• John Cook at the midweek press conference:



LINCOLN — Turns out that whole “November to Remember” spiel was a smashing success.

Heading into the NCAA tournament, No. 7 Nebraska is the hottest team in the Big 12. The Huskers have swept their past seven matches, and their first-half struggles seem just a distant memory.

Consider these two remarkable facts:

• For the first time in program history, Nebraska avoided dropping a single set during the final month of the regular season. That's right, even the most dominant NU teams during the past three decades never strung together this many sweeps going into the postseason.

• The Huskers have been passing the ball at such a high level, they haven't given up an ace serve in their past five matches. No Nebraska team in the 14-year history of Big 12 play has gone that long without being aced.

True, the cynic might point out that Nebraska — which lost to No. 2 Texas twice — didn't play the Longhorns last month. But the Huskers did sweep fifth-ranked Iowa State on the road and then-No. 21 Baylor in Lincoln. NU also managed 3-0 wins over Texas A&M, Missouri, Kansas State and Colorado — clubs that have a history of playing well against the Huskers regardless of their records.

But now that November is in the books, the Huskers' top mission is to avoid having a December they'll want to forget. John Cook knows that Nebraska will get tested every time it takes the court from here on out. Still, the coach doesn't think his team has peaked, and he wants his players to remain loose but confident.

“I want them to believe that they have a chance to have a great postseason,” Cook said. “They've earned the right to expect that.

“I feel like, when everybody is on, we're as good as anyone in the country. It's hard to do every night, but I think we have that potential. And I think (the players) are figuring that out.”

The Huskers open the tournament Friday night at the Coliseum against Coastal Carolina, a Big South Conference school making its first NCAA appearance since 1998.

Should Nebraska win, it would host a second-round match at 5 p.m. Saturday against 20th-ranked Northern Iowa or Washington State.

The Panthers won all 20 of their Missouri Valley contests, and their 28-match winning streak is the program's longest since 1999. UNI has made the postseason four straight years, starting in 2006 when it lost a second-round match to the Huskers in Lincoln.

The Cougars are back in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2002. Led by former South Dakota State coach Andrew Palileo, WSU finished eighth in the powerhouse Pac-10. The Cougars have wins over No. 6 Washington, 15th-ranked Southern California and No. 19 Arizona.

Two victories this weekend would advance NU to the Dec. 11 and 12 NCAA regional at Qwest Center Omaha. The Huskers have made it to the third round of the tournament an NCAA-best 15 straight seasons.

“We're just going to emphasize taking it one match at a time and not looking ahead,” said Kayla Banwarth, Nebraska's junior libero. “Because if you look ahead, that's when it gets scary. As leaders, we're going to focus on just relaxing. If you focus on the big picture, that's when you get overwhelmed.”

• NOTES: In a flurry of recruiting activity last weekend for the class of 2011, Nebraska received a commitment from junior Taylor Simpson, a promising 6-foot-3 outside hitter from Doherty High School in Colorado Springs. At the same time, Haley Eckerman, from Waterloo, Iowa, announced that she plans to join Texas. Projected as the country's top recruit for the class of 2011, Eckerman, a 6-foot-3 outside hitter, reportedly had narrowed her choices to Texas and NU.

Contact the writer:

444-1207, chad.purcell@owh.com

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