Huskers Set to Face Bluejays

After ending the longest season-opening homestand in school history, the Nebraska men's basketball team hits the road for the first time this season when it makes the 50-mile trek up Interstate 80 to take on in-state foe Creighton on Sunday, Dec. 11, at the Qwest Center Omaha.

 

The Huskers and Bluejays will tip off at 1:07 p.m. and the game will be seen in the state of Nebraska on NET-1. Kevin Kugler (play by play) and Scott Schumacher (color) will call the action. The contest can also be heard on the Pinnacle Sports Network with Randy Lee and Matt Davison calling the game. Pinnacle Sports Network broadcasts can also be heard live on Huskers.com, where live stats are also available for free.

 

Hitting the Road

After seven contests at the Devaney Center, Nebraska is set to play its first road game of the season when it takes on Creighton in Omaha. The Huskers' first road trip outside of the state of Nebraska will be for a Dec. 31 matchup against Florida State  (FSNMW) in Miami.

 

Nebraska ended its longest homestand in 80 years with a 6-1 record after defeating South Dakota State, 76-67, on Thursday. It is the second time in three years that the Huskers have won six of their first seven contests. In 2003-04, Nebraska opened the year with a 10-1 mark before getting into conference play and finished the season with an 18-13 record while advancing to the second round of the NIT.

 

Finding the Zone

The Huskers rebounded from their first loss of the season with a victory at home Thursday but have said they will need a more consistent effort to pick up their first road win of the season at Creighton.

 

Nebraska, which won by nine against South Dakota State, hopes to use the same effort and efficiency Sunday that it showed in the second half against the Jackrabbits. NU hit 51.9 percent from the floor in the final stanza to open a 17-point lead midway through the period before a late SDSU run. Wes Wilkinson, the team's leading scorer this season at 15.5 points per game, hit 7-of-15 shots from the floor while Joe McCray, last season's leading scorer, started to regain his stroke as he hit 5-of-10 from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers.

 

Defensively, the Huskers forced South Dakota State to shoot just 34.2 percent from the field, and opponents have hit just 37.0 percent on the season including 32.4 percent from long range. Nebraska holds a +2.0 rebounding margin despite being outrebounded in four of its first seven games. Nebraska is 4-0 this season in games it has trailed on the glass.

 

Wilkinson has shown tremendous improvement early in the season as he is also second on the team with 8.2 rebounds per game and leads the Big 12 Conference with 2.7 blocked shots per game.

 

A career 30.6 percent shooter from 3-point range entering the season, Wilkinson has been NU's top long-range threat by hitting 53.8 percent (14-of-26) from outside the arc, including 11 of his last 18 3-point attempts. Wilkinson's impressive start is reminiscent of Brian Conklin's performance two years ago when he hit 55.9 percent from 3-point range to lead the nation.

 

? ? ? The Matchup

Nebraska and Creighton will be matching up for the 39th time in the series that dates back to the 1922-23 campaign, with the Huskers holding a 22-16 all-time lead.

 

The Huskers dominated the series from the early 1980s to the mid-1990s, taking a 15-3 advantage during one stretch, but Creighton has turned the tables in recent years. The Bluejays have won seven of the past nine contests since 1997 with the Huskers' last win coming in the 2004 postseason NIT, 71-70, at the Qwest Center. NU lost earlier that season in Omaha, giving it a 1-1 record in the Qwest Center. Overall, Creighton leads the series in Omaha 11-9.

 

Since the series resumed on a yearly basis in 1977, seven meetings have been decided by five points or less, including each of the past two matchups being decided by a basket in the final 10 seconds.

 

The Last Time We Met

Marcus Neal’s 3-point attempt came up just short, hitting the front of the rim at the buzzer as Creighton held on for 50-48 victory over Nebraska at the Bob Devaney Sports Center. (see page 105 of the 2005-06 media guide for complete box score)

 

Playing in front of a sellout crowd of 13,602 fans, the Huskers and Bluejays both played great defense as the teams combined to hit just 33-of-95 from the floor. Creighton edged past Nebraska for the third straight time in Lincoln by hitting 12-of-13 attempts from the foul line while NU converted on just 7-of-19 at the charity stripe.

 

Kellen Miliner hit a jumper with less than one second remaining to give the Bluejays the 50-48 advantage. Miliner’s shot came off an out-of-bounds play, as Nate Funk’s driving layup attempt with three seconds remaining was blocked out of bounds by Nebraska’s John Turek and Wes Wilkinson.

 

After Creighton took its third and final lead of the game, the Huskers nearly pulled off the comeback. Following a Nebraska timeout, Turek inbounded the ball with 0.7 seconds remaining on the clock. His long pass was on the money to Neal, who came clean off a screen and launched a good shot that fell just short.

 

Neal paced the Huskers with a team-high 14 points. His 3-pointer with 2:24 to go gave the Huskers the lead at 45-42. Nebraska had trailed 42-39 with 5:35 to play but held the Bluejays without a point for the next three minutes while running off six straight points.

 

Nate Funk connected on a layup and Dane Watts hit a pair of free throws for a 46-45 lead with 1:21 to play. Tyler McKinney put Creighton up by three with 38 seconds left on a jumper in the lane, but the Huskers were not finished. Dourisseau then banked in his second 3-pointer of the season from a nearly impossible angle just 13 seconds later to tie the game at 48-48.

 

An exciting finish was set up from the start, as neither team was able to lead by more than four points and they had combined for just 10 points in the first five minutes of the game. Nebraska started off poorly, hitting just two of its first 12 attempts before hitting stride in the final six minutes of the opening frame.

 

Nebraska finished the game hitting 35.4 percent (17-of-48) from the floor, but held Creighton to 34.0 percent (16-of-47). The Huskers gained a 39-32 advantage on the glass and picked up eight blocked shots, the most blocks by the Huskers since recording nine against Murray State on Dec. 30, 2000.

 

Scouting the Bluejays

Creighton enters the weekend with a 3-2 record after dropping its last two games, both on the road. CU is undefeated in two contests at home in the Qwest Center with an 87-55 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff and a 91-90 double-overtime victory over Dayton.

 

The Bluejays' two losses have come at DePaul, 72-57, and on Tuesday at Chattanooga, 69-64. CU hit 41.8 percent from the floor and a solid 71 percent from the foul line while outrebounding the Mocs, 36-34, but came up on the short end at the final buzzer.

 

Creighton's top scorer, Nate Funk, poured in 19.3 points per game through the first four contests but has been sidelined the past week with an injury that may keep him out of Sunday's contest. Funk was also the team's second-leading rebounder at 5.3 boards per game before his injury.

 

Johnny Mathies is the only other Bluejay averaging double figures so far this season, as he has gained 10.4 points per contest. Mathies has hit just 31.4 percent from the field and 18.8 percent from long range. Anthony Tolliver is third on the team with 9.8 points and paces the squad with 6.4 rebounds per game.

 

As a team, the Bluejays have similar numbers to the Huskers. CU has hit 42.0 percent from the floor and 36.3 percent from 3-point range while holding a +1.4 advantage on the boards. The Bluejays have recorded 15.0 assists against 15.0 turnovers each game and have gained 7.8 steals per contest.

Creighton is coached by Dana Altman, who is in his 12th year guiding the Bluejays. Altman owns a 221-122 record at CU and a 304-189 career mark in 17 seasons overall.

 

NU Runs Past Jackrabbits

Lincoln?Four players scored in double figures and the Huskers posted a decisive edge in the transition game, as the Nebraska men’s basketball team bounced back from its first loss of the season with a 76-67 win over South Dakota State Thursday at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

 

Senior forward Wes Wilkinson posted his second straight double-double with a game-high 17 points and 10 rebounds, while senior Jason Dourisseau and sophomore Joe McCray each added 12 points to power the Huskers. Freshman point guard Marcus Walker chipped in 11 points and junior forward B.J. Walker finished with eight points and a career-high 11 boards in his first career start.

 

Trailing 34-26 at the half, SDSU came out firing in the second period and quickly cut Nebraska’s lead to three points at 36-33 behind a 3-pointer from junior forward Ben Behran and a pair of jumpers by junior center Mohammed Berte, who led the Jacks with 14 points on 7-of-7 shooting from the floor.

 

NU quickly responded with a thunderous dunk by Wilkinson and two layups from sophomore center Aleks Maric. Maric added a free throw after his second layup to push NU’s lead back to nine points at 42-33. Nebraska did not look back from there, shooting 52 percent from the field in the second half.

The Huskers put together another big run to extend their lead to 55-40 with just under 13 minutes remaining. Following Wilkinson’s second 3-pointer of the game, Dourisseau notched a layup and a free throw before McCray gave NU a 15-point lead with a layup of his own.

 

The Jacks made one final run at the Huskers by cutting the lead to seven with an eight-point streak with just over four minutes left. Junior guard Eric Heien, who shot 4-for-6 from behind the arc, nailed a pair of 3-pointers to close the gap to 66-59 after freshman guard Matt Cadwell started the rally with a jumper to the right of the free-throw line.

 

Nebraska missed a chance to ice the game at the charity stripe with a 1-for-3 effort on subsequent possessions, but aggressive work on the offensive glass kept the ball in the Huskers’ grasp. Wilkinson’s 3-pointer at 2:51 put NU up 72-59. The two teams traded points down the stretch to close out the contest.

 

The Huskers went 2-for-10 from the floor in the early going before Marcus Walker provided a spark to key a 9-0 run. Walker hit a 3-pointer from the left corner, then nailed a pair of free throws after a transition steal and subsequent drive to the bucket. The true freshman then hit another jumper to give Nebraska a 13-8 advantage at the 9:38 mark.

 

After SDSU cut Nebraska’s lead to five, NU responded by pushing the lead to 10 at 25-15 after junior guard Marcus Perry drained a 3-pointer and McCray added a layup off a steal and the Huskers went on to an eight-point halftime advantage at 34-26.

 

Nebraska Postgame Notes vs. South Dakota State

? Guard Charles Richardson Jr. made his first start of the season against SDSU and the 13th of his career. Richardson was not the only first-time starter as junior college transfer B.J. Walker made his first career start, giving the Huskers their third different starting lineup of the season.

? Nebraska scored 34 points in the first half on 13-of-36 shooting after starting the game 2-of-10 from the floor. The Huskers had scored 48 and 41 points in the first half of its two previous games, respectively.

? Senior forward Wes Wilkinson had three blocks in the game, including two in the first period. Wilkinson leads the Big 12 Conference in blocks with 2.67 bpg. Only four players in the league have recorded at least 2.0 blocks per game so far this season.

? Wilkinson had not collected a double-double in his first 90 career games, but with 17 points and 10 rebounds, has now had a double-double in each of the past two games.

? Freshman Marcus Walker recorded his second straight double-figure scoring night of the season with 11 points, one off his career high of 12 set against UAB.

? B.J. Walker set a career high with a team-best 11 rebounds, bettering his previous best mark of eight boards against Marquette. Walker is the third Husker to record double-figure rebounds in a game this season, along with Aleks Maric and Wes Wilkinson.

? Joe McCray finished with 12 points, just two off his season high of 14 set in the Huskers’ season opener against Longwood.

? Richardson tied his season high with four assists and now has 11 assists against four turnovers this season.

 

Magic Number???

Getting off to a strong start is important for every team, but the Huskers have a little history on their side when it comes to getting to their eighth game.

Since the 1980-81 campaign, Nebraska has opened the season with a 7-1 record nine times and advanced to postseason play each of those years. In that same span, the five years the Huskers have opened with six wins in their first eight games, they have recorded two NCAA Tournament berths and two NIT appearances, including its 1996 NIT title run.

 

Quick Shots

? Nebraska has averaged 73.3 points per game through the first seven contests of the season. The average is the highest through seven games since gaining 75.3 points per game through the first seven contests of the 1997-98 campaign.

? Jamel White has come off the bench to be a steadying force this season. In addition to his 7.0 points per game to lead all Husker freshmen, White paces the squad with 19 assists and has had 18 assists with only three turnovers in the past six games.

? Nebraska has made 127 free throws this season while allowing opponents to get to the line only 92 times. Foes have hit 68.5 percent of their attempts while NU has connected at a 64.5-percent clip.

? Jason Dourisseau is the only Husker to score in double figures in every game this season. His seven straight double-figure scoring games are a career high and the most since Joe McCray had nine straight on two occasions last year.

? Wes Wilkinson has 16 blocked shots in seven games this season, nearly half his total of 33 in 27 games last year. He needs 15 more blocks to move into the Nebraska career top 10.

? NU is 2-0 playing on Sundays this season.

 

Boarding All Rows

For the second straight season, Nebraska dominated the boards against UAB and a Husker came away with a career game. Last year, center Aleks Maric recorded a double-double in his third career game when he posted 10 points and a career-high 15 rebounds against the Blazers. The 15 rebounds were a team season high.

 

This year, it was senior forward Wes Wilkinson's turn to burn the Blazers. The Grand Island native recorded his first career double-double with 17 points and a career-best 16 rebounds, including 12 in the opening period. Wilkinson's 16 rebounds are the most by a Husker since John Turek also recorded 16 boards against Denver during the 2002-03 campaign.

 

Return Game

Junior guard Charles Richardson Jr. made his return to the court in the Huskers' 69-54 victory over Southeast Missouri State. Richardson's season debut included two steals in nine minutes of action.

 

Over his last three games, Richardson has turned up the heat on opponents while rounding back into the rotation. In his second appearance of the year against Marquette, he had four points, four assists without a turnover and two steals in 22 minutes before coming back with a season-high five points with three assists and a career-high three steals in 23 minutes vs. UAB. On Thursday, Richardson added five points, a season-high four rebounds and four assists against South Dakota State.

 

Richardson's return from injury was a relief for the Huskers as he was Nebraska's only returning point guard with any experience entering the season. Last year, Richardson came on strong at the end of the season, earning his second start of the year in the Big 12 Tournament. Over the final nine games last season, Richardson averaged 3.9 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists per contest including a career-high 10 points against Colorado in NU's last home game of the 2004-05 campaign.

 

Wilkinson Adds Another Dimension For Huskers

Senior forward Wes Wilkinson missed the Louisiana Tech game with an injury but returned in fine fashion against Southeast Missouri State (25 points, nine rebounds) and has had the hottest hand on the team in the Huskers' subsequent four games.

 

The 6-10, 220-pounder has averaged 18.5 points, 10.5 rebounds, 2.75 blocks and 1.25 assists per game over the past four contests. He has hit 30-of-55 attempts (54.5 percent) from the floor and has played a team-high 31.3 minutes per game.  

 

Wilkinson has shown his versatility by connecting on an amazing 11-of-18 (61.1 percent) attempts from 3-point range over the past four games. He had 10 treys combined in his freshman and sophomore seasons and owned 34 3-pointers entering the season. He averaged 0.39 treys per game in his first three seasons but has connected on 2.0 3-pointers per game so far in 2005.

 

On the year, Wilkinson has averaged a team-best 15.5 points to go with 8.2 rebounds per game. He has hit 52.9 percent (37-of-70) from the floor, including 14-of-26 (53.8 percent) from long range. Wilkinson also owns 16 of NU's 23 blocked shots this season, including a career-best five blocks twice (against Yale before going out with an injury and against Marquette).

 

Doubling Up

Wes Wilkinson went the first 90 games of his career without a double-double but has had back-to-back double-double performances in the past week. After posting a 17-point, 16-rebound effort against UAB, Wilkinson added a 17-point, 10-board outing against South Dakota State.

 

Wilkinson is not the only player doubling up this season, as sophomore center Aleks Maric owns the team lead with three double-doubles. Junior forward B.J. Walker also got into the act earlier this week as he posted a career-best 11 boards for his first double-figure rebound effort of the season. Jason Dourisseau just missed out on a double-double already twice this year as he recorded nine rebounds against Longwood and South Dakota State.

 

Hot Hand

Senior guard Jason Dourisseau has continued his hot hand from last year when he ranked second on the squad by hitting 49.1 percent of his attempts from the floor. While the Omaha native continues to work on his game at the free throw line, he has been exceptional from the field over his last 15 regular-season games dating back to last season.

 

During that span, Dourisseau has hit 55.7 percent (59-of-106) from the floor, including 31-of-55 (56.4 percent) in seven games this season. Dourisseau is second on the team with 13.0 points and third with 6.6 rebounds per game this season. He also leads the Huskers with 11 steals and is third with 13 assists.

 

Dourisseau was one of three Huskers named to the all-tournament team at the season-opening John Thompson Foundation Basketball Challenge, and is the only Husker to score in double figures in every game this season.

 

Charity Work

While the percentage is still not where they would like it to be, the Huskers have done an outstanding job of getting to the free throw line in the early season games. Nebraska has averaged 28.1 free throw attempts per game (197 total attempts in six games) while allowing its opponents to get to the stripe just 13.1 times per game (92 attempts combined). NU has made 35 more free throws than its opponents have attempted (127 to 92).

 

Nebraska has hit 64.5 percent from the line this season ? including a solid 76.0 percent (19-of-25) last weekend against UAB ? after connecting on 66.0 percent (409-of-620) last year. Five players have at least two attempts per game this season with Marcus Walker (12-of-14) leading the way at an 85.7-percent clip. Jason Dourisseau has gotten to the line more frequently than any Husker (48 times) while connecting on 58.3 percent.

 

First-Timers

Husker fans are seeing several new faces on the court in 2005-06. Nebraska's 16-man roster entering the season included nine players (six newcomers, three redshirts) who had never played a minute in a Husker uniform during a regular-season game.

 

During NU's three games at the season-opening John Thompson Foundation Basketball Challenge, six players saw action for the first time in their Husker careers, including three true freshmen (Marcus Walker, Jamel White and Kyle Marks), a redshirt junior (Marcus Perry), a redshirt freshman (Jim Ledsome) and a junior college transfer (B.J. Walker).

 

Marcus Walker has earned a starting nod in each of NU's first six games, and was just the second true freshman to start his first career game at Nebraska since Cookie Belcher in 1996-97. Marcus Walker is not the only newcomer to earn a start, as B.J. Walker was in for the tip off against Thursday against South Dakota State after being one of the first Huskers off the bench in the first six games of the regular season.

 

Through seven contests, B.J. Walker leads the newcomers by averaging 7.3 points and 5.4 rebounds while White paces the team with 2.7 assists per game while averaging 23.6 minutes per game off the bench.

 

Last year, the Huskers had two freshmen (Joe McCray and Aleks Maric) see significant time early in the season before setting NU records. McCray posted the best scoring average by an NU freshman in history after gaining a team-best 15.5 points per game. He also set records for 20-point games (10) and broke the Big 12 freshman record with 80 3-pointers. Maric set the NU freshman rebound record with 169 boards on the year.

 

Passing Grade

Freshmen guards Marcus Walker and Jamel White have made solid first impressions for the Huskers. The duo has combined for 13.7 points, 5.0 assists and 5.2 rebounds per game while hitting 31-of-38 attempts from the free throw line.

 

White leads the team with 19 assists while Walker has added 16. Walker owns the single-game team season high after posting six assists against Marquette, while White has recorded five assists on two occasions. Walker had five assists in the season opener but then posted just two assists over the next three games before getting back on track against the Golden Eagles. 

 

White has been efficient running the Husker offense this season, as he has 18 assists against three turnovers since a one-assist, six-turnover performance in the season opener. White has a 2.1:1 assist:turnover ratio this season, the second-best mark on the team behind Charles Richardson Jr.'s 2.75:1 ratio.  

 

The freshmen have made a strong impression since the start of the exhibition season when they took Richardson's place, as he was sidelined with an injury.

 

During the two exhibition games, Walker started both contests at point guard and led the team with 13 assists, including an eight-assist, no-turnover game against Holy Family in the second exhibition game. While Walker struggled from the field in exhibition play, he went 6-of-6 at the free throw line, including four crucial freebies sandwiched around a driving layup in the final minutes of a five-point win over Nebraska-Omaha. White played at both the point and shooting guard and ranked fourth on the team with 8.0 points per game in the exhibition contests. White hit 6-of-8 attempts from the line and was 4-of-8 from the floor while adding three steals.

 

McCray Moving Up Chart

Guard Joe McCray set several Nebraska freshman records last season and looks to break into the NU career record book during his sophomore campaign.

Nebraska's top returning scorer had 80 3-pointers to his credit after one season and now with 89 in his career, needs just six treys to break into the Husker career top 10. Former Huskers Jake Muhleisen and Jamar Johnson currently rank 10th with 95 career 3-pointers.

 

With 11 more 3-pointers, McCray will become the 10th player in Nebraska history to reach 100 career treys and will become only the second player to reach 100 treys during his sophomore season, joining Cary Cochran, who had 101 3-pointers after two full seasons playing for the Huskers. Cochran owns the NU record with 268 3-pointers in his career, while Eric Piatkowski (202) is the only other Husker with more than 200 career treys. 

 

International Man

Center Aleks Maric (pronounced MAR-itch) returned from the summer in the best shape of his life, which makes sense as he played more than 30 games in Slovenia, Greece, Canada and Argentina during July and August as part of the Australian Under-21 National Team. The 6-11, 265-pounder who set the Nebraska freshman rebounding record last season helped his Aussie team, the Crocs, to a fourth-place finish at the U21 World Championships in Argentina in August.

 

Maric averaged 9.4 rebounds per game while helping the Crocs to a 6-2 record at the World Championships. He was second in the tournament in rebounding, behind only 7-3 Peter Ramos, who played for the Puerto Rican Olympic team and was in the NBA last season. Maric also averaged 10.6 points while hitting 50.6 percent from the floor in the championships.

 

Maric is the second Husker to play on a youth World Championship team, joining current Atlanta Hawk Tyronn Lue, who played for the United States at the Under-22 World Championships in 1997. Bill Johnson played at the World Championships while helping the United States to gold in 1954, and Dave Hoppen (1985) and Eric Piatkowski (1993) played on the United States' World University Games teams.

 

Get to Know Him

Sophomore center Aleks Maric gained recognition as one of the top foreign players in the country last year and has already started back on the same track in 2005-06.

 

In a Wednesday, Nov. 9, article titled '20 Players You Should Know,' Jeff Goodman of scout.com compiled a list of the top sophomores and incoming rookies who flew "under the radar or should be impact freshmen this season." Maric was ranked No. 12 on the list and was one of two players in the Big 12 Conference, along with fellow Australian Aaron Bruce of Baylor who was ranked No. 3.

 

Huskers Rise to Challenge

A trio of Huskers were named to the all-tournament team as they lead Nebraska to a perfect 3-0 record and the title of the John Thompson Foundation Basketball Challenge on the opening weekend of the 2005-06 season.

 

Senior Jason Dourisseau, sophomore Aleks Maric and freshman Jamel White each earned a spot on the all-tourney team, along with Yale's Sam Kaplan, Longwood's Michael Jefferson and tournament MVP Paul Millsap of Louisiana Tech.

 

The Huskers had to scratch out two of the wins as NU's victories over Yale and LaTech were not decided until the final minutes. NU used a solid defensive effort that held its opponents to a tournament-low 61.7 points per game while shooting just 38.5 percent.

Maric and Dourisseau each averaged 12.7 points per game to lead the Huskers. Maric also pulled in 10.7 rebounds per game to rank second in the four-team field while Dourisseau was fourth overall and second on the team with 8.7 rebounds per contest.

 

White sparked the Huskers on both ends of the court as he took several charges on defense and added double-figure points twice. He finished with 10 points, seven boards and five assists against one turnover in the hard-fought win over Yale.

 

It was the first tournament title the Huskers have won since taking three straight games at the San Juan Shootout in 2000. Nebraska defeated Iona (81-80), Kent State (69-68) and SMU (72-70) that season. The Huskers started that trip with a 72-64 win over Miami in the Orange Bowl Basketball Classic.

 

New Bench Look

The Huskers have a new look on the bench as they have two new faces within the staff.

 

Jerome Francis Jr. joined the Huskers as an assistant coach in June and works directly with the post players. Francis formerly was head coach at Prairie View A&M three years and served at several Division I schools as an assistant coach, including one season at Butler with Coach Barry Collier.

 

Also new to the program this year is head basketball strength coach Travis Reust. A native of Oklahoma, Reust has most recently guided the programs at TCU and Colorado before coming to Nebraska. Reust has helped several Huskers reach new highs in the weight room already, as three Huskers have already benched at least 300 pounds this season while nearly every Husker has made a significant strength gain as well.

 

Fresh Faces

Nebraska has a returnee at each spot on the floor but will look for its depth this season to be provided mostly by new faces. Overall, the Huskers have six newcomers on the squad including five freshmen. The heralded group of newcomers gives Nebraska its most athletic roster in several years. 

 

Leading the list of fresh faces this season is junior college transfer B.J. Walker. The forward from Cincinnati nearly averaged a double-double last season with 16.2 points and 8.7 rebounds per game while helping Garden City (Kan.) Community College to its first-ever Jayhawk Conference West Division title. Walker has a soft touch inside 12 feet and solid offensive moves in the post and at 6-9, 245 pounds, provides another wide body to rest either Wes Wilkinson or Aleks Maric.

 

Along with Walker, freshmen Marcus Walker, Jamel White and Kyle Marks have earned early praise from the coaching staff. Marcus Walker, who was rated the No. 25 point guard in the country as a senior last year by scout.com, gives Nebraska another lightning-quick point guard to pair with Charles Richardson Jr. Walker and White can both score and give Nebraska a different look with a bigger lineup as they go 6-2 and 6-3, respectively. Marks has been described by his teammates as "freakishly athletic" and the 6-7, 220-pounder has one of the top vertical jumps on the team.

 

Huskers Name Captains

After losing four veterans who had combined to play in more than 380 games over the past four seasons, it didn't take long for the Huskers to figure out who would take on more of a leadership role in 2005-06. Seniors Jason Dourisseau and Wes Wilkinson and sophomore Aleks Maric were selected as team captains for the upcoming season.

 

Dourisseau and Wilkinson are the only two scholarship players on the roster from Nebraska and have stepped up over the past seven months to provide leadership on and off the court. After a strong summer of play with the Australian Under 21 National Team, Maric is believed to be only the second sophomore in school history to be named a captain. Former Husker Jake Muhleisen was a three-year captain between 2003 and 2005.

 

Smith, Balham to Redshirt

Newcomers Chris Balham and Mike Smith have said they will sit out this season as redshirts, looking to gain strength, speed and improve their skills before stepping onto the court for the Huskers in 2006-07.

 

Balham is one of the strongest players in Nebraska men's basketball team history and has already bench pressed more than 300 pounds. Balham will continue to work on his offensive skills as he began playing basketball just five years ago when he moved to Chicago from his native Paris, France. Smith also has great physical ability but with a log-jam in the backcourt, he has decided to take the time to improve his skill set and basketball IQ in anticipation of helping the Huskers next season.

 

Defensive Mind Set

The Huskers look to continue a recent tradition of success on the defensive end of the court this season as Nebraska has held opponents to less than 64.0 points per game each of the past two years. The last time Nebraska held opponents to fewer than 64.0 points per game in consecutive seasons was 1983 (60.9 ppg) and 1984 (61.6 ppg).

 

Before Coach Collier arrived in Lincoln, the Huskers had held opponents to under 71.0 points per game only twice (1999, 64.3 ppg; 1998, 68.5) in the previous 14 seasons, dating back to the addition of the 3-point line in 1987. Under Collier's guidance, NU has held opponents to less than 71.0 points per game five times in five seasons, including four times under 70.0 points per game.

 

Huskers Open Practice with Madness

Nebraska opened the 2005-06 year with a public scrimmage and dunk contest at Husker Madness on Oct. 14. With about 2,500 fans in attendance, the Huskers joined the Nebraska women's team to give the public a taste of what is to come in the regular season.

 

Following the women's scrimmage and 3-point contest, the Husker men held a 20-minute running clock scrimmage with the veterans taking on the newcomers. The newcomers struggled early but made a late surge before being held off by the veterans,
34-27.

 

In the dunk contest, freshman Kyle Marks impressed the fans with a two-handed slam after jumping over the entire team, which had crouched down inside the lane. Marks' dunk came in the finals against senior Jason Dourisseau, who cleared a ball rack set up in the lane inside the free throw line. Each scored a '50' to force a second finals matchup, which Dourisseau won after Marks missed both of his attempts.

 

Board Games

Nebraska looks to clean the boards on a regular basis again this season as it returned 57.4 percent of its rebounding from the 2004-05 campaign when it led the Big 12 Conference in rebounding margin.

 

Through seven games this season, Nebraska ranks third in rebound average at 41.9 boards per game with Aleks Maric (8.4 rpg), Wes Wilkinson (8.2) and Jason Dourisseau (6.6) ranking among the top 20 individuals.

 

The Huskers averaged a +5.2 rebounding margin over 28 games last season to rank 30th nationally. Last year's effort marked the eighth time in the past 10 seasons the Huskers held an advantage on the glass. It was also NU's highest rebounding output since 1992, when Nebraska held a +6.4 rebounding advantage, and only the third time since 1953 the Huskers had at least a +5.0 rebounding margin. 

 

Map Quest

Nebraska's roster has changed quite a bit in the past 12 months. That is most evident when looking down the state listings as the only Nebraskans on the roster are the four seniors ? Jason Dourisseau and Wes Wilkinson along with walk-ons Bronsen Schliep and Tony Wilbrand. The states following Nebraska with the most current Huskers are New York and Florida with two each, while the other eight players are from seven other states and one foreign country. Overall, the Husker roster consists of players from 10 states and two countries.

 

Forcing Their Hand

Nebraska's foes hit just 41.4 percent from the floor last season as the Huskers ranked fourth in the Big 12 Conference. It marked the third straight year Nebraska has held opponents to 41.5 percent or less from the floor. Since 1965, NU has held opponents to a 41.5 field-goal percentage or less just eight times, although six of those seasons have come in the last decade.

 

Tough Schedule Ahead

Nebraska will face 11 teams in 2005-06 that reached the postseason last year. Among the eight teams to reach the 2005 NCAA Tournament were six Big 12 opponents in Texas Tech (Sweet 16), Oklahoma State (Sweet 16), Oklahoma (Second Round), Iowa State (Second Round), Texas (First Round) and Kansas (First Round), along with two non-conference foes in UAB (Second Round) and Creighton (First Round).  Nebraska opponents Texas A&M (Third Round), Missouri (First Round) and Marquette (First Round) reached the 2005 National Invitation Tournament.

 

Home Sweet Home

The Huskers will play a Bob Devaney Sports Center single-season record 19 home games this season. The Huskers will break the record of 18 home games at the Devaney Center, last tied during the 2003-04 campaign when Nebraska picked up an NIT victory over Niagara on its way to a 15-3 home record. The 15 wins tied for second all-time on the building's single-season win chart.

Nebraska owns a 348-110 all-time record in its 30th year at the Devaney Center.

 

Basketball Luncheons

The Rebounders Club has announced the dates for its monthly basketball luncheons in Omaha during the 2005-06 season. The Rebounders Club is a booster organization that provides support for the Nebraska men’s basketball program and financial assistance to the NU Athletic Department.

The Husker Roundball Luncheons will take place for the 19th season sponsored by the Rebounders Club. The luncheons will take place at Anthony’s Steakhouse at 72nd and F Street in Omaha on the following dates:

                Tuesday, Nov. 22

                Tuesday, Dec. 13

                Tuesday, Jan. 10

                Tuesday, Feb. 14

The price for a four-luncheon pass is $65, or fans can join the luncheon for $20 at the door on a space-available basis. The event will include guest speakers from the basketball program and  is open to the general public as well as all Rebounders Club members.

 

What's On Tap Next

Following the matchup with the Bluejays, Nebraska returns home for finals week to end the fall semester. The Huskers will practice during the week, getting ready for a tiring five-day stretch that includes three games before the holiday break. Nebraska begins its three-games streak against Chicago State on Saturday, Dec. 17 at the Devaney Center. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. and the game can be heard on the Pinnacle Sports Network.