Saturday Morning Sports – Bearcats Sweep Buena Vista, Kearney Basketball Doubleheader Today, Joseph Removed from Huskers, Storm Fall to Stars, Husker Basketball Preview, Lopers Split HSC With Newman, Saturday Football Schedule, Local Sports Preview

BEARCATS SWEEP BUENA VISTA; WRAP UP WEEKEND BEFORE HOLIDAY BREAK:

The Kearney Bearcat teams dominated Omaha Buena Vista in the Metro on Friday night, as the girls closed out the Bison 64-8 and the boys won 75-20. Full recaps of the contests can be found online at KGFW.com.

A split day for the Bearcats comes before closing out this December stretch entering the holiday season. The Kearney boys take on Elkhorn North at Hastings College for the Heartland Hoops Holiday Classic at 1:20 PM. Meanwhile, the Bearcat girls face off against Papillion-LaVista tonight at Kearney High School at 5:15 PM. 

Join Austin Jacobsen for the call of the boys contest with pregame at 1 PM while the girls game can be heard with Alex Hammeke on the call beginning at 5 PM. Tune in to coverage on 1340 KGFW, 96.1 FM, on the free KGFW mobile app, and online at KGFW.com.

JOSEPH OFFICIALLY REMOVED FROM HUSKERS ATHLETIC STAFF:

Nebraska football and the university have cut ties with Mickey Joseph, the Huskers’ former interim head coach who was arrested in November and is facing felony charges stemming from allegations of domestic violence.

Nebraska initially placed Joseph on administrative leave following his arrest, but he has now officially been dismissed.

Joseph was arrested by the Lincoln Police Department on Nov. 30 and was later charged with felony assault by strangulation or suffocation. Joseph is accused of strangling his wife, pulling her hair and punching her, according to a police affidavit. Joseph, who denied assaulting and strangling his wife, is facing up to three years in jail. He was released on bail on Dec. 1 and is scheduled for his next court appearance on Jan. 30.

NEBRASKA MEN HEAD TO KANSAS CITY TO FACE WILDCATS:

Following a week off for final exams, Nebraska will get another non-conference test Saturday evening, as the Huskers travel to Kansas City for a matchup with the Kansas State Wildcats. Tipoff from the T-Mobile Center is slated for 6 p.m. and the game will be available online on Big 12 Now on ESPN+ and on the Huskers Radio Network

Nebraska (6-5) looks to bounce back after a heart-breaking 65-62 overtime loss to now No. 1 Purdue last Saturday.

Kansas State (9-1) has enjoyed a surprising start under first-year coach Jermone Tang, who took over the program in April. The Wildcats, who are off to their best start in over a decade, bring a three-game win streak to Kansas City following a 98-50 win over Incarnate Word on Sunday

UNK SPLITS WITH NEWMAN AT HSC; AWAIT UCO SUNDAY:

A historic night for the Loper Women’s basketball team began the night strong but the Loper Men could not contain Newman as the UNK Basketball teams split the Friday evening matchups with the Jets. 

Super senior Klaire Kirsch reached 1,000 career points and No. 26/30 Nebraska Kearney women held Newman to seven first half points as part of a 59-35 win.

UNK improves to 11-2 (4-1) while the Jets from Wichita fall to 4-6 (1-4). The Lopers are at Newman on February 4th.

Kirsch (Rapid City) joins UNK Athletic Hall of Famers Tom Kropp (’75) and Dusty Jura (’07) as the only Lopers to go for 1k in both points and rebounds in a career.

All five starters scored in double figures to help the Newman men edge Nebraska Kearney, 74-71, Friday night.

The Jets improve to 5-6 (1-4) while UNK falls to 2-8 (0-4).

Both Loper teams host Central Oklahoma at the Health & Sports Center on Sunday. 

STORM DROP ROAD GAME TO STARS:

The Tri-City Storm dropped a road game to the Lincoln Stars Friday night at the Ice Box. 

Evan Werner, August Falloon, and Dane Dowiak scored Tri-City’s goals in the loss. 

The Storm now returns home for the organization’s annual Teddy Bear Toss game tonight. The game will also be against the Stars, and will serve as the Storm’s final game before the upcoming holiday break.

 Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05pm CT.

NEBRASKA NATIVE LEADS LOUISVILLE TO VOLLEYBALL TITLE GAME TILT WITH TEXAS:

The Texas Longhorns women’s volleyball team is in familiar territory: back in the NCAA championship match. Meanwhile, their opponent in Saturday’s final, the Louisville Cardinals, will be there for the first time, as will the ACC as a league.

Texas, the No. 1 overall seed in the tournament, beat the San Diego Toreros 3-1 on Thursday, which was followed by the Cardinals’ 3-2 win over their conference rival, the Pittsburgh Panthers.

Dani Busboom-Kelly, a Cortland, Neb. native, alum of Freeman High School in Southeast Nebraska, and former Nebraska Volleyball star from the 2006 Nebraska National Championship roster, leads the Louisville program into their first championship match.

Saturday will be the Longhorns’ eighth appearance in the NCAA title match, which ties them with UCLA for the fourth most. Only Stanford (17), Penn State (10) and Nebraska (10) have played for the NCAA championship more.

HUSKER WOMEN CLASH WITH WYOMING ON SUNDAY:

The Nebraska women’s basketball team returns to Pinnacle Bank Arena to take on Wyoming in a key non-conference clash on Sunday afternoon.

Tip-off between the Huskers (8-3, 2-0 Big Ten) and Cowgirls (6-3, 0-0 Mountain West) is set for 2 p.m. (CT) in Lincoln.

Nebraska opened its five-game home stand with back-to-back wins over Wisconsin (82-54) and Samford (71-46) before taking Finals Week off from competition.

The Huskers, who will be shooting for home win No. 500 in program history, are 5-0 at Pinnacle Bank Arena this season with all five wins by double digits. Nebraska has won 22 of its last 23 at PBA with 21 wins by double figures, including last year’s 72-61 win over Wyoming (Dec. 22, 2021).

Coach Heather Ezell brings the Wyoming Cowgirls to Lincoln with a 6-3 record while riding a four-game winning streak.

NFL SCORES/SCHEDULES:

SATURDAY:

Indianapolis Colts @ Minnesota Vikings – 12 PM

Baltimore Ravens @ Cleveland Browns – 3:30 PM

Miami Dolphins @ Buffalo Bills – 7:15 PM

NCAA BOWL GAME SCHEDULE:

Fenway Bowl: Cincinnati v. Louisville – 11 AM

Celebration Bowl: Jackson State v. N.C. Central – 12 PM

Las Vegas Bowl: #14 Oregon State v. Florida – 2:30 PM

LA Bowl: Washington State v. Fresno State – 3:30 PM

LendingTree Bowl: Rice v. Southern Mississippi – 5:45 PM

New Mexico Bowl: SMU v. BYU – 7:30 PM

Frisco Bowl: Boise State v. North Texas – 9:15 PM

Local Results & Schedules:

THIS WEEK IN LOCAL SPORTS:

FRIDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • Girls Basketball: @ Omaha Buena Vista 
    • KHS 64-8 OBV
  • Boys Basketball: @ Omaha Buena Vista
    • KHS 75-20 OBV
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • Girls Basketball: @ McCook 
    • KCHS 37-33 MHS
  • Boys Basketball: @ McCook
    • MHS 55-44 KCHS
• UNK:
  • Women’s Basketball: v. Newman @ Health & Sports Center
    • UNK 59-35 Newman
  • Men’s Basketball: v. Newman @ Health & Sports Center
    • Newman 74-71 UNK

SATURDAY:

• KEARNEY HIGH:
  • Wrestling: @ Flatwater Fracas Wrestling Tournament @ Heartland Events Center – 9:30 AM
  • Swimming & Diving: Lincoln SE Invite – 10 AM
  • Boys Basketball: v. Elkhorn North @ Hastings College – Heartland Hoops Holiday Classic – 1:20 PM
    • Pregame at 1 PM on KGFW
  • Girls Basketball: v. Papillion-LaVista @ Kearney High School – 5:15 PM
    • Pregame at 5 PM on KGFW
• KEARNEY CATHOLIC:
  • Wrestling: v. KCHS Invite – 9 AM
  • Boys Basketball: v. Sandy Creek @ Hastings College – 10 AM
  • Swimming & Diving: @ Lincoln SE Invite – 10 AM
• UNK:
  • Wrestling: v. Augustana @ Health & Sports Center – 12:15 PM
  • Wrestling: v. York @ Health & Sports Center – 1:30 PM
• KGFW Sports Schedule:
  • Kearney High Boys Basketball: v. Elkhorn North (1 PM – 3 PM)
  • Kearney High Girls Basketball: v. Papillion-LaVista (5 PM – 7 PM)

SUNDAY:

• UNK:
  • Women’s Basketball v. Central Oklahoma @ Health & Sports Center – 2 PM
  • Men’s Basketball v. Central Oklahoma @ Health & Sports Center – 4 PM
• KGFW Sports Schedule:
  • Nebraska Women’s Basketball v. Wyoming (1:45 PM – 5 PM)