LINCOLN More than half an hour after Nebraska closed its regular season with a 55-45 victory over Iowa State, Cornhuskers' senior Danielle Page was still lingering on the court t the Devaney Sports Center.
Still in uniform, Page posed for pictures with family and friends underneath one of the baskets. With her final home game in the rear-view mirror, the 6-foot-2 forward from Monument, Colo., appeared to be soaking in every last moment.
"It's crazy," Page had said minutes before in the post-game interview room, starting to tear up. "I really enjoyed playing here."
By winning Wednesday night against the Cyclones, Nebraska almost certainly locked up a NCAA Tournament bid, meaning that Page did indeed play her final game at home. The Huskers will be the No. 6 seed for the Big 12 Conference Tournament, playing at 8:30 p.m. Tuesday against an opponent that is to be announced.
"It was a very important win for us," Nebraska coach Connie Yori said. "I think what this does is it gives us a very good chance to be a NCAA Tournament team. I think it would be hard to keep us out now."
Nebraska (20-10, 9-7 Big 12) won with stifling interior defense and timely 3-point shooting against a team from Iowa State (18-11, 7-9) that was playing to keep its NCAA Tournament hopes alive. Cyclone interior players Amanda Nisleit and Jocelyn Anderson scored four points apiece as ISU never once made it to the free-throw line.
"To be honest with you, I'm amazed the game was as close as it was at times," Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly said. "It's tough to win games when you don't get anything inside."
The Huskers held the Cyclones to 34.6 shooting percent from the field with 27 of ISU's points coming on 3-pointers. Lacey Alison scored a game-high 14 points on 4-of-6 shooting from behind the arc, while Heather Ezell added 11 points, hitting 3-of-10 treys.
Thanks to relentless defensive pressure by guards Dominique Kelley, Yvonne Turner and Tay Hester, Yori said there was little doubt that the Huskers won this one on the defensive end. Yori said Nebraska's guards made it extremely difficult for the Cyclones to even make entry passes into the post.
"I thought, for the most part, we tried to play every possession like it mattered," Yori said. "I think during the course of the game, that wore on them to a certain extent."
Nebraska led 31-21 at halftime before Iowa State closed to 33-29 on a Lacey 3-pointer with 15:01 to play. But the Huskers responded with a 13-2 run to take their largest lead of the game at 46-31 on a Nicole Neals 3-pointer with 7:45 remaining.
The Cyclones shaved their deficit to 50-41 on a 3-pointer by Anna Florzak with 2:50 left, but couldn't get any closer.
Nebraska's comfortable margin in the closing seconds allowed Yori to take Page out of the game with 7.5 seconds left. The Huskers' lone senior raised both hands into the air and acknowledged the home fans as she made her way to the bench.
"I guess it's nice to look up in the stands and see nothing but 52s flying around," said Page, who wears jersey No. 52. "I don't know it was nice."
Page didn't appear to be hampered by her emotions during her final home game. She scored Nebraska's first points on a 3-pointer and went on to tie for a team-high scoring honors with 11 points to go with five rebounds, three assists and three blocked shots, tying the single-season school record of 69 blocks.
"I was obviously very emotional when they called my name, but I think when the all went up for the tip, it was just like any other game," Page said. "You just want to win."
Turner tied Page for team-high scoring honors with 11 points. Kelsey Griffin added 10 points and seven rebounds.
Yori said Page's contributions have meant a lot to the program. She's overcome a breathing ailment and a major knee injury to help play a significant role in helping to turn the Huskers' fortunes around.
"Danielle has meant a lot to our program," Yori said. "She was part of a recruiting class where we were 1-15 in the league the year that she committed to us. Nobody really wanted to come that year. It was difficult to recruit when you're 1-15 and she committed to us."
And Yori's certainly glad Page did.
"She's a great kid who's one of our hardest workers in our program," Yori said. "For her to finish off a career at home like we've done here the last couple of games, I think it's very meaningful for all of us who know Danielle."
Game notes
& Wednesday night marked the third consecutive game that Nebraska has held Iowa State in the 40s at the Devaney Sports Center.
& The Huskers earned their first regular-season series sweep of Iowa State since 1995. Nebraska previously defeated the Cyclones 82-72 back on Jan. 19 at Ames, Iowa, for their first win in 10 years at the Hilton Coliseum.
& Nebraska finished with 16 assists and just nine turnovers after turning the ball over at least 20 times in each of its last three games.
& Yori collected her 300th career college coaching victory. She has 105 wins in six seasons at Nebraska, 169 wins in 10 seasons at Creighton and 25 wins in two seasons at NCAA Division II Loras College.
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