NU women’s basketball team face tough game against ISU

The Nebraska women’s basketball team hasn’t won a road game since they faced Butler University last November, the day after Thanksgiving.

It’s been a string of eight straight losses for the Huskers ever since. Tonight, Nebraska looks to end that streak with an upset over No. 21 Iowa State. The Cyclones play solid basketball inside the Hilton Coliseum (12-1) and usually draw large crowds.

NU sophomore Kaitlyn Burke, who notched 12 points off four 3-pointers last year at ISU, said it will be important for the Huskers to be confident heading in.

“It’s a tough place to play, but we can beat them there,” Burke said. “We did it last year; we proved it last year.”

In that game, Nebraska shot 57.1 percent from the field as it erased a 10-game losing streak in Ames, Iowa. Burke said if the whole team focuses on playing great offense and defense, NU could give No. 21 Iowa State a close game.

The Cyclones have a key statistic on their side: ISU is the sixth-best team in the Big 12 Conference with a record of 6-4 in league play and 18-6 overall. The top six squads in the league have a home record of 70-6. Five of those six losses came by five points or less. Iowa State was undefeated at home until last Sunday when the Texas Longhorns won in Ames, 55-52.

Junior Cory Montgomery said her team needs to be bigger than ISU’s coliseum.

“Iowa State is a tough place to play because they draw good crowds,” she said. “We’ve just got to stick together and overpower the crowd and the arena that we’re playing in.”

The Cyclone team the Huskers are playing is very proficient from the perimeter. Iowa State has been scorching the nets all season, connecting on a conference-high 186 three-pointers. However, ISU has attempted a league-leading 550 treys. The next highest in the Big 12 is Oklahoma State with 481.

Montgomery said NU has made ISU’s three-point threat a focal point. She said the Huskers must defend on the perimeter and get their hands up to prevent shots. It could also be difficult for the Big Red to get off any shots from as deep as Iowa State generally holds opponents – usually to 24 percent from three-point range in Big 12 action. Montgomery added ISU Coach Bill Fennelly gives his players the green light from three-point land.

“It’s one of their most lethal weapons because pretty much all their players can shoot the three,” Montgomery said. “The offense has the okay from the coach to shoot the three if they’re open.”

Nebraska will be looking to continue last year’s success from downtown against ISU. In both meetings combined, the Huskers were 19 of 36 from beyond the arc.

Burke said Iowa State has tons of fans, but the atmosphere won’t deter her from the task at hand.

“We have to stick together and play 40 minutes in this game,” she said. “I won’t be nervous because I like playing in front of a lot of people.”

jeffstraub@dailynebraskan.com