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Bearcats hold off Lincoln for fourth consecutive victory

Northwest2013riggertThe Northwest Missouri State University men’s basketball team beat Lincoln University on Saturday afternoon in Bearcat Arena, 77-67.

The Bearcats improved to 17-5 on the year and 10-4 in MIAA play. Lincoln drops to 4-19 overall and 1-13 in conference action.

Conner Crooker had a game-high 21 points to lead Northwest.  Crooker hit 7-of-11 field goals including three three-pointers to net his fifth 20+ point performance of the season. He also grabbed a team-high six rebounds while playing all 40 minutes.

In his first game since Jan. 17, Justin Pitts seemed to pick up right where he left off, scoring 18 points on 5-of-7 shooting. He was a perfect 3-for-3 from long range and had a pair of assists, two rebounds and a steal.

Northwest shot 57.5 percent from the field (23-for-40) for the game to Lincoln’s 46.5 (20-for-43).

Lincoln committed 12 turnovers in the game but outrebounded the Bearcats, 24-23.

Northwest had 33 points off the bench to the Blue Tigers’ five. Despite giving up five offensive boards, the Bearcats did not allow any second chance points.

Northwest will host Missouri Southern on Wednesday, Feb. 11, at 7:30 p.m. in Bearcat Arena.

— Northwest Sports Information —

Western women crush Lindenwood for third straight win

MWSUA dominant performance inside the MWSU Fieldhouse Saturday afternoon gave the Missouri Western women’s basketball team their third straight win overall and fourth straight at home. Missouri Western downed Lindenwood for the second time in seven days with an 80-50 win.

Missouri Western is now 11-9 on the season and 6-8 in MIAA play after shooting 51 percent from the field and having two players eclipse 20 points.

LaQuinta Jefferson had a game-high 23 and Sarafina Handy tied her career-high with 20 points in her second straight game. Jefferson added six assists and Handy got her 20 points on six of eight shooting from the field, including going for of six from three-point range.

The Griffons take a week off before traveling to Joplin on Feb. 14 to take on Missouri Southern. The Griffons defeated the Lions, 61-56 on Jan. 24 in the fieldhouse.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Missouri’s losing streak reaches nine as they get dominated by Texas A&M

riggertMizzouCOLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Texas A&M guard Danuel House sensed his team held an advantage against Missouri long before the final buzzer Saturday.

“When they started warming up for the second half,” House said of the Tigers, “the guys didn’t look into the game.”

Although coach Billy Kennedy quickly disagreed with that assessment, the Aggies won 83-61 for their seventh victory in eight games and remained tied for second place in the Southeastern Conference.

Texas A&M (16-6, 7-3) shot 33 of 56 (58.9 percent) — including 19 of 27 in the second half — against Missouri and led by seven at halftime before gradually extending its advantage after the break. A 3-pointer by House with 13:46 remaining in the first half put the Aggies up for good.

House finished with 20 points while Jalen Jones added 16.

Wes Clark scored 15 points for Missouri (7-16, 1-9), which has lost nine consecutive games for the first time since the 1966-67 season, the last under coach Bob Vanatta before Norm Stewart started patrolling the Tigers’ bench.

“Losing is always tough,” Clark said. “Losing by five, losing by 20. It still counts as one loss. It just got rough for us. Things got a little ugly.”

House and Jones paced the Aggies to a 62-50 win over the Tigers at Reed Arena on Jan. 21, in which each scored 12 points after intermission. House started 4 of 4 from 3-point range Saturday, scoring 14 points before the break to lead Texas A&M to a 38-31 halftime lead.

He added six more points in the final 20 minutes, along with eight by Jones. The Aggies outscored Missouri 44-22 in the paint, and a layup by Alex Robinson with 11:26 left pushed the team’s lead to 15.

The Tigers would no closer than 12 the rest of the way, and watched Texas A&M end the game on a 6-0 run.

“When you get into the game, you’ve just got to take your time and knock shots down,” Jones said. “And that’s what we did tonight.”

Missouri played with eight scholarship players after the school announced before tipoff that freshmen guards Montaque Gill-Caesar and Namon Wright were suspended for a violation of team rules.

Fellow freshman guard Tramaine Isabell missed his third game for disciplinary reasons stemming from “unacceptable” behavior toward teammates and coaches, first-year coach Kim Anderson said Jan. 31.

The three have combined for 19.6 points per game this season. Their absence forced Clark and Keith Shamburger each to play 37 minutes, and both Anderson and Kennedy noticed the Tigers wearing out late in the game.

“We had a little fatigue at the end and it showed up,” Clark said.

The suspensions left Missouri with just four scholarship players who have not been suspended at one point this season — Keanau Post, Ryan Rosburg, Keith Shamburger and Johnathan Williams III.

TIP-INS

Texas A&M: Senior forward Kourtney Roberson added 13 points and five rebounds, the first of which broke a tie with Jeff Overhouse for 10th all-time in school history. Roberson needs 13 more to match Bryan Davis at 757. . Junior guard Alex Caruso had 11 assists.

Missouri: Despite their short bench, the Tigers avoided foul trouble and made 21 of 48 shots from the field (43.8 percent). Still, they haven’t won since defeating LSU 74-67 in overtime on Jan. 8. . Freshman forward Jakeenan Gant scored 10 points.

“I AM A TEACHER”

Without elaborating, Missouri coach Kim Anderson stressed that no matter his team’s record, he would discipline his players the same way. He called himself a teacher, and said he isn’t as focused on his team’s losing streak as he is mentoring his student-athletes.

“It’s really disappointing as a coach,” he said. “It’s obvious that winning basketball games is part of our job. But part of our job is to help these guys grow up.”

UP NEXT

Texas A&M returns to College Station to face Georgia on Wednesday.

Missouri travels to play South Carolina on Tuesday.

— Associated Press —

MWSU baseball splits doubleheader at Harding

riggertMissouriWesternThe Missouri Western baseball team played a double-header Saturday afternoon against Harding University. The Griffons split on the day falling in game one, 5-4 and winning game two by a score of 2-1.

Game 1

The Griffons and Bison needed an extra inning to decide the winner of game one. Harding punched in a run when Shane Kinnear drove in Alan Copeland in the bottom of the 10th inning.

The Bison used a four-run third inning to jump out to an early lead. Zac Stewart of Harding drive in two-runs on a double to right center and Jaxon Mohr followed that up with an RBI single into center field. The final run for the Bison came on a wild pitch to eventually score Stewart from third.

Missouri Western was able to close the gap in the bottom of the six when David Glaude hit his second homerun of the season to right center making the score 4-2.

In the eighth inning, the Griffons were able to tie the game when Mitch Thorman reached on a fielder’s error by the first baseman. This allowed Orencio Fisher and Cosimo Cannella to both come around and score.

Matt Russell tallied the pitching loss for the Griffons and Zac Stewart was able to record the win. The Griffons finished the game with seven hits, two errors and left six runners left on base.

Game 2

Missouri Western used a Mitch Thorman two-run homerun in the top of the sixth inning to beat Harding in the second game.

Hardings only run came on a fielding error by the shortstop which allowed John Chapman to score.

MWSU relied on Josh Lansangan to throw 3.1 innings. He gave up one-run and struck out two batters before Richard Peoples came into relief. Peoples finished with 3.2 innings pitch, two strikeouts and tallied his first win of the season for the Griffons.

Cosimo Cannella and Trevor LaHonta each went three-for-three in the game with Mitch Thorman’s homerun being the only other hit for the Griffons.

Jacob Stripling was the losing pitcher for the Bison. He went 5.2 innings, struck out two and allowed six hits.

The Griffons are now 3-3 on the season and will finish up the weekend with a nine inning game against Harding on Sunday afternoon.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Northwest Missouri State women rally past Lincoln Saturday

Northwest2013riggertThe Northwest Missouri State women’s basketball team clawed its way to a 63-59 victory over Lincoln Saturday afternoon in Bearcat Arena.

The win improves the Bearcats’ record to 8-15 on the year and 4-10 in the MIAA, while the Blue Tigers fell to 10-10 overall and 5-9 in the conference.

Tanya Meyer led Northwest with 17 points, a new career high for the freshman.

Meyer scored her 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field. The Sioux City, Iowa native was a perfect 4-for-4 from the charity stripe. She added four rebounds and one block.

Tember Schechinger scored the final four points for Northwest to seal the victory. The junior guard finished with 12 points, four rebounds, two steals and one assist.

Sophomore Shelby Mustain added 14 points, hitting 6-of-11 attempts in the contest. She came away with six boards and added one block on defense.

After Kate Frazier hit her second straight layup for the Blue Tigers, the Bearcats found themselves behind, 56-52, with just over four minutes to play. Ariel Easton knocked down her only three-pointer of the day to close the gap to one followed by a quick timeout by coach Michael Smith. After the defense forced a shot clock violation on the next possession, Shelby Mustain knocked down two free throws to give the Bearcats a one point lead.

Lincoln answered with two free throws of their own, making the score 58-57 with 1:47 remaining. Taylor Shull helped the Bearcats regain the lead on their next possession, knocking down a 10-foot jumper. Tember Schechinger added a short range jumper after a defensive stop to increse the Northwest lead to three. After Kelsey Williams hit one of two free throws for the Blue Tigers, Schechinger hit two of her own from the charity stripe to seal the victory for Northwest.

Northwest will host Missouri Southern on Wednesday (Feb. 11). The game is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. in Bearcat Arena.

— Northwest Sports Information —

No. 8 Jayhawks fall apart in second half and get upset by Oklahoma State

riggertKUSTILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Storming the court after beating Kansas is becoming routine for Oklahoma State students.

Le’Bryan Nash scored 18 points to help the Cowboys upset the eighth-ranked Jayhawks 67-62 on Saturday.

Cowboys fans stormed the floor for the second straight year, and Oklahoma State has now beaten Kansas in four of the past six meetings in Stillwater.

The Cowboys trailed this one by 11 at halftime, but their pressure defense held the Jayhawks to 27 percent shooting in the second half.

“We just became more aggressive, our whole mentality,” Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford said. “I think it was more about us than them. We did make them turn it over a bit more, we did speed them up a little bit, but it got us being aggressive, it got us in attack mode.”

Phil Forte, Oklahoma State’s leading scorer for the season, had the flu and was limited to 29 minutes. He finished with 13 points after throwing up before the game.

“Just the fact that my teammates kept coming up to me and wanting me to play — I just tried to mentally push through it,” Forte said. “I didn’t want to let my teammates down, and I just wanted to go out there and give it all I had.”

Anthony Hickey added 15 points for the Cowboys (16-7, 6-5 Big 12), who were coming off a road win at No. 25 Texas on Wednesday.

“We got to keep our kids’ heads out of the clouds and get back down to earth,” Ford said. “It was a big win, because of the respect we have for Kansas, period.”

Wayne Selden Jr. scored 15 points, and Perry Ellis, Frank Mason III and Brannen Greene each added 10 points for the Jayhawks (19-4, 8-2), who had won five straight.

“We just didn’t play very well,” Kansas coach Bill Self said. “You can’t look at any individual on our team and say they had a good game. We had a couple guys make some shots, but we didn’t play very well. We didn’t coach them very well. We didn’t do anything very well today.”

Nash’s spinning left-handed layup put the Cowboys up 59-52 with 7:21 to play. Kansas rallied back, but a steal by Jeff Newberry led to a fast-break layup by Hickey that gave Oklahoma State a 65-61 lead with 2:32 remaining.

Nash missed the front end of a one-and-one with 53 seconds left to give Kansas a chance, but the Jayhawks couldn’t score, and Hickey made a layup at the other end to make it a 67-62 game with 20 seconds to play.

Kansas led 16-13 when Nash was called for a charge, his second foul, with 10:52 left in the first half. With Nash on the bench, Kansas went on a 10-1 run to take a 26-14 lead. Kansas boosted its edge to 30-17 before the Cowboys rallied. Mitchell Solomon’s baseline jam on a nice find by Newberry cut Kansas’ lead to 30-24, forced a timeout and brought the crowd back into the game.

A 3-pointer by Greene in the final minute of the half put the Jayhawks up 41-30 at the break. Kansas shot 57 percent in the first half to overcome 11 turnovers.

Oklahoma State opened the second half with a flurry. A dunk by Michael Cobbins cut Kansas’ lead to 42-38 two minutes in. A 3-pointer by Hickey cut Oklahoma State’s deficit to a point, Forte’s 3-pointer put the Cowboys ahead, and it was a game the rest of the way.

“I feel like we just didn’t execute like we needed to on the offensive end,” Ellis said. “That was it, really.”

TIP-INS

Kansas: Mason was issued a technical foul with 2:40 left in the first half after a scramble for the ball near the Oklahoma State bench. … Self played for Oklahoma State from 1981-1985 and is from Okmulgee, Oklahoma. … Kansas made just 11 of 20 free throws.

Oklahoma State: Nash has scored in double figures every game this season. … The Cowboys shot 36 percent in the first half. … Forte took just six shots from the field.

COURTSIDE

Members of the school’s 1995 Final Four team and businessman T. Boone Pickens were on hand. Pickens, an Oklahoma State graduate, has donated more than $500 million to his alma mater. … Coach Eddie Sutton and former star post player Bryant Reeves were among those in attendance.

UP NEXT

Kansas: At Texas Tech on Tuesday.

Oklahoma State: At Baylor on Monday.

— Associated Press —

Kansas State comes up short against No. 25 Texas

riggertKStateMANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Texas’ four-game losing streak was as baffling to Isaiah Taylor as it was for anybody on the Longhorns’ bench.

On Saturday, Taylor and his team took an approach that had been missing for nearly three weeks.

“We played desperate,” Taylor said. “Today we didn’t get down on ourselves. Everyone played with an attitude and it’s sort of like (a sense) of cockiness that we needed to win and that’s what happened.”

Taylor scored 23 points, including two foul shots with one second left that sent No. 25 Texas over Kansas State 61-57 Saturday.

Connor Lammert had 12 points and nine rebounds for the Longhorns (15-8, 4-6 Big 12).

Nino Williams had 13 points for the Wildcats (12-12, 5-6), who once again were without Marcus Foster and Malek Harris because of indefinite suspensions. No word has been given on their future status.

Thomas Gipson missed a layup with less than five seconds that would have tied the game. The Wildcats’ fourth straight loss dropped them to .500 this late in the season for the first time since Feb. 25, 2004.

“There are tears in the locker room,” Wildcats coach Bruce Weber said. “I’ve got to help them. It’s tough on me, tough on our staff, but we’ve got to be there for them.”

Lammert said finishing possessions and playing a full 40 minutes became even more evident after the Longhorns’ most recent loss against Oklahoma State at home.

“Coach talked to us and told us that each game is going to come down to one or two possessions,” Lammert said.

Taylor scored at least 15 for the fifth straight game. He and Lammert both matched their highest point total of the season.

After taking a 42-41 with 10:34 left, Kansas State fell victim to the Longhorns’ length as they sealed the paint and pushed their lead to 49-44 on Lammert’s 3-pointer.

The Wildcats’ shot just 32 percent from the field (15 of 47), but went 8 of 16 on 3s.

The Longhorns eliminated Kansas State’s best interior scoring option in Gipson, holding him to five points on 0-for-7 shooting.

“We are a long team,” Texas coach Rick Barnes said. “Our zone has been good. We have won four conference games and we played zone every minute of those games with the exception of the last two minutes here today.”

Kansas State made only 3 of its first 21 shots, and Taylor pushed the Longhorns’ to their largest lead at 24-12 with 4:16 left in the first half.

TIP-INS

Texas: Jonathan Holmes (11.5 points per game) didn’t make the trip to Manhattan because of a concussion. Javan Felix also was held out due to a head injury.

Kansas State: The Wildcats’ average of 58.9 points per game was the lowest in the Big 12 after 10 games and the lowest for the program since 1982-83.

UP NEXT

Texas hosts TCU on Wednesday.

Kansas State plays at West Virginia on Wednesday.

— Associated Press —

Missouri Western softball uses long ball to go 2-0 Saturday

riggertMissouriWesternARKADELPHIA, Ark. – Missouri Western softball head coach Jen Bagley Trotter said this year’s team could hit home runs, and through the team’s first three games, it looks like she’s right. Missouri Western scored seven runs on the day, six coming by way of the home run in sweeping two games in the Henderson State/Ouachita Baptist Ronnie Hawkins Invitational. MWSU has hit six homers through their first three games that have accounted for all but one of their nine runs.

Game 1: MWSU 2, Henderson State 0

The Griffons used two solo home runs Saturday morning to defeat Henderson State, 2-0. Paige Shifflett put MWSU on the board first when she led off the top of the second with a solo shot in her first-ever collegiate at bat. Tiffany Gillaspy added another home run in the third. The home runs were two of the Griffons seven hits on the game. Katie Klosterman was the only Griffon with more than one hit, going 2-3. Shifflett and Gillaspy’s homers were the only extra base hits for the team.

Shyanne Saladino went the distance in her first action as a Griffon. She picked up her first win, allowing six hits and no runs.

Game 2: Mississippi College 3, MWSU 5

The Griffons went to the long ball again to start off game two, scoring their first four runs on round trippers. Janie Smith put the Griffons on the board in the second with a solo shot then Tiffany Gillaspy pulled MWSU within one, at 3-2, with her solo homer in the fifth. Morgan Rathmann would make the Griffons first seven runs of the year on homers when she bombed a two-run shot to right center in the fifth. Missouri Western’s first run of the year off anything other than a home run came in the fifth when Paige Shifflett doubled home Gillaspy to score MWSU’s final run of the game.

Janie Smith fell behind 2-0 on two RBI singles by Mississippi College in the first. She locked down and allowed just one more for the game, going all seven innings and striking out seven to even her record at 1-1 on the year. Smith also went 2-3 at the plate driving in one. She was the only Griffon with more than one hit in the game.

Missouri Western wraps up the HSU/OBU Ronnie Hawkins Invitational tomorrow with two games. They take on Arkansa Monticello at 10 a.m. and play at Ouachita Baptist at 2 p.m.

— MWSU Sports Information —

Missouri State gets beat by 43 at No. 16 Wichita State

riggertMissouriStateWICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Wichita State guards Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker have had a good chemistry for some time.

So when Baker says he could see something different in VanVleet’s eyes Saturday night, it’s probably true.

“Fred just had this look in his eye like, `Shoot it,’ when he passed it to you,” Baker said. “He’s setting us up with these perfect passes, this perfect backspin, and you could tell he wanted you to make the shot.”

It was part of the reason VanVleet had the Shockers’ first triple-double in 43 years as No. 16 Wichita State routed Missouri State 78-35.

VanVleet finished with 10 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds for the Shockers (21-3, 11-1 Missouri Valley Conference). He completed the feat in just 24 minutes of playing time and knew he was close early in the second half.

“While still playing the game the right way, my guys helped me get over the hump,” he said. “It’s pretty special.”

Baker led all scorers with 17 points, while Shaquille Morris and Darius Carter added 10 each for Wichita State.

Missouri State (9-15, 3-9) has lost nine of its last 10 games and suited up just seven scholarship players due to injuries, illness and departures. Gavin Thurman led the Bears with nine points.

The Bears had not been held to 35 or fewer points since Feb. 11, 1950.

Starting point guard Dorrian Williams did not play due to symptoms from a concussion suffered Wednesday. Christian Kirk, scheduled to start at forward, also did not play due to what coach Paul Lusk called “health issues.”

“They dominated us in every way possible,” Lusk said. “We started a freshman point guard and couldn’t take him out. I’ve never been through anything like this.”

Predictably, the Shockers pressured the short-handed Bears non-stop in the first half and Missouri State turned it over nine times. And even when the Bears were able to run their offense, fatigued legs helped contribute to going 5 of 26 from the floor in the first half.

The Shockers took advantage. Three-pointers from Evan Wessel and Baker helped Wichita State to a 14-3 lead.

Missouri State got within nine, 20-11, on Loomis Gerring’s long jumper with 7:58 remaining in the half.

Wichita State went on a 17-2 run the rest of the half to lead 37-13.

“As much as I honestly feel for what Paul is going through with his roster, you want to win the game,” Shockers coach Gregg Marshall said. “We wanted to make it a track meet. That played in our favor.”

It only got worse in the second. After a Missouri State basket, Wichita State scored 12 straight.

Baker sank two 3-pointers to ignite the run. Carter converted a layup and alley-oop dunk, and Baker turned a steal into a layup.

Wichita State led 49-15 with 16:54 to play, the crowd exploded and the Bears took a timeout.

“We got tons of deflections, and we were relentless on the glass,” Marshall said.

The Shockers used 14 players, twice that of Missouri State.

“I think the past three days, the two practices and this game, have been some of our best-played basketball,” Baker said.

TRIPLE THE FUN

With 13:52 remaining in the game, VanVleet hit a 3-pointer and the crowd let out an extra cheer.

He was already at 10 rebounds and 11 assists, and the 3-pointer gave him 10 points for his triple-double. He exited soon after. He is the first Shocker with a triple-double since 1972, when Terry Benton had 20 points, 22 rebounds and 10 assists against Tulsa.

TIP-INS

Missouri State: Lusk faced his 14th ranked opponent in four seasons at Missouri State. That equals the total of the previous three Bears coaches combined. . Missouri State’s Austin Ruder drew a first-half charge on Baker. It was the first charge drawn by Missouri State since Dec. 20.

Wichita State: The Shockers have won 29 straight home games, the fourth longest active streak nationally. . Wichita State has won 10 straight against Missouri State, the longest streak in a series that dates to 1942. . Baker became the 43rd Wichita State player with at least 1,000 career points. . Wichita State’s 1965 Final Four team was recognized at halftime.

UP NEXT

Missouri State: Travels to Evansville on Tuesday.

Wichita State: Hosts Indiana State on Wednesday.

— Associated Press —

Cold-shooting Huskers lose at Penn State

NebraskariggertSTATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) — Coach Patrick Chambers made it clear he didn’t care that Penn State’s 56-43 victory over Nebraska on Saturday turned into what he called a “rock fight.”

Geno Thorpe scored 14 points, Brandon Taylor 11 and Penn State was able to take advantage of Nebraska’s cold shooting to saddle the Huskers with their sixth straight Big Ten road-game defeat.

The teams combined for just 35 first-half points before picking up the pace in the final 20 minutes. Nebraska shot 15 of 51 from the field and just 2 of 20 from 3-point range.

“It was ugly, it was a rock fight, and I’m OK with ugly, just so you know,” Chambers said.

Nebraska (13-10, 5-6 Big Ten) trailed by as many as 11 points late in the game but closed to within 44-41 before Penn State (15-9, 3-8) pulled away with just over 3 minutes to play.

“We haven’t been a very good outside-shooting team; our 3-point percentage is really low this season,” Nebraska coach Tim Miles said.

“Tonight we were 2 for 20. I didn’t think we had great sharpness or crispness on our offense.”

Nebraska was led by 13 points from Terran Petteway and 12 from Shavon Shields. That duo has averaged a combined 35 points per game this season.

“It takes a team to stop a player like that who can score at will,” Penn State’s D.J. Newbill said about Petteway. “We defended and rebounded and helped each other out, that’s what that was.”

Newbill added 11 points for Penn State and moved to fourth place on Penn State’s career scoring chart with 1,609 points. He is just the second player in the program’s history to score 500 points in three consecutive seasons.

Nebraska’s pressure defense forced Penn State into seven second-half turnovers — 16 overall — and put the Lions on their heels in the second half.

“I’m not sure how many turnovers we had but we were throwing the ball all over the gym,” Penn State’s Thorpe said. “We stick to our game plan and try to play solid defense.”

The Lions were 19 of 44 from the floor and 9 of 21 from long range. They outrebounded Nebraska 39-26 as Newbill and Jordan Dickerson each had six.

“We didn’t make shots, we turned ball over, but we kept a great attitude; the defense was terrific,” Chambers said.

Seven early, second-half points from Thorpe and 3-pointers from Garner and Taylor helped Penn State open a 37-17 lead before Tarin Smith and Petteway put up seven straight to cut the gap to 13.

The Huskers’ momentum continued when Smith popped a 10-footer along the baseline and Penn State went on a scoring drought of its own for more than 7 minutes. Nebraska closed to 37-29 to force a Penn State timeout.

The Huskers stayed close with two free throws from Walter Pitchford, a layup from Tai Webster and a long 3 from Petteway to make it 44-41.

“It’s important for us to go through that and to be able to respond the way we did was good to see,” Chambers said.

Nebraska was 4 of 23 from the field and 1 of 9 from long range in the opening half. The Huskers were scoreless from 15:43 to the 5:10 mark and after that hit two free throws until David Rivers rebounded Benny Parker’s missed 3-pointer and put in layup at the first-half buzzer.

“There was real opportunity lost the first eight or 10 minutes of the game,” Miles said. “I thought our defense was really good.”

TIP INS

Nebraska: Terran Petteway became Nebraska’s 27th 1,000-point scorer and the second to eclipse that mark this week. Shavon Shields went over 1,000 on Tuesday in a win against Northwestern. . Petteway, if he maintains his current averages of 19 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists, will become one of just four Big Ten players since 2000 to accomplish that.

Penn State: The Lions have not allowed more than 66 points in their last six games. . D.J. Newbill’s 1,609 career points ranks ninth among active Division I players.

UP NEXT

Nebraska is at home against No. 5 Wisconsin on Tuesday.

Penn State travels to No. 20 Ohio State on Wednesday.

WOEFUL OFFENSE

Nebraska recently scored 42 points against Minnesota and 44 against Michigan.

FAMILIAR FACE

Nebraska coach Tim Miles first faced Penn State’s Newbill when Miles coached at Colorado State and Newbill played for Southern Mississippi.

— Associated Press —

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