muhleisen's short jumper with 5:05 remaining, but the Cowboys (16-3, 3-3) never relinquished the lead.

"We just wanted to come out and play hard," McFarlin said. "Coach (Eddie) Sutton said that the loss (to Texas Tech) was over and that we had to get ready for the next game. The last two practices were awesome. All the players worked hard and that's what we needed."

Maurice Baker, who scored 13 points, made two foul shots and scored on a follow shot to make it 62-57 with 2:43 remaining. After John Robinson hit a pair from the line, McFarlin put away the contest with two free throws and a dunk to extend Oklahoma State's lead to 66-59 with a minute left.

"I played against him (McFarlin) in high school," said Robinson, who scored 22 points for Nebraska. "He's a great player for them. We just needed to box out strong and get more rebounds."

"Ivan was sensational," Sutton added. "I challenged Fred (Jonzen), Andre (Williams) and him (McFarlin) this afternoon. I guess Ivan took me at my word. That was one of the great individual performances that we've had since I've been at Oklahoma State."

The Cowboys last dropped three in a row from February 6-14, 1999. They also ended that slide with a victory over Nebraska.

"I thought our defense was so much better tonight," Sutton said. "Nebraska does a great job with their ballclub. They're certainly not the most talented team, but they are very well coached. They can really shoot the basketball."

The Cowboys allowed an average of 86.5 points in their last two games, losing to Kansas, 79-61, and to Texas Tech, 94-70.

"Our fans deserve for us to get a win," said Oklahoma State guard Victor Williams, who scored 10 points but made just 2-of-14 shots. "They have supported us this whole time we haven't been playing good basketball and they deserve to see us play good."

All five starters scored in double figures for Oklahoma State. Jonzen scored 13, Baker 12 and Melvin Sanders 11.

But sloppy ballhandling was one reason the Cowboys could not shake the Cornhuskers. They committed 12 of their 16 turnovers in the first half.

"The first half, we were just careless with the ball," Sutton said. "We turned the ball over 12 times and in the second half, we turned it over four. We did a better job of taking care of the basketball, but we've still got to eliminate the careless turnovers that we make."

Corey Simms hit a jumper to give Nebraska a 29-27 lead with 2:19 left in the first half before Oklahoma State responded with a 7-0 run to take a five-point halftime lead.

"We have been having slow starts all season," Victor Williams said. "That is what we have to get rid off if we want to compete in this league."

Nebraska took its last lead, 46-45, on Robinson's 3-pointer with 11:52 remaining. Jonzen answered with a three-point play that started a 10-4 run for the Cowboys. Oklahoma State took a 56-49 lead on Sanders' jumper with 7:07 to go.

Muhleisen added 16 points for the Cornhuskers, who suffered their ninth loss in 11 games and dropped to 0-7 on the road this season.

"We made shots and I thought we played pretty good defense, but we came up short," Robinson said. "Coming down here with the No. 11 team and playing with them, I think we did a great job."

Nebraska made 9-of-25 shots from beyond the arc after hitting a school-record 15 3-pointers in Saturday's 77-66 loss at Texas.