Men's Basketball vs. Kansas

Feb. 25, 2001

Senior guard Cookie Belcher scored a career-high 29 points and tied a Nebraska record for three-pointers, but the effort wasn't enough, as the Huskers fell to No. 10/11 Kansas, 78-74, here Sunday in Big 12 action.

Nebraska (13-14, 6-8 Big 12) fell behind by 12 points with 11:43 to play in the second half before Belcher caught fire from behind the arc. The Mexico, Mo., native hit three-pointers on consecutive trips down the court to make it a six-point deficit, before KU's Kenny Gregory hit back-to-back three-pointers of his own to put the lead back up to 10, 61-51, with just over eight minutes to play.

Junior guard Cary Cochran then hit three treys in just under three minutes to cut the lead to five, 67-62. The Huskers then slowly pulled back within three, 74-71, as Belcher connected on a jumper with 47 seconds remaining. Nick Collison, who led the Jayhawks with 22 points and five blocked shots, was then fouled and hit the first of his free throws to make it a four-point game.

On the ensuing free throw, Collison missed it short and Kirk Hinrich grabbed the rebound to keep Kansas (21-5, 10-4) in control. Hinrich was fouled with 13 ticks left on the clock and, just like Collison, hit the first and missed the second, with Collison getting the rebound to keep possession in KU's favor. Hinrich was then fouled and hit a pair of shots to give Kansas a seven-point cushion.

With just eight seconds remaining, the Huskers moved the ball up the court and got it to Belcher on the wing, where he drained his seventh three-pointer of the game to get NU back within four, 78-74, but that was all the Huskers could manage. The seven treys tied a Nebraska single-game record set by Chris Cresswell in 1991 and Cochran in 1999, while setting a new mark for three-pointers made against a conference opponent.

Belcher's hot shooting in the first half kept NU in the game, as the Huskers trailed by just five, 36-31, at the intermission. Belcher opened the game with a trey at the 19:17 mark to give NU a 3-2 lead before finishing with 14 points at the break. The lead changed 13 times in the game, all in the first half, as KU took the lead for good when Gregory hit a three-pointer with 3:54 to play before the break.

Along with his career-high scoring effort, Belcher added four steals on the day, moving into sole possession of fourth place on the NCAA career steals list. He now has 346 career steals, and needs just two more to take over third place.

Joining Belcher, senior Kimani Ffriend collected his eighth double-double of the conference season, and ninth overall of the year, as he had 11 points and 11 rebounds for the Huskers. Senior Steffon Bradford nearly joined Ffriend in the double-double category, as Bradford had 12 poitns and nine rebounds, while Cochran finished with 14 points and four assists.

Nebraska hit just 40.3 percent from the floor -- including a lethargic 31.3 percent in the first half -- for its worst shooting performance in 14 games, and fourth-lowest percentage of the season. The Huskers added at least 18 assists for a fourth straight game, while tying the season low for turnovers with 12.

Collison led KU with 22 points, while Hinrich nearly had a triple-double, as he finished with 20 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds. Gregory added 16 points and a team-high nine rebounds.

The Huskers will be back in action on Wednesday, Feb. 28, as NU plays host to Texas A&M at the Devaney Sports Center. The Huskers and Aggies will tip off at 7:05 p.m., and the game will mark the last home contest for five NU basketball seniors.

Source: University of Nebraska Sports Information