Huskers come up short at Texas
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BY BRIAN ROSENTHAL / Lincoln Journal Star
AUSTIN, Texas — Aleks Maric thought he had the ball.
So did Sek Henry. So did Doc Sadler.
“Yeah,” Sadler said, “didn’t you?”
Sadler, the Nebraska men’s basketball coach, then continued the line of questioning in his postgame news conference.
“What would’ve happened? Would we have made or missed the three?” Sadler said, grinning.
As he left the front table, Sadler answered.
“We’d have made it.”
Nobody will ever know.
Texas’ Justin Mason tipped his teammates’ errant inbounds pass away from Maric near mid-court with 10 seconds left and Nebraska trailing by two.
Sek Henry and Mason dove for the loose ball, Henry was called for a foul, and Mason made two free throws. That saved No. 9 Texas in a 70-66 victory Tuesday night before 10,479 fans at the Erwin Center.
“I don’t know where he came from, man,” said Maric, who led Nebraska with 17 points and 10 rebounds. “I thought I had it.”
Henry had pulled Nebraska within 68-66 on a driving basket with 12 seconds left. Connor Atchley then lofted an inbounds pass toward the Texas end of the court.
It sure looked destined for the 6-foot-11 Maric, who got his hands on the ball.
“I started to throw it as I caught it, in the same action,” Maric said, “and he made a cornerback play, for real.”
That play ended Nebraska’s hopes for a stunning upset, and with it, possible NCAA Tournament bubble talk.
The Huskers (17-11, 6-9 Big 12 Conference) forced three ties in the second half after they’d trailed by 17 points. A 15-0 first-half Texas run had erased an early seven-point lead for Nebraska.
“That effort in the second half,” Maric said, “was incredible.”
Nebraska did it with a season-high 10 three-pointers, coming on 21 attempts, which tied a season high.
“Just taking what they gave us on offense,” said Anderson, who scored 14 points and was 4-of-6 from three-point range. “Being patient on offense, knocking down shots.”
Anderson, Paul Velander and Steve Harley each had a three-pointer that helped cut UT’s lead to 45-39 with 14:32 remaining.
“You could tell they were feeling pretty good,” Texas coach Rick Barnes said. “Doc does a great job and he gets as much out of his players as anybody we play against.”
Nebraska forced ties at 50 and 52, and after Texas went back up by seven, fought back for a 61-61 tie, that coming when Maric scored on a lob from Henry with 1:38 to play.
A.J. Abrams broke the tie, hitting a second-chance three-pointer with 41 seconds left. It came after Damion James rebounded a missed shot by D.J. Augustin. Texas extended its lead to five before a three-pointer by Henry kept Nebraska alive, setting up the final seconds.
“What a shot Abrams made,” Sadler said. “It’s not like you don’t know that’s what’s going to take place. Abrams, Augustin — one of the two’s going to make a play.”
Augustin, the sophomore point guard, had 22 points, even though Nebraska limited his penetration and held him to no layups, and no driving baskets. It was part of Sadler’s plan — double-team him on ball screens and not leave him until he shot or passed.
Well, he shot — and connected. He was 9-of-16 from the field — 8-of-10 at one point — with a barrage of mid-range jumpers and four three-pointers.
Texas (25-5, 12-3) had only four two-point baskets in the second half but made six three-pointers. That didn’t keep Nebraska from making the folks in orange squirm and grumble with its gritty comeback.
“I don’t think we were sluggish,” Augustin said. “Nebraska just came to play.”
Briefly
Sadler said freshman point guard Cookie Miller will return in time for the Big 12 Tournament. Miller missed his third straight game with a sprained shoulder but suited Tuesday for the first time in those three games. Without him, the Huskers had only 10 turnovers against the Horns — three in the second half.
Reach Brian Rosenthal at 473-7436 or brosenthal@journalstar.com.
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