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Mar. 2, 2011
 
Moore's 23 points helps in rally but falls short.
 
Lincoln — Lindsey Moore continued her spectacular play with 23 points and nine assists, but Colorado made the plays in the final minute to escape with a 64-61 women's basketball win over Nebraska on Wednesday at the Devaney Center.

With the loss, Nebraska slipped to 13-16 overall and 3-12 in the Big 12, while Colorado clinched postseason eligibility by improving to 15-13 overall and 6-9 in the league.

Moore scored Nebraska's final bucket with 54 seconds left to give NU a 61-60 lead, but a basket by Julie Seabrook with 22.3 seconds left and a pair of Brittany Spears' free throws with 3.7 seconds left sealed NU's fate. Spears finished with 20 points and nine rebounds for Colorado, including a three-pointer with 44 seconds left to end a 10-0 NU run and give CU a 60-59 edge.

It was the fourth time this season that Nebraska led 61-60 with five minutes or less left in the game and lost. Three have come in Big 12 Conference play.

Nebraska trailed by 12 points at 37-25 early in the second half, before Moore led the Huskers back with her third straight 20-point effort. She scored 17 in the second half and added four second-half assists to fuel an NU rally.

NU pulled even for the first time in the second half on a pair of Harleen Sidhu free throws with 9:24 left to tie the game at 45. CU responded with six straight points from Chucky Jeffery to push the lead back to 57-49 with 5:12 to play. Jeffery finished with 13 points points, six rebounds and four assists off the bench for the Buffaloes.

Moore then scored five straight for NU, including a traditional three-point play and a pair of free throws, before finding Jordan Hooper in the corner for the game-tying three-pointer with 1:41 to play to make it 57-all.

Moore then hit a layup with 54 seconds left to give NU a 59-57 lead, before a Spears go-ahead three. Moore answered with another layup with 34 seconds left for NU's final lead of the game.

Moore, who had a hand in each of Nebraska's last nine made field goals in the game, had a hand in 18 of NU's 22 field goal attempts on the night. Her nine assists came against just two turnovers while playing the full 40 minutes for the 14th time this season. She went 9-for-20 from the field, including 1-for-5 from three-point range, and made all four of her free throws.

Catheryn Redmon added her sixth double-double of the year and ninth of her career on Senior Night in Lincoln. The 6-3 senior center from Grand Prairie, Texas, powered in a career-high 19 points while adding 10 rebounds and a pair of blocked shots. Her two blocks moved her career total to 208, which moved her into second on NU's career list.

Hooper, a 6-2 freshman forward from Alliance, Neb., added 10 points, six rebounds and a career-high three blocked shots on the night. Sophomore Katya Leick added five points and five rebounds off the bench, but sophomore forward Meghin Williams was the only other Husker to hit a field goal in the game.

Dominique Kelley, who has missed NU's last 13 games with a knee injury, drew a ceremonial start on Senior Night and was subbed out to a standing ovation just eight seconds into the game. Kelley averaged 15.0, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in NU's first 11 games as a starter this season. An honorable-mention All-Big 12 pick a year ago, Kelley started the first 109 games of her NU career.

She was also on the floor for the final 3.7 seconds, inbounding the ball to Moore to initiate the last shot. Moore got a clean look from about 30 feet on the right side, but her attempt missed wide left.

Britney Blythe helped CU with 11 points on 4-of-5 shooting from the field, including a 3-of-4 effort from three-point range. Seabrook finished with seven points on 3-of-4 shooting including a three-pointer to open the game for Buffs and the game-winning shot with 22.3 seconds left. Meagan Malcolm-Peck added six points and six rebounds for CU.

CU finished the night hitting 42.1 percent (24-57) from the field, including 9-of-22 from three-point range. The Buffs also hit 7-of-10 free throws and outrebounded NU, 39-36.

Nebraska hit 36.7 percent (22-6) of its shots on 11-of-30 shooting in both halves. The Huskers hit just 4-of-15 three-pointers, but hit 13-of-17 free throws. NU also won the turnover battle, 16-10.

In a back and forth first half, the score changed hands seven times and was tied for additional times - the last coming at 25 with 5:12 left.

But Nebraska went cold in the final five minutes of the half, missing its last seven shots from the field and a pair of free throws, as Colorado closed the half on a 10-0 run.

The last points for the Buffaloes came on a 55-footer from beyond the "N" logo at halfcourt that banked in for a three-pointer as time expired.

CU hit 45.2 percent (14-31) of its shots from the field, including 6-of-15 three-pointers and its lone free throw, while outrebounding NU, 20-17.

The Huskers, who had matched the Buffs by hitting 11-of-23 shots to open the game, finished at 11-of-30 (36.7 percent), but hit just 1-of-6 three-pointers. NU was 2-for-4 at the line and committed just seven turnovers compared to eight for CU.

Redmon led all first-half scorers with 12 points, all coming in the game's first eight minutes. Moore added six points and five assists in the first half, while Leick contributed five points off the bench, including NU's lone three.

Spears led CU with nine first-half points, while Jeffery managed seven in the final 10:20 of the half.

Nebraska wraps up its 2010-11 regular season on the road when the Huskers take on No. 5 Texas A&M at Reed Arena in College Station on Saturday. Tip-off between the Huskers and Aggies is set for 7 p.m., with free live audio from the Husker Sports Network on Huskers.com.

Source: University of Nebraska Athletic Dept.