Top-ranked Kansas erases second-half deficit to beat Nebraska 75-64.

No. 1 Kansas rallies to beat Nebraska 75-64

LAWRENCE, Kan. — Cole Aldrich scored six points during a 16-1 run and No. 1 Kansas used a big second half Saturday to beat Nebraska 75-64 and stretch its home winning streak to 55.

The heavily favored Jayhawks (22-1, 8-0 Big 12) led almost the entire first half but Nebraska charged out after the break on a 10-2 tear and silenced the sellout crowd that had expected a comforting rout following consecutive overtime scares on the road.

When Jorge Brian Diaz worked inside for a bucket that gave the Cornhuskers a 43-39 lead, Kansas called a timeout and Sherron Collins followed with a 3-pointer. A Nebraska turnover gave the ball back to Kansas and Aldrich, saddled with three fouls, had a putback to get the take-charge run off and running.

Marcus Morris had 20 points as the Jayhawks beat the Huskers (13-10, 1-7) for the 24th time in 25 meetings. Diaz had 20 for Nebraska.

The Kansas lead reached its peak when Collins’ three-point play made it 67-48. Then back-to-back 3-pointers by Lance Jeter and Ryan Anderson kept the game from getting entirely out of hand.

The 55 straight home wins ties the second-best streak for the Jayhawks, who are poised to win their sixth straight Big 12 title.

Aldrich had eight points and six rebounds and failed to get a double-double for the first time in five games. But the 6-foot-11 junior was dominant when it counted. He muscled inside for a one-handed dunk and drew a third foul from Nebraska’s Quincy Hankins-Cole and sank the free throw for a 48-44 lead. A moment later, he rebounded a Nebraska miss and the raucous sellout crowd roared when Markieff Morris converted on the other end for a 50-44 lead.

Collins had 17 points and Xavier Henry nine for Kansas.

Kansas coach Bill Self was called for a technical foul in the final seconds of the first half and Brandon Richardson made one of the free throws to cut the Jayhawks’ halftime lead to 37-33. That was the only point of the day for Richardson, who fouled out with 9:55 to go after leading the Huskers in scoring the previous 13 games and putting in 18 against the Jayhawks last month.

Ryan Anderson had 12 points for the Huskers, who held their own against the taller Jayhawks on the boards but saw nine of their shots blocked, including four by Aldrich and three by Markieff Morris.

Jeff Withey, the 7-footer who has played sparingly since becoming eligible after the first semester, came in for the foul-plagued Aldrich in the first half and was instrumental in helping the Jayhawks keep the lead. After Brandon Ubel’s 3-pointer drew the Huskers to 33-29, Withey blocked Ubel’s next attempt, drew a foul and sank both foul shots. He wound up with four points, six rebounds and two blocks.