Slip Slidin' Away

What do we take away from NU's near-miss upset bid in Lawrence Saturday? PYB takes away the fact that NU didn't make enough plays. That despite burying its weaknesses for the first 2/3 of the game, those weaknesses arose at just the wrong time and doused the Husker hopes of ending KU's 68-game home win streak:

-The Huskers missed several defensive rotations, which gave the Jayhawks dunks and wide-open threes. At one point, KU had dunks on four straight possessions.

-Brandon Ubel was beaten on two straight trips, mostly because he can't physically compete against Big 12 competition.

-Brandon Richardson missed the front end of a one-and-one with the Huskers trailing 60-58.

-Brian Diaz was once again AWOL for NU, as Andre Almeida looked to be the team's best option at center right now. Diaz is playing with little confidence and actually looks like he might be weaker than he was last season as a freshman. Doc Sadler desperately needs Diaz to increase his production if the team harbors any chance at an 8-8 conference record.

Just as the NU defense started breaking down, Lance Jeter started breaking inside and getting Diaz easy field goal chances. He missed or was blocked on all of them, and finished the game 4/14 from the field and is 9/32 from the field in Big 12 play. We'll see how fundamentally sound Sadler's staff's teaching is, as the misses all stem from Diaz not squaring his shoulders on his turnaround moves.

PYB, while tracking the score from the golf course, heard from multiple sources via text message that NU got screwed by the zebras---highly believable considering the Jayhawks' track record of receiving aid from the officials in bailout situations. However, upon viewing the DVR, there was just once bad call in the last eight minutes and KU missed the front end of the one-and-one.

This loss was more about NU matching up well with its opponent, and then just blowing the game because of the name on the opponents' jerseys. KU's guard play is far from Top-5 material, and Tyrel Reed (white guy named Tyrel, huh??) and Brady Morningstar will get worked in the NCAA Tournament. The four Jayhawk guards totaled 26 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Not good.

The Morris brothers are far from athletic, despite beating up on NU's overmatched big men with some late dunks. That won't happen against a good team with an athletic front line (hello, second-round loss to an average SEC team). Hell, it might not even happen in the NU-KU rematch in Lincoln. The Huskers match up well....as does any team with a pulse....against Bill Self's most overrated Jayhawk squad in years. And that's saying a lot.

Doc's crew has NO time to feel sorry for itself. There were plenty of positive signs the last two games, as NU showed it ultimately won't back down from superior competition and can keep games close for all 40 minutes. But there are enough trouble spots (three point shooting and defense, timidity on both sides of the ball, poor post play) to make the Huskers realize that the game against Colorado Wednesday is no easy task.

The Buffs are 3-0 in the Big 12 after beating Okie State Saturday. Keeping two road games close against rated teams doesn't translate to an automatic home win against CU. Nebraska is still too mediocre offensively for any game to be a breeze. But the team's tough defense (despite three-point breakdowns) will keep it in every game, and it looks more and more like they are just one difference maker from being very competitive.

Is Doc closer than most think? We'll know more after Wednesday night, as the difference between 2-2 and 1-3 in conference play is enormous. Stay tuned.