Huskers Bounced by Bears

Durham, N.C. - Britt Prince scored a game-high 27 points, but No. 11 seed Nebraska fell to No. 6 seed Baylor, 67-62, in the first round of the NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Friday afternoon.

Prince hit 8-of-19 shots from the field, including 3-of-7 three-pointers, while going 8-for-8 at the free throw line. The first-team All-Big Ten sophomore point guard from Omaha scored 22 in the second half alone, while adding four rebounds and two assists in one of Nebraska's top individual efforts all-time in NCAA Tournament play.

With the loss, Nebraska ended its season with a 19-13 overall record after advancing to its third consecutive NCAA Tournament. The Huskers, who earned a first-round appearance after a 75-56 win over fellow No. 11 seed Richmond at Duke Wednesday night, led 50-41 after a Prince three-pointer on the opening possession of the fourth quarter.

AP No. 21 Baylor, which improved to 25-8 on the season, answered with a 7-0 run to trim the margin to 50-48, before Jessica Petrie sank a three-pointer to push the margin back to 53-48 with 5:30 left.

However, Baylor answered with an 8-0 run to take a 56-53 lead, before Prince hit a pair of free throws with 2:52 left.

Prince continued to score down the stretch to keep Nebraska close, but the Bears kept the Huskers at arm's length before Taliah Scott sank two free throws with five seconds left to make the final margin.

Scott, one of the nation's leading scorers, led Baylor with 15 points but scored most of her points at the free throw line on 9-of-12 shooting. The Husker defense held her to just 3-for-12 shooting from the field, including 0-for-8 from beyond the arc.

Darianna Littlepage-Buggs and Jana Van Gytenbeek supplied crucial support to Scott, keeping the Bears afloat, while Nebraska was building its nine-point lead. Littlepage-Buggs finished with 13 points and 12 rebounds, while Van Gytenbeek contributed 12 points and two of Baylor's four three-pointers in the game.

Nissley provided Nebraska with a huge offensive lift in the first half, scoring all 11 of her points to help the Huskers take a 28-27 halftime lead. Nissley added eight big rebounds in the game. Petrie put three Huskers in double figures with 10 points, but her controversial flagrant foul after what was initially called a jump ball changed the trajectory of the final minutes.

The flagrant foul, which was called upon review with the score tied at 53, resulted in the go-ahead free throws by Scott with 3:48 left. It also wiped out a possession for the Huskers, after Petrie had secured a defensive rebound. Nebraska did not lead again.

Amiah Hargrove played tough for the Huskers with six points and a team-high 11 rebounds, while Kennadi Williams bothered Scott throughout the game defensively. Williams finished with a team-high six assists.

Senior Callin Hake also provided five of Nebraska's first seven points in the first quarter to close out her Husker career.

In a gritty defensive slugfest, Nebraska finished just 20-of-59 from the field (.339), but connected on 9-of-21 three-pointers (.429). The Huskers were also 13-of-15 at the free throw line (.867). NU also won the turnover battle 16-15.

Baylor finished 21-of-57 from the floor (.368), but just 4-for-21 from long range (.190), but won the game at the line by hitting 21-of-29 free throws (.724). The Bears also won the battle of the boards, 43-33.

Nissley led Nebraska back from a 19-8 deficit with just over a minute remaining in the first quarter by hitting a trio of three-pointers. Nissley stopped a 10-0 Baylor run with her three-pointer with one minute left, then scored eight big points in the second quarter to match Baylor's team total in the period. 

Nebraska outscored Baylor 17-8 in the second quarter and took its first lead of the game on a three-pointer by Prince with 1:15 left in the half. Petrie followed with a steal at the top of the key and a run-out layup to give the Big Red a 28-25 edge with just under a minute left in the first half. 

Nebraska hit just 9-of-31 shots from the floor in the first half, but knocked down 6-of-13 three-pointers and all four of its free throws. The Huskers held Baylor to 11-of-31 shooting, but just 2-of-13 three-pointers, while the Bears hit 3-of-5 free throws. Baylor outrebounded the Big Red 22-17, but Nebraska won the first-half turnover battle 9-6 and outscored the Bears 14-6 in points off those turnovers. BU outscored the Huskers 11-2 in second-chance points.