KANSAS CITY, Mo. — On Wednesday, bottom-seeded Nebraska upset a 22-win Missouri team receiving votes in the Top 25.

At 2 p.m. Thursday, the Huskers face No. 23 Texas A&M in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 tournament.

Is another upset possible?

Texas A&M associate head coach Scott Spinelli, feverishly scribbling notes while scouting NU on Wednesday, hopes not.

“Man, they looked great,'' said Spinelli, a former Husker assistant. “They really played well.''

Nebraska (15-17) played well earlier this season against Texas A&M (22-8). In the league opener Jan. 9 in College Station, the Huskers led with 9:09 to play before falling 64-53.

For NU, it was the first Big 12 game for eight newcomers.

“We played them when I felt we were young,'' Husker point guard Lance Jeter said. “Tomorrow is going to be a different story. I feel we've got a good chance.''

Taking blame

Missouri coach Mike Anderson said the upset loss to Nebraska was a coaching problem.

“I didn't have our guys prepared,'' he said. “You never know how guys are going to come out. So we talked about that.

“But I thought Nebraska was much hungrier than our team. They played hard. They got every loose ball. I thought they played looser. They played with nothing to lose.''

Missouri isn't exactly racing into the NCAA tournament with momentum.

In the past four games, the Tigers lost by 10 to Kansas State, nipped Iowa State in overtime, lost by 21 to Kansas and lost by 15 to Nebraska.

“I think we're a much better team than we displayed today,'' Anderson said. “But these guys have done a tremendous job. They've overachieved.''

Bits and pieces

• Nebraska never trailed Missouri. In their previous two games, the Huskers had led for only 24 seconds out of 80 minutes.

• The Huskers' 75 points and 56 percent shooting were school bests in Big 12 tourney play.

• NU was only the fourth team to shoot better than 50 percent against Missouri.

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