Huskers Look Forward to NIT Matchup

The following are quotes from Nebraska Coach Barry Collier and NU captain Jake Muhleisen (pre-practice Thursday) regarding Friday's NIT contest at the Devaney Center between Nebraska and Niagara.

Head Coach Barry Collier
What do you know about Niagara?
I know they are one of the top teams in their league following a close loss to Manhattan in the conference tournament finals. Manhattan just beat Florida in the NCAA Tournament just a few minutes ago. I've known (Niagara coach) Joe Mihalich a long time and they've done a very good job there since he's taken over that program. They have several players who could easily be in the Big East. Juan Mendez is probably their leader. He's a big, strong inside kid, a rebounder and scorer.

Do they look like any team in the Big 12?
I think they have speed and size and athletic ability. They look like kind of a cross between the two Oklahoma schools in our league.

How good does it feel to be playing for something meaningful in March at home?
It's a really big game for us. Obviously with what the scenario is, we're still playing when the season could be over. It would be great to have a big crowd here to support this team.

How much will momentum from Tuesday's game against Creighton carry over to Friday?|
It was a big win and a close win obviously and so you get excited about any game that finishes that way. But beating Creighton in front of a bunch of people in our own state is really a positive and a confidence builder. Hopefully we'll be able to have that
confidence to play that way tomorrow.

Can you talk about the way Jake Muhleisen stepped up against the Bluejays?
Jake had a great game. He really attacked and the thing that Jake's always given us is a solid defensive positioning and he's constantly in a help position and looking for opportunities that way. Scoring can come and go depending on how people play us and opportunities that present themselves, but he certainly knocked down the shots that he had a chance with and gave us a huge lift on the perimeter (Tuesday).

Would you like to see more scoring on a consistent basis with Jake?
Actually I'd like to see that more consistently from the perimeter in general. It doesn't really matter who the scoring comes from but you have to have perimeter guys that give you a threat to be able to open up the middle.

How will you look at matchups with Niagara?
As a team, what we are looking at is (a situation) where I would expect them to play a significant amount of zone and maybe mix up their defenses they've had this year. I don’t know that head-to-head matchups materialize that often when you try to predict them because you don’t know foul trouble and how defenses will play. Niagara is a team that can throw a bunch of things at you and make you adjust and see how you do. But I like the fact that we are at home and in front of our fans.

Not many fans here have seen Niagara this year. What have you seen so far?
We've watched a lot of tape. We've been busier than a one-eyed cat looking at two mouse holes. It's been back and forth with a couple tapes going at a time to try to watch these guys. In our situation we just have to prepare as quickly as possible. We are both in the same boat. We've had tape in our tape file to begin the weekend so we ran through that the last couple days and now it's almost time to play.

Junior guard Jake Muhleisen
How does it feel to be playing at home in March?
It feels real good. It's great for all the guys and good for the fans and for us to be able to play together one more time. We haven't played in the postseason for a while and to be playing in March is great.

How much of a challenge is it turning around so quick against a team you might not have seen much of before?
It's a big challenge for us. But it's a lot of fun to be playing a team that you don't usually get to play. It's also a lot of fun for our fans and for us to come out and play in front of them again.

How do you prepare for a team you've never faced?
Basically we just have to take care of ourselves and not worry about what they do. We have to play to our strengths and play our game and we will be fine. If we play hard, it's not so much about what they do, but if we do what we normally do, we will be fine.

Can the momentum from Tuesday's win over Creighton play a positive role Friday for Nebraska?
I think the momentum will carry over here. It was a big win for us at Creighton. We hadn't beaten them in five tries, so it was a big win and we will try to carry that on Friday night.