Colorado Edges Past Huskers

Boulder, Colo. --- Aleks Maric led the Nebraka men's basketball team with his fourth straight double-double and the Huskers had a lead in the final two minutes, but Colorado made more clutch plays down the stretch to give Coach Ricardo Patton a 73-69 victory in his final home game Saturday at the Coors Events Center.

Maric finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds, his 11th 20-point game of the year and his team-best ninth double-double. He now has 22 double-doubles in his career to tie Dave Hoppen for third on the NU all-time list. Marcus Perry was the only other Husker in double figures as he had 17 points on 6-of-16 shooting, including hitting five 3-pointers.

Charles Richardson Jr. was held to four points but posted eight assists against one turnover. He now has 169 assists this season to take over the top spot on the NU senior assists list, passing Brian Carr who had 166 assists as a senior. Richardson also moved into third place on the NU single-season list, as only Carr has posted more assists in a season at Nebraska.

After falling behind by 10 points midway through the second half, the Huskers rallied to take a one-point lead on Perry's 3-pointer at the 1:39 mark. Perry, who missed his previous shot, didn't hesitate the next time as Richardson drove the length of the court before dishing off to a wide-open Perry deep in the corner.

The basket put NU ahead by one until Dominique Coleman picked up a loose ball and laid it up for a one-point Buff lead with 1:16 to play. NU Coach Doc Sadler then called the team's final timeout at the 1:07 mark and set up a play, but the Buffs defended it well, forcing NU into a long, tough shot.

Freshman Sek Henry, who had struggled in recent games but played better against the Buffs, came up strong, getting the rebound before being fouled on the putback attempt. He made the first try to tie the game at 69 but missed the second, putting the Buffs in position to get the ball up court where they found Kal Bay for a wide-open 3-pointer for a 72-69 lead.

On the other end, Perry and Paul Velander missed desperation treys before Jermyl Jackson-Wilson sealed the Buff win with a free throw for the final four-point margin. The loss dropped Nebraska to 16-13 on the season and 5-10 in league play while CU snapped a six-game losing streak and improved to 7-19 on the year and 3-13 in Big 12 play.

Nebraska shot just 37.5 percent from the floor but held a four-point cushion at the intermission as it connected on 12-of-28 field-goal attempts. It was the fourth time this season the Huskers led at the break away from the Devaney Center.

Nebraska got off to a strong start with a 10-7 lead at the first media timeout behind 3-pointers from Perry and Ryan Anderson, with Anderson's jumper for his second basket giving NU the three-point lead at the 15:55 mark. After Maric added two field goals and Anderson dropped in his seventh point of the half, Perry posted his second trey to give the Huskers a 19-13 lead with 12:44 to play in the period.

Colorado came back with five straight points, including Xavier Silas' 3-pointer that cut it to 19-18 in favor of Nebraska. Silas then put the Buffs up 20-19 before he and Anderson were both ejected for flagrant technical fouls at the 8:22 mark. After a missed basket, the rebound came out long and Anderson tracked the ball down but was tied up by Silas. The players then grappled to the ground and were called for the techincals and were subsequently removed from the game.

Jackson-Wilson added a driving layup at the 7:44 mark and extended the run to 9-0 to push the CU lead to three points, 22-19, before the Huskers got going with a Perry steal and turnaround jumper at the 6:22 mark. Perry's basket was Nebraska's first in more than six minutes and put NU ahead by one until Bay knocked down a pair of free throws at the 5:20 mark.

Maric the tied it with a free throw and, following a free throw from CU, Kyle Marks put the Huskers on top 26-25 with a putback of a Henry miss before Perry hit a wide-open trey -- his thid of the half -- for a four-point Husker lead. Perry came into the game hitting just five of his last 20 3-point attempts over the past five games.

Jay-R Strowbridge added a 3-pointer at the 2:23 mark, the Huskers' last basket of the half, but NU went into intermission with a four-point lead, 35-31, after Richardson added a pair of free throws in the final minute. The lead came behind a solid defensive effort that held CU to just two baskets over the final 7:44 of the opening period.

After the break, Maric scored the Huskers' first three points but Colorado battled back with a 9-3 run including five points from Richard Roby, including a 3-pointer at the 17:18 mark that put the Buffs ahead, 40-38, for the first time in the second period. Roby, who was held to a career-low one point by the Huskers in Lincoln, finished with a game-high 23 points with five assists and four rebounds.

Jackson-Wilson added a nifty layup in the lane following the third straight offensive rebound of a possesion to give Colorado a 42-38 lead before Henry hit a 3-pointer from the corner, cutting the deficit to one. Henry had come into the game missing 11 of his last 12 3-point attempts over the past 10 games before lifting the Huskers.

Roby got CU rolling again with a three-point play and an assist to Coleman, who scored two straight baskets for a 49-44 lead. Playing in his final home game, Coleman scored 15 points and had a game-high 15 rebounds as the Buffs outrebounded Nebraska 39-34.

Marcus King-Stockton missed a dunk on CU's next trip down the court and the Huskers went the other way with Perry draining a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to two, 49-47. The teams traded free throws before Jackson-Wilson knocked down a pair of charity shots and added a bucket for a 55-49 lead at the 10:30 mark. Colorado extended the run to 8-0 to pull ahead 59-49 with 8:31 to play on Bay's layup.

Maric's free throw with 7:55 remaining ended the Huskers' scoring drought at 4:24. After a Husker steal, Marks added a layup to cut the deficit to seven. Maric and Kowal were hit with double fouls before Coach Doc Sadler was given a technical, leading to Bay's free throws that pushed the CU lead back to nine, 61-52.

Maric completed a three-point play seconds later before CU turned the ball over on the inbounds. The Huskers immediately got the ball to Maric, who converted his second three-point play in three seconds off the clock to pull Nebraska within three, 61-58, with nearly seven minutes to play. Maric's free throws with 5:35 remaining pulled the Huskers back within one, 63-62.

Roby hit the Buffs' first field goal in nearly four minutes to give CU a three-point cushion, but missed a pair of free throws less than 30 seconds later. NU got a good shot from Richardson that just missed, but Maric grabbed the carrom and called timeout before he fell out of bounds to preserve the possession.  

Henry made it worthwhile as he grabbed Paul Velander's miss and laid it up in the lane to pull within one before the final media timeout. Maic then tied it at 65-all at the 3:12 mark by hitting the second of two free throws, but Roby countered with a pull-up jumper for a 67-65 lead before the wild finish.

Nebraska returns home for the regular-season finale on Monday, March 5, when the Huskers take on Oklahoma State at 7 p.m. at the Devaney Center. Nebraska seniors Charles Richardson Jr. and Marcus Perry will be honored before the game (at 6:45 p.m.) as part of Senior Night.

The game against the Cowboys, which will not be televised, is a makeup contest. The orginally scheduled game between NU and OSU on Jan. 13 was postponed because of winter weather that prohibited the Cowboys from reaching Lincoln. Following Monday's contest, the Huskers leave on Tuesday to head to Oklahoma City for the Big 12 Championships March 8-11.