Huskers Continue Building Process

The Nebraska men's basketball team ended the 2004-05 campaign with a 14-14 record after dropping its first contest of the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City. It was the second straight season the Huskers earned at least a .500 record, while NU's seven wins in conference play tied for their most since 1998-99. Thirteen of the Huskers' 14 losses came against teams that played in the 2005 postseason, including eight squads (nine NU losses) selected for the NCAA Tournament.

Nebraska finished the regular season with a flourish, as it won three of its last four games, including picking up its only win of the season against a ranked team. After falling below .500 overall (11-12) for the first time all season with a home loss to Missouri, the Huskers came back with an impressive 74-67 victory over No. 4 Oklahoma State at the Devaney Center, their first win over a top-five program since 1994.

The Huskers followed with another impressive victory as they ran past NCAA qualifier Iowa State on the road and crushed Colorado at home on Senior Night to post their only three-game conference win streak of the season. Nebraska also won back-to-back league games to open the season 2-0 for the first time since 1998-99, and won three league road games after grabbing just four Big 12 road wins over the past four years.

During the non-conference slate, the Huskers picked up six home victories and finished the season with 10 wins at the Devaney Center. It was the 23rd time in the 29-year history of the Devaney Center that the Huskers recorded double-figure wins. Nebraska improved to 342-109 all-time at the Devaney Center.

For the second straight season, the Huskers held opponents to under 64 points per game while gaining a +4.1 scoring margin. It has been more than 20 years (1982-83 and 1983-84) since the last time Nebraska held teams to less than 64 points per game in consecutive seasons.

Nebraska also was among the top rebounding teams in the nation as it gained a +5.3 rebound margin in 2004-05. NU's 38.3 rebounds per game, which ranked second in the Big 12 Conference, was the team's highest average in the past five seasons under Coach Barry Collier and the 12th time since 1988-89 that the Huskers averaged at least 38 boards per game.

Nebraska's Youth Movement
Much of the Huskers success in 2004-05 came behind the play of some of its younger players, and while seniors-to-be Jason Dourisseau and Wes Wilkinson will likely play a prominent role in the offense next year, the newcomers will also see significant action once again.

Nebraska returns seven letterwinners in 2005-06, including five seniors or juniors along with sophomores Joe McCray and Aleks Maric. NU has signed five heralded players in the incoming freshman class and adds two redshirt freshmen next season, meaning the Huskers will have at least nine freshmen or sophomores on the roster. NU also has one scholarship remaining to give.

McCray and Maric made headlines this season as two of the top freshmen in the Big 12 Conference, and next season's newcomers may find much of the same success. The incoming freshmen looking to make an impact for Nebraska next season are guards Jamel White and Marcus Walker, along with forwards Will Harris, Kyle Marks and Chris Balham.

White led his Laurinburg (N.C.) Institute team, which included 14 Division I signees, to a 40-0 record and prep school national title while averaging 10 points and nearly eight assists per game. Harris, who was ranked among the top 75 seniors in the nation in 2004 by several publications, also saw much success, including a 51-point, eight-rebound outburst for Maine Central Institute in the playoffs.

The three high schoolers who have already signed with NU also saw great success, as Walker and Marks each led their team to the 2005 Missouri and Florida state title, respectivley, while Balham reached the state championship game in Kansas.

What Nebraska has returning in 2005-06

Percentage of scoring

62.7 (1,195/1,905)

Percentage of rebounds

57.4 (615/1,072)

Percentage of field goals

62.8 (415/661)

Percentage of 3-point field goals

66.7 (116/174)

Percentage of assists

44.5 (169/380)

Percentage of steals

58.9 (96/163)

Percentage of blocks

55.9 (62/111)

Fab Freshmen

The Huskers received amazing production from their freshman class of guard Joe McCray and center Aleks Maric. The tandem combined for 23.5 points and 11.3 rebounds per game this season while making a positive impression on the rest of the league, as each was named the Big 12 Rookie of the Week, with McCray earning the honor twice, and Maric getting the nod once.

Through the Big 12 Tournament, McCray ranked among the top 15 in the league in scoring (15.5 ppg), while Maric was among the top 15 rebounders (6.3 rpg). McCray was second in three-pointers per game (2.86) and eighth in three-point shooting percentage (35.6).

In league-only games, McCray was 11th in scoring at 15.8 points per game. He also tied for second with 2.81 treys per game and was 10th in Big 12 play by hitting 34.1 percent from long range. Maric was tied for 18th in rebounding (5.4 rpg) and 15th in blocked shots (0.69 bpg) in league-only games.

Both McCray and Maric have moved onto the Nebraska freshman top-10 charts, with McCray posting one of the top rookie seasons in NU history. McCray finished second on the NU freshman points scored chart with 433 and broke the freshman scoring average mark set by Jerry Fort in 1973 when he averaged 14.5 ppg.

With his first point at K-State, McCray became only the second freshman in NU history to break the 400-point plateau, joining Dave Hoppen, who had an NU freshman record 445 points in 31 games in 1983. McCray also became just the eighth freshman in Big 12 history to top the 400-point plateau and moved into seventh place on the chart.

Also in NU's game in Manhattan, Maric broke the freshman rebounding record as he picked up his 163rd board of the season. Maric, who finished with 169 rebounds, moved past John Turek, who set the previous rookie mark of 162 rebounds in 2002. McCray is also on the NU freshman top 10 rebound chart, as he ranks sixth with 140 boards.

McCray Earns Big 12 and National Honors
One of the top freshman in the league this season, guard Joe McCray was named the Big 12 Rookie of the Week on two occasions (Nov. 29 and Dec. 20), and on Monday, March 7 earned league and national honors.

The first Husker freshman to earn more than one rookie-of-the-week honor in a season, McCray was selected honorable-mention All-Big 12 in a vote of the league's head coaches. He was also named to the Big 12 All-Freshman Team by the league's sportswriters, and was honorable-mention Freshman All-America by Rivals.com.

McCray was one of five freshman to earn All-Big 12 honors from the league's coaches, including four honorable-mention selections. He is the first Nebraska freshman to earn an All-Big 12 honor since the formation of the conference before the 1996-97 season. Overall, McCray is the 12th Husker to be named honorable-mention All-Big 12, while three players have earned eight first-, second- or third-team All-Big 12 awards.

Along with the Big 12 honor, McCray was selected to the Big 12 All-Freshman Team by the league's sportswriters. McCray was one of seven freshmen selected as there was a tie in the voting. Joining McCray on the team were: Daniel Gibson (Texas), Aaron Bruce (Baylor), JamesOn Curry (Oklahoma State), Joseph Jones (Texas A&M), Richard Roby (Colorado) and Martin Zeno (Texas Tech).

McCray also picked up a national honor as he was named honorable-mention Freshman All-America by Rivals.com. The recruiting service selected All-America first-, second and third-teams in addition to the honorable-mention squad. McCray was one of 12 rookies selected for the honorable-mention team, and was one of six freshmen from the Big 12 Conference named to one of the squads. Only Texas' Daniel Gibson (first team) and Baylor's Aaron Bruce (second team) were selected higher.

Simply a Sensational Scorer
One of the top scoring guards in the conference, Joe McCray rewrote a number of Nebraska freshmen records in 2005.

The Fort Lauderdale, Fla., native became one of the most prolific rookie scorers in Nebraska history as he:

? broke the 33-year old Husker record for 20-point contests by a freshman as he posted 10 such games during the season

? set the mark for consecutive double-figure scoring games by a freshman at nine on two occasions

? crushed the mark for three-pointers in a season by a freshman with 80, which was also a Big 12 freshman record

? ranks second in NU freshman history with 433 points and sixth in rebounds with 140

A 6-5, 210-pound guard, McCray scored a career-high 26 points against Iowa State in Lincoln to tie the record for 20-plus point games at six. He hit 7-of-15 attempts from the field, including four treys, and 8-of-9 from the charity stripe. The 26 points tied for fifth on the NU freshman single-game scoring chart, which is led by Tyronn Lue's 30 points in his second career game.

McCray scored in double figures in every road contest this season. He also scored at least 19 points in four of five games against ranked teams, including three 20-point games.

McCray's 10 20-point games led the Huskers, as only senior guard Jake Muhleisen (2) had more than one. Overall, the Huskers produced 15 20-point contests as a team.

McCray began his career in high style as he recorded a game-high 23 points in 22 minutes against Arkansas-Pine Bluff in his first career game. McCray's point total was the most by a freshman in an NU season opener since freshmen regained eligibility in 1972-73.

Big 12 Frosh Scoring Leaders
Joe McCray moved into the top 10 on the Big 12 Conference freshman scoring chart in 2004-05 while hitting a conference freshman record 80 three-pointers. Here is the top 10 freshman scorers since the formation of the Big 12 Conference:

Player (Team)

Pts.

Avg.

Year

1. Curtis Stinson (ISU)

534

16.2

2003-04

2. Aaron Bruce (BU)

509

18.2

2004-05

3. Lawrence Roberts (BU)

498

16.6

2001-02

4. Richard Roby (CU)

480

16.0

2004-05

5. Bernard King (A&M)

474

16.9

1999-2000

6. Marcus Fizer (ISU)

447

14.9

1997-98

7. Daniel Gibson (UT)

439

14.2

2004-05

8. Joe McCray (NU)

433

15.5

2004-05

9. Antoine Wright (A&M)

406

14.5

2002-03

10. John Lucas (BU)

395

13.2

2001-02

Maric in the Middle

Freshman Aleks Maric made some serious noise in the paint for the Huskers in his rookie season. The 6-11, 265-pound native of Sydney, Australia, averaged a solid 8.0 points and team-best 6.3 rebounds per game to open his career.

Maric ranked among the top 15 in the league in rebounding through the Big 12 Tournament. In conference-only games, Maric added a team-best 5.4 boards per game to tie for 18th and he also tied for 15th with 0.69 blocked shots per game.

The big man started the last six games of the season (10 overall) and responded with some of his best performances of the year. He scored in double figures five times in his last eight games, after gaining at least 10 points in only six of his first 19 games.

Maric was named the Big 12 Conference Rookie of the Week on Feb. 28. He averaged 14.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game and hit 64.7 percent from the field in wins vs. No. 4 Oklahoma State and at Iowa State.

In one of his best offensive games of the year, Maric scored a career-best 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting against the No. 4 Cowboys while helping NU to a 74-67 victory. Maric connected on 7-of-8 attempts inside the arc and added a career-best three assists without a turnover.

At ISU, Maric recorded his third double-double of the season to tie the Nebraska freshman record. He had 11 points and 10 boards at the intermission and finished with 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting with 12 rebounds in 23 minutes because of foul trouble.

Maric sat out the Utah Valley State contest with the flu and was not 100 percent in games against Kansas and ISU in Lincoln. During that stretch, Maric dropped nearly 15 pounds but quickly gained it back.

The Aussie began his career in high fashion as he picked up a game-high 14 boards in the season opener while adding 12 points for his first career double-double. He was the first NU freshman since Ron Taylor in 1973-74 to record a double-double in his first career game and only the sixth NU freshman to record a double-double since freshman eligibility was re-instated in 1972-73.

Only Taylor, Rickey Harris and Andre Smith recorded more than one double-double as a rookie until Maric joined the group in just his third career game. Maric added 10 points and 15 rebounds on the road against UAB for his second career double-double.

Richardson Comes On Strong
Down the stretch, the Huskers' improved play at point guard played a major role in NU winning three of its last four regular-season games. Much of that consistent action in the backcourt came behind the solid play of Charles Richardson Jr.

The Maywood, Ill., native saw significant minutes in the final weeks of the season, including at least 18 minutes in each of the last seven games with a career-high 30 minutes against Missouri in the Big 12 Tournament. During that seven-game stretch, Richardson averaged 4.4 points, 4.0 assists and 1.0 steals per game, well above his season totals of 2.0 points, 2.1 assists and 0.6 assists per contest.

Richardson made his only two starts of the season during that stretch, both against Missouri as he posted 12 assists against two turnovers in 50 minutes against the Tigers. Richardson also had a career night against Colorado when he hit 5-of-6 field-goal attempts for a career-high 10 points with three assists.

Richardson had 25 of his 54 assists during the final six games of the season while committing just eight turnovers. He had at least four assists in four games on the season, with three in the final six contests.

Dourisseau Picks Up His Game
Despite struggling with an ankle injury that has sidelined him for three games at two different times in conference play, guard Jason Dourisseau made his presence felt within the Husker offense in 2004-05.

Dourisseau finished the season second on the team in scoring and rebounding at 9.8 points and 5.1 boards per game, including recroding his first career double-double. He also ranked second on the squad by hitting 49.1 percent (86-of-175) from the floor, including a team-best 54.7 percent in conference play. In the final six games of the season, Dourisseau hit 28-of-50 (56.0 percent) attempts from the field and averaged 11.8 points per game with 4.7 rebounds per contest.

Dourisseau poured in a career-high 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting against No. 3 Kansas in Lincoln. The Omaha native hit 7-of-12 from the free throw line and added five boards and three steals in 26 minutes.

Dourisseau started 18 of 24 games played in 2004-05. He nearly doubled his numbers from his sophomore season, as he had 122 rebounds, 22 steals and ranked fourth on the squad with 39 assists this year. In 2003-04, he had 60 rebounds, 13 steals and 17 assists in 31 games.

Wilkinson Gaining Confidence With Solid Play
Junior forward Wes Wilkinson came on strong in his third season in the Husker program while becoming one of Nebraska's top offensive threats.

In Big 12 play, Wilkinson was third on the team by averaging 8.5 points per game while hitting 45.0 percent from the floor. He added 1.2 blocks per game (32 total) to rank eighth in the Big 12 Conference. He had at least two blocks in eight games, after having just 13 blocks total in his sophomore campaign.

Wilkinson scored in double figures seven times in 16 league games, including a career-high 22 points against Kansas State in the league opener. He had not recorded a double-figure scoring game against Big 12 foes in his first two seasons. Wilkinson also averaged 3.7 rebounds per game against conference foes, including posting a career-high nine rebounds against Iowa State in Lincoln.

Wilkinson hit 76.9 percent from the free throw line against the league. In fact, he finished the season hitting 32 of his last 37 attempts (86.5 percent) over the final 13 games.

Turek Leaves Mark on NU Record Books
Senior forward John Turek put his name in elite company during his senior season. After finding great improvement each of his first three years, Turek finished his career ranked among Nebraska's best rebounders and shot blockers of all time.

Turek finished the season with 901 career points, 682 rebounds and 163 blocked shots. He was the 32nd player in Nebraska history to record at least 900 points, and moved into the top 10 in rebounds and top five in blocked shots.

With his first rebound at Iowa State, Turek moved into a tie for 10th place on the Nebraska career rebound chart. He finished with 141 rebounds in 2004-05 to rank second on the squad and gain possession of eighth place on the career list.

Turek also finished his career fourth in NU history with 163 blocked shots, including an NU freshman record 39 blocks in 2001-02. By recording a team-best 35 rejections in 2004-05, Turek is the first Husker in history to own sole possession of the team lead in blocks four straight seasons. Dave Hoppen, the Huskers' career scoring leader, also had a share of the team lead for blocked shots all four years, but tied Ronnie Smith for the team high during Hoppen's junior season.

Along with Rich King, Venson Hamilton and Mikki Moore, Turek is one of just four Huskers ever to record at least 600 points, 500 rebounds and 100 blocked shots in their career.

Muhleisen Shows All-Around Game
Senior guard Jake Muhleisen proved to be one of the top all-around players in Nebraska history over his career. Muhleisen finished his career with 911 points, 343 rebounds, 284 assists and 100 steals.

With six rebounds against Texas A&M, he became the eighth player in NU history with at least 800 points, 300 rebounds, 250 assists and 50 steals. When he added 11 points in a 74-67 upset of No. 4/4 Oklahoma State, Muhleisen became the 31st player in Nebraska history to top the 900-point plateau.

Muhleisen recorded 78 assists against just 42 turnovers on the season. He was second on the team in assists, behind only senior point guard Marcus Neal Jr. who had 93. After struggling through most of the non-conference slate with a wrist injury, Muhleisen saw a surge in his numbers during the Big 12 slate.

Muhleisen had two 20-point games on the season, including a 25-point, six-rebound outburst in a victory over Texas A&M. He also posted 20 points, including 18 after halftime, in a road win at Baylor. It was his second 20-point game in six contests, after recording two 20-point games in his first 87 career contests. Muhleisen recorded 11 points, four boards and four assists in 31 minutes in an upset of No. 4 Oklahoma State. While those are solid stats, his biggest contribution came in the hustle department, as he recorded two steals and drew four charges against the Cowboys. Nebraska drew five charges as a team in its 11th victory over a top-five opponent in program history.

Huskers Hit the Glass
Nebraska was relentless on the boards during the 2004-05 season. On the year, the Huskers ranked second in the league in rebounding with 38.3 boards per game and second in rebounding margin at +5.3. In conference play, NU was second in rebounding at 36.0 boards per contest and fourth in rebounding margin at +2.8.

In the March 14 NCAA statistics, the Huskers ranked 30th in the nation in rebounding margin (+5.3).

Freshman Aleks Maric ranked among the top 15 in the league with 6.3 rebounds per game to pace the Huskers. Maric recorded four double-figure rebound games (15, 14, 11, 12) in his rookie season. Junior Jason Dourisseau ranked second on the team after gaining 5.1 rebounds per contest over 24 games and freshman Joe McCray was right behind at 5.0 boards per game. In league-only games, Maric paced NU with 5.4 boards to tie for 18th.

Overall, the Huskers owned a rebounding advantage in 20 of 28 games during the season. Nebraska outrebounded 11 of 16 Big 12 opponents on the year.

Nebraska pulled down 51 boards in the road victory over Iowa State, outrebounding the Cyclones 51-37. It was a conference season high for rebounds and was the first time NU grabbed at least 50 boards against a league foe since pulling down 51 boards in a 72-44 victory over No. 25 Texas Tech in 2004.

The Huskers opened the season on a strong note by pulling down 55 boards against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and added 50 against Texas Southern and at UAB. Nebraska's three straight 50-plus rebound efforts to start the year came after NU had just two 50-rebound games in the previous four years.

The last time NU had three straight 50-rebound games came in 1999-2000. Overall, the Huskers have had 68 50-plus rebound games since complete box scores have been included in NU record books (1972-73). Only 13 times during that period has NU recorded more than 55 boards.

The Huskers' +36 advantage (55-19) on the glass against Arkansas-Pine Bluff is NU's the largest rebounding margin since at least 1972-73. The previous high was +30 (72-42) against Oklahoma in 1991-92.

Sports Illustrated Highlights Freshmen
Freshman center Aleks Maric received his first major national recognition when he was listed by Sports Illustrated (Feb. 21, 2005) as one of the 10 most prominent Australians currently playing collegiate basketball in the United States.

In a sidebar that complemented a feature on Utah's Andrew Bogut ? who Maric played with on Australia's Under 20 World Championships gold medal team ? the magazine noted there were more than 100 Aussies playing in U.S. colleges. The note on Maric read: Hulking (265 pounds) big man averages only 19.1 minutes per game (including four starts) but still leads Cornhuskers in rebounding (6.5 rpg) and is seventh on team in scoring (7.3 ppg).

Along with Maric, the other Aussies mentioned in the sidebar were: Aaron Bruce (Baylor, Fr., G), Chris Cameron (Louisiana-Lafayette, Sr., C), Ian Crosswhite (formerly Oregon, Jr., C), Martin Iti (Charlotte, So., C), Blagoj Janev (New Hampshire, So., F), Daniel Kickert (St. Mary's, Jr., F), Matthew Knight (Loyola Marymount, So., F/C), Alex Loughton (Old Dominion, Jr., F/C) and Luke Schenscher (Georgia Tech, Sr., C).

Maric is not the only Husker freshman to gain recent recognition from Sports Illustrated. Guard Joe McCray was listed as one of the five best freshmen in the Big 12 Conference on the magazine's website, SI.com, on Tuesday, Feb. 22. College basketball writer Kelli Anderson listed McCray alongside Daniel Gibson (G, Texas), Aaron Bruce (G, Baylor), Joseph Jones (F, Texas A&M) and Richard Roby (F, Colorado) as the league's top freshmen. Maric was listed as honorable mention.

Finishing Strong On the Line
After not finding much success at the free throw line early in the season, the Huskers saw better efficiency at the charity stripe in the second half of the regular season (last 15 games).

During that stretch, NU has hit 70.7 percent (241-of-341) overall at the foul line and hit at least 66.7 percent 12 times. NU had connected on 66.7 percent from the line in just three of its first 13 games.

The Huskers drained 32-of-45 free-throw attempts in their 10-point win over Texas A&M. Both the attempts and made free throws were season highs. In fact, the attempts were the second-highest in the Collier era, trailing only the 47 attempts NU had in 2001 in a victory over nationally ranked Texas.

Nebraska made its first eight free throw attempts against the Aggies and its final 10, including eight made in the last five minutes of the game by Jake Muhleisen. The senior guard hit 10-of-11 from the stripe and connected on 78.9 percent at the line in league play. He was one of four Huskers ? along with Marcus Neal Jr. (77.6), Wes Wilkinson (76.9) and Aleks Maric (77.3) ? to hit at least 70 percent from the line against Big 12 foes this season.

NU came back with 10 consecutive made free throws to open the game at Texas Tech, giving it 20 straight over two games. Nebraska finished the game hitting 19-of-25 from the charity stripe, the first time this season NU has hit better than 75.0 percent from the line while attempting at least 20 free throws.

The Huskers had their best night at the line this season when they hit 20-of-22 (90.9 percent) at the stripe against Utah Valley State. NU connected on the first 10 free-throw attempts of the night and missed only one attempt each half. It was NU's highest percentage since hitting 12-of-12 attempts in a 74-55 victory over No. 12/13 Kansas in Lincoln last year.

All About Defense
Under Coach Barry Collier, the Huskers have rewrote the Nebraska defensive record book. Nebraska again put up some solid numbers in 2004-05, as the Huskers:

? ranked 30th nationally in rebound margin (+5.3) in the NCAA statistics of March 14.

? limited Arkansas-Pine Bluff to 40 points on 32.7 percent shooting in a 97-40 victory. NU forced 20 turnovers in the largest victory in Devaney Center history.

? defeated TSU by 20 points while holding the Tigers to just 32.8 percent shooting from the floor and forcing 19 turnovers.

? held UAB to just 24.0 percent shooting (6-of-25) from three-point range, including just 3-of-14 in the opening frame.

? allowed just 12 points in the second half of a 64-34 victory over Morgan State. NU held the Bears to 23.5 percent shooting as they recorded the third-fewest points by an NU opponent since 1947. It was the third time NU has held its opponent to less than 40 points in the past two seasons.

? limited Creighton to 34.0 percent shooting, including 31.6 percent from three-point range.

? held Marquette to just 39.7 percent shooting, including 34.3 percent (11-of-32) inside the arc.

? gave up just 45 points to Montana State on 30.0 percent shooting.

? limited Colorado to 34.6 percent (18-of-52) from the floor, including 27.3 percent in the first half, as Nebraska won its conference road opener for the first time since 1993-94 with a 68-61 win at Colorado.

? held No. 10/9 Texas to just 22.2 percent (4-of-18) shooting from three-point range, including 1-of-8 (12.5 percent) in the second half.

? allowed No. 2/2 Kansas to hit just 4-of-17 (23.5 percent) from beyond the arc while scoring just 59 points at home in Allen Fieldhouse.

? forced No. 4/4 Oklahoma State into 19 turnovers and held the Cowboys to 44 percent shooting in the second half as NU used a 10-0 surge to open the period (and 17-4 run overall) to earn its 11th victory ever against a top-five team.

? limited Iowa State to just 37.7 percent shooting, including 9.1 percent (1-of-11) from three-point range in an NU road victory, 76-69. NU also gained a 51-37 advantage on the glass, including a 23-14 margin on the offensive end.

? allowed Colorado to score just 55 points on 37.1 percent shooting in Lincoln, including 29.0 percent in the first half. The Buffs hit just 5-of-20 (25.0 percent) from long range.