KANSAS CITY -- Nebraska held on for a 61-56 win over Missouri in the opening round of the Big 12 Conference men's basketball tournament Thursday at the Sprint Center.
The win puts the seventh-seeded Huskers into Friday evening's quarterfinal with second-seeded Kansas, but more important is that it pretty much guarantees the 19-11 Huskers a trip to a postseason tournament, most likely the NIT.
The Huskers took a 30-28 halftime lead when Cookie Miller drove the length of the floor and found Steve Harley, who let the tie-breaking jumper go as the buzzer sounded. Nebraska never trailed after that, but Missouri kept it interesting up to the very end.
Down by three, Missouri had two chances in the final 30 seconds to tie the game but were unable to. Jay-R Strowbridge hit a pair of free throws with 8.8 seconds left to put the game out of reach.
Aleks Maric finished with 17 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks, including a key one in the final seconds. Harely added 14 points. Keon Lawrence led Missouri with 15 points, and Matt Lawrence added 12.
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