Huskers Lasso Cowpokes

Ragged? Yes. Sloppy? Yes. Boring? Sometimes. Regardless of the knocks on the NU basketball team's 65-54 win over a disheveled Oklahoma State team, it counts as a win. And most importantly, the win came in pure Doc Sadler Style: holding the Cowboys to 36 percent shooting from the field, contesting every shot and scrapping enough on the boards to control the game.

Not many statistics jump out to one's eye when scanning the game's box score, save a couple.

1. Lance Jeter with 16 points, only two assists but just three turnovers in 32 minutes as the team's only legitimate ball handler.

2. Caleb Walker racking up seven rebounds and leading the team on the glass, despite being only 6' 5". JB Diaz was second with six.

3. NU shooting 83 percent from the line, going 15 for 18. Just as PYB thought it, the OWH gave us the numbers showing the marked improvement over previous seasons. We thank them for doing our work for us....

4. Eshaunte Jones making two three pointers in the same game, which is amazing in its own right.

So is there much to analyze here? No. Nebraska was the better team. The five-point spread seemed high before the game, but it was clear the Cowboys didn't have much. Any team that shoots worse than NU from three-point range has major problems. Add to that that a starter is on the shelf for raping somebody, and winning on the road is nearly impossible.

It was the proverbial 'must-win' for the Huskers, and they got it. Now, on to Oklahoma in Norman this week in another 'do-or-die' situation as far as NU's slight NCAA tournament hopes go. The Sooners have vacillated from rancid to competitive to rancid again this season, so PYB predicts Jeff Capel's squad will play their best game of the year as most teams seem to against Nebraska. But, if Doc's boys really want to play in mid-March, they'll have to win at least two of their remaining road games at Oklahoma, Iowa State and Colorado. A tough chore for a team that can't score!

Perhaps the only thing that Okie State added to Saturday's story line was coach Travis Ford's abrupt 58-second press conference, which is surely outdone by the fact that he sounds just like Kenny Powers. Listen here, at the bottom of the page. And in the immortal words of the Jheri-curled closer, "No, actually I don't. I play real sports. Not try to be the best at exercising."