No. 2 Kansas hits season-high 13 3s in 86-66 win
By ERIC OLSON
AP Sports Writer
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) -- Brady Morningstar scored a season-high 19 points and made five of second-ranked Kansas' season-best 13 3-pointers in an 86-66 victory over Nebraska on Saturday.
The Jayhawks played without Josh Selby, their most accurate 3-point shooter who sat out with an injured right foot.
Markieff Morris made a career-high three 3s and Tyrel Reed added three more as the Jayhawks beat Nebraska for the 17th time in a row and handed the Cornhuskers their first loss in 15 home games.
Morris had 17 points, Marcus Morris added 16 and Tyrel Reed 14 for Kansas (22-1, 7-1 Big 12).
Brandon Richardson scored 16 points, Toney McCray had 11 and Caleb Walker and Lance Jeter 10 apiece for the Huskers (15-7, 3-5).
The Devaney Sports Center's first sellout crowd since 2008 began thinning when the Jayhawks started to wear down the Huskers. Kansas called timeout with 10:07 left, after the Huskers had pulled to 60-54. The Jayhawks then went on a 15-3 run to seal it.
Nebraska was held to three field goals after the timeout, with two coming in the final 2 minutes after the game was out of reach.
Nebraska came in confident after giving the Jayhawks a scare in Lawrence on Jan. 15. The Huskers had 10-point leads twice in the second half and missed a tying 3-pointer at the buzzer in a 63-60 loss.
Kansas was in control throughout in the teams' final regular-season meeting as members of the Big 12. The Huskers head to the Big Ten next season.
The Jayhawks made 10 or more 3-pointers in a game for the third time this season. They shot 54.2 percent on 3s, and more than half their 25 total field goals came from long range.
But they weren't able to finish off the Huskers until the last 5 minutes.
McCray hit a 3-pointer and Jeter scored to make it a six-point game midway through the second half.
Tyshawn Taylor drove the baseline for a basket and Markieff Morris hit his third 3 to start the decisive run for the Jayhawks.
Nebraska's big men got in foul trouble. Brandon Ubel fouled out late and Jorge Brian Diaz played most of the second half with four fouls.
The Huskers gave the 13,602 fans plenty to cheer in the first half.
McCray's 3-pointer pulled Nebraska to 27-24, bringing the crowd to its feet and raising the noise level. After Marcus Morris' shot at the other end rimmed out, what would have been McCray's tying 3-pointer barely nicked the rim.
The 6-foot-11, 310-pound Andre Almeida, who got his first start since Nov. 18, blocked Marcus Morris' shot from underneath, and the fans were juiced after Tyrel Reed couldn't get a shot off before the 35-second clock expired.
Nebraska trailed 32-30 after Diaz cut through the lane and converted Jeter's bounce pass into an easy layup.
But Morningstar and Reed hit 3s during a 10-2 run that gave the Jayhawks a double-digit lead. Kansas was up 42-34 at the half, though the Huskers might have been closer had they not missed three layups.
Kansas beat the Huskers for the 26th time in 27 meetings since 1999. Kansas was 31-3 against the Huskers since the Big 12 started play in 1996, and the Jayhawks lead the overall series 170-71.
Updated February 5, 2011