There have been a few big upsets in the early part of the 2014-15 season, where mid-major programs have scored signature wins for their respective programs. The N.J.I.T. Highlanders and the Eastern Michigan Eagles have scored their own upsets of the Michigan Wolverines, inside the Crisler Center no less. Green Bay has knocked off the Miami Hurricanes, and we can add Incarnate Word to the list of teams who have scored incredible upsets over a team in one of the power conferences.

Before the game itself gets broken down, let's take a look at the match-up on paper before it even started.

The Nebraska Cornhuskers entered the 2014-15 season with high expectations around the program, and found themselves ranked in the preseason Top 25. On the other hand, the Incarnate Word Cardinals are in just their second season at the NCAA Division I level.

From the surface, this game looked to be a no-brainer. Nebraska entered the game as the favourite, with the spread set at around 7 points. With talents like Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields leading the way, this had all of the makings for a Nebraska home win. As the case has been throughout the first month of the season, never count out the "little guys."

In front of a crowd of 10,586 in the Pinnacle Bank Arena, the Incarnate Word Cardinals came into Lincoln and left with a 74 - 73 victory thanks to some late-game heroics from Kyle Hittle.

As the game kicked off, it looked like it was going be a laugher for the Huskers. They opened the game with a 10 - 2 run over the first 4 minutes, capped off by a Benny Parker lay-up.

The Cardinals wouldn't go away easily, and kept chipping away at the lead. They managed to get the lead down to 1 point on a couple of different occasions, but could never take the lead. They were able to get the game back to all-square, at 28 - 28 witth 3:27 remaining. Thanks to a three-pointer from Shawn Johnson, the Cardinals took their first lead of the contest, with 2:13 to go.

The Cardinals would take a slim 1-point lead into the break, thanks in part to 11 points from Denzel Livingston and 10 points from Kyle Hittle. The Cornhuskers were led by Shields, who paced the team with 7 points.

The second half started the same way the first half did, with Nebraska making an early run. A mini 6 - 2 run put Nebraska back in front by 3, less than 3 minutes into the half.

Over the next four minutes, Nebraska would stretch their lead to as big as 10 points, capped off by a Walter Pitchford three-pointer. Just like the first half, the Cardinals wouldn't go away, and kept chipping away at the lead.

While they would keep chipping away, they were never able to take a lead of their own. But they didn't give up.

Nebraska had a 5-point lead with :33 seconds left, which looked like the game was all but over. But, a timely layup from Traylin Farris trimmed the lead to 3, and that's when the excitement picked up.

The Cardinals called a timeout immediately after Farris' layup, and Shawn Johnson forced a turnover by Tai Webster, and would end up being fouled while attempting a three-pointer, sending him to the line for three shots. He would make 2-of-3 attempts, cutting the lead to 1.

From there, the teams would trade costless throws, with Nebraska having the ball with about :06 seconds left. Terran Petteway would commit a costly turnover, leading to Kyle Hittle's late-game heroics. With :03 seconds left, Hittle would make a baseline jumper, as he's falling out of bounds no less, to give Incarnate Word a 74 - 73 lead, sending their bench into a frenzy.

Nebraska would call a timeout to try and set up an offensive set to try and get one last attempt off. Out of the timeout, Nebraska wasn't able to get anything off, and the Cardinals' bench erupted once again. The Cardinals pulled off an improbable comeback, and left the Pinnacle Bank Arena with a 74 - 73 victory.

The Cardinals (6 - 1) used a balanced scoring attack to lead them to victory, as they had five players score in double figures. Jontrell Walker led the team with 19 points, while Hittle (18), Johnson (13), Livingston (12), and Farris (12) were all equally as important in Incarnate Word's win.

Nebraska (5 - 3) was led by Shavon Shields (19 points) and Petteway (18 points), in a losing effort.

This game was a story of two teams going in opposite directions. The Cardinals continued their winning ways, and are going to be a sleeper pick in the Southland Conference this season. Nebraska, on the other hand, has yet to live up to preseason expectations and will need to tidy things up before they enter Big Ten play.

The Cardinals are led by some of the more talented players that people have yet to really hear about (see Hittle, Livingston, and Walker). After their hot start to the season, they'll be garnering the attention they deserve. Be sure to check out Incarnate Word if their games are ever televised. They won't disappoint.

Word.