LINCOLN — When Nebraska’s Toney McCray faces a basketball opponent from his home state of Texas, good things often happen.

Last year, playing mostly as a backup, the sophomore wing from Missouri City, Texas, had:

• A career-high 18 points and four rebounds in a win at Baylor.

• Eight points and five rebounds in a win over Texas.

• Nine points and five rebounds in a win at TCU.

With TCU (2-1) coming to the Devaney Center at 1 p.m. today, McCray expects his fire to burn a little hotter than usual.

“I don’t know why,’’ he said Friday. “It’s probably because I played against some of these guys in high school. It’s always fun to go against some guys you know.’’

McCray bounced off the bench Wednesday night at Saint Louis with NU trailing 7-0. He scored the Huskers’ first two baskets and finished the half with seven points and five rebounds in 14 minutes.

But his help in cutting the halftime deficit to one point couldn’t prevent a 69-55 loss that dropped Nebraska to 1-1.

Post-loss practices tend to involve some high-volume suggestions from Doc Sadler. McCray said the head coach didn’t disappoint Thursday.

“He was fired up,’’ McCray said. “You could see he was anticipating that practice all morning.

“We worked on offense more than usual. He wanted us to work on how we handled the ball and swinging the ball side to side and our time of possession.’’

Time of possession? Isn’t that a football-only term?

Not to Sadler. With the college game becoming so physical that scoring opportunities are more precious, it’s a number worth managing.

“We gave Saint Louis the basketball for 27 minutes to our 13,’’ he said. “That’s ridiculous. That’s ridiculous on my part, and that’s ridiculous on the players’ part to not respect people more than that.’’

While Sadler preaches patience, he knows that the concept applies to him, too, as he deals with a team that has eight newcomers.

“I think it’s pretty good,’’ he said when asked about his own patience. “I have my moments.

“If you were to ask (seniors Ryan Anderson and Sek Henry), it’s a lot better than in the past. That doesn’t mean it’s going to stay that way.’’

McCray said he expects a good bounce-back effort today against TCU, which has defeated Mid-American Christian 74-69 and Cal State Northridge 83-65 and lost to Arizona State 52-49.

“Coach isn’t going to let us come out any slower than we did against Saint Louis,’’ he said. “A loss like that makes you realize your mistakes and makes you humble.’’

Injury report

The fat lip is noticeable, and he’s wearing some dental hardware. But Nebraska freshman forward Jorge Brian Diaz plans to play today after having both front teeth pushed in to the point of nearly losing them Wednesday night.

“It was an elbow,’’ Diaz said Friday. “He was clearing a rebound and hit me. I didn’t feel too much pain.’’

Treatment for his teeth and a cut in his mouth limited Diaz to four minutes of playing time. He went scoreless.

Tourney talk

Nebraska has nabbed a spot in next season’s Puerto Rico Tip-Off Classic in San Juan.

The other seven teams: North Carolina, Minnesota, West Virginia, Western Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Davidson and Hofstra. The tourney is set for the weekend before Thanksgiving 2010.

Three home games also are already set for 2010-11: USC, TCU and Creighton.

Contact the writer:

444-1024, lee.barfknecht@owh.com

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