The LSU women’s basketball team had one shot to get back on track before leaving town Friday morning for a weekend matchup at No. 1 Connecticut.And against Nebraska (9-4) on Thursday, the Lady Tigers (6-4) took advantage with a 64-50 victory.”This wasn’t just a win,” said LSU coach Van Chancellor. “This was a win the way you should win a game.”LSU and Nebraska battled back and forth into the second half. The Lady Tigers led the entire first half, but the Lady Cornhuskers consistently fought their way back into the game and eventually took a 35-34 lead five minutes after halftime.But LSU quickly countered with a 16-1 run during the next seven minutes to assure Nebraska’s first lead would be its last.LSU junior guard Allison Hightower opened the run with a blocked shot and 4 quick points. The Arlington, Texas, native led all scorers with 18 points and also pitched in five rebounds, three assists and three blocks.”Hightower the last three games has been outstanding,” Chancellor said. “She was again today.”Freshman forward Ayana Dunning pitched in 11 points, nine rebounds and three assists — all setting or tying season and career highs.”I feel like when the opportunity came, I just had to seize it and go out there and play my hardest,” she said.Dunning led an LSU rebounding attack that pulled down 44 rebounds to Nebraska’s 29.”The difference in the second half was rebounding,” said Nebraska coach Connie Yori. “They made their push. We didn’t get on the offensive glass. They did a good job of defensive rebounding. We didn’t go hard enough, and they took advantage of opportunities.”Chancellor agreed the battle on the boards was a key to his team’s win.”The difference tonight was Dunning and [freshman forward Swayze] Black got some balls we normally have not been rebounding in a crowd,” he said. “We outrebounded them really bad, but you’ve got to rebound in a crowd to win.”The Lady Cornhuskers’ biggest weapon was the 3-point shot, as they connected on 10-of-22 from deep. But LSU held Nebraska to 7-for-37 shooting from 2-point range — including a nearly 16-minute stretch to open the second half in which LSU did not allow a single 2-point basket.”You can’t go 7-for-37 from inside the 3-point line and expect to win,” Yori said. “LSU did a good job of playing personnel and knowing who our shooters were and who our drivers were, but we need to get more points in transition. No doubt about that.”Hightower said defending the interior was one of LSU’s focuses entering the game.”We just tried to take the paint away,” she said. “They’re aggressive drivers, so we were really working hard on that in practice.”The Lady Tigers can now focus on their looming matchup with Connecticut (11-0).”We just started [the new year] off right,” Hightower said. “We need to just take this win and go to Connecticut and just play our hardest … There’s no pressure on us. I think the pressure’s really on them. People are looking at us as the underdogs. All we’ve got to do is play.”Chancellor said he welcomes the chance to face the country’s top team.”I think this is one of the five best teams to ever play this game,” he said. “This is the premier team in the country today. No question. They’re No. 1 — ain’t nobody else No. 2 in my mind right this second. Those are the opporunities as an athlete, as a coach, you have to welcome. If you don’t, you don’t want to play. You ought not dress out.”