Huskers Battle Buffs in Dallas

Nebraska
(16-11, 8-8)
Colorado
(9-20, 3-13)
Reunion Arena
Tuesday, March 7
8:30 p.m.
Radio:
Pinnacle Sports Network
1400-KLIN Lincoln
1110-KFAB Omaha
Huskers.com
Series Record: Colorado leads, 38-20
Season Series: Nebraska swept 2-0
Last Meeting: Nebraska won, 70-54, Jan. 28, 2006 in Lincoln
Last Meeting in Boulder: Nebraska won, 80-62, Jan. 4, 2006
Last Meeting at Conference Tournament: Colorado won, 77-67, March 6, 1994 (Big Eight, Salina, Kan.)

Huskers Open Big 12 Championship with Colorado
One of the hottest teams in the Big 12, the Nebraska women’s basketball team (16-11, 8-8) enters the 2006 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship as the No. 6 seed after winning four of its last five games to close the regular season. The Huskers will face 11th-seeded Colorado (9-20, 3-13) at Reunion Arena in Dallas, Texas, in the tournament’s opening round on Tuesday, March 7, at 8:30 p.m.

A live radio broadcast of the Huskers’ third meeting this season with the Buffaloes will be available on the Pinnacle Sports Network, including 1400 AM-KLIN in Lincoln, 1110 KFAB in Omaha and world wide on Huskers.com with Matt Coatney and Jeff Griesch calling the action.

The Huskers are coming off one of their most impressive performances of the season in a 75-62 run past fourth-seeded Missouri in Columbia in the regular-season finale for both teams on March 1. First-team All-Big 12 guard Kiera Hardy led the Huskers with 28 points on 11-of-16 shooting from the field. The 5-6 junior from Kansas City, Mo., hit 4-of-6 three-pointers, while dishing out five assists and snagging three steals against the Tigers.

Hardy, who earned her third Big 12 Player-of-the-Week award this season for her effort at Missouri, leads the Huskers with 17.3 points, 2.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.9 steals per game. Nebraska’s career three-point leader with 182, Hardy has set NU’s junior single-season record with 67 three-pointers this season.

Nebraska’s only loss in the past five games has come on the road at Big 12 champion Oklahoma on Feb. 26. Along with its 4-1 record in the past five games, Nebraska owns a 6-4 mark in the last 10 contests, with three of those losses coming to top-25 teams (at OU, at Baylor, vs. Texas A&M) and the fourth at Kansas State.

The first of NU’s six wins came with a 70-54 victory over Colorado in Lincoln on Jan. 28. That win over the Buffaloes completed Nebraska’s first regular-season series sweep of CU since 1984. The victory over Colorado also started the Huskers’ impressive run through the second half of the league season that included a perfect 5-0 record in rematches with Big 12 North division opponents. Nebraska’s 7-3 overall record against the North matched Missouri for the best in the conference and gave the Huskers the tiebreaker for the No. 6 seed ahead of Kansas State.

Hardy Repeats as First-Team All-Big 12
Nebraska junior Kiera Hardy became just the second Husker to capture back-to-back first-team All-Big 12 Conference honors when the league office announced its 2006 teams on Friday.

Hardy, a 5-6 guard from Kansas City, Mo., leads the Huskers with 17.3 points per game, while adding 2.9 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.9 steals per contest. Hardy’s 91 assists this season are just 20 shy of her career total of 111 entering her junior season, while her 52 steals are also a career-best total.

Hardy ranks among Big 12 leaders with 67 three-pointers on the year, which has shattered Nebraska’s junior single-season record and ranks as the third-highest total in school history.

Hardy, who smashed WNBA All-Star Anna DeForge’s career school three-point record this season, joined DeForge as the only Huskers to ever claim two first-team All-Big 12 awards. DeForge earned first-team honors in both 1997 and 1998.

The only players in school history to earn first-team all-conference awards in three straight seasons are 1993 Wade Trophy winner Karen Jennings and 1988 Big Eight Player of the Year Maurtice Ivy.

Hardy owns Nebraska’s career three-point record with 182 in just 86 games, while DeForge finished her career with 155 three-pointers. Hardy also ranks 10th on NU’s career scoring list with 1,322 points.

Hardy needs 111 more points to climb into ninth place on Nebraska’s all-time scoring list and may have a chance to become just the third Husker in school history to reach the 2,000-point plateau next season.

Griffin Earns Spot on Big 12 All-Rookie Team
Nebraska’s Kelsey Griffin claimed one of five spots on the Big 12 Conference All-Rookie Team announced on Friday, March 3, by the league office in Dallas.

Griffin, a 6-2 forward from Eagle River, Alaska, averaged 13.6 points and a team-leading 6.1 rebounds per game while starting all 27 games for the Huskers during the regular season. Griffin’s impressive numbers came despite being limited significantly during the last four games by illness.

Griffin’s scoring average and field goal percentage (54.9 percent) rank among the top five freshman seasons in school history, while she ranks second among all NU freshmen in free throws made and attempted. She has added solid totals with 34 steals and 21 blocked shots on the season.

She enjoyed two of the top five games by a freshman in school history with her 31-point, 14-rebound effort in a win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in Miami, Fla., on Nov. 27, and her 28-point, 12-rebound performance at Kansas State on Feb. 4. She added a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds against Missouri on Jan. 11.

Griffin earned two Big 12 Rookie-of-the-Week honors during the league season, with her first coming after helping the Huskers to wins over Colorado and Kansas to open the Big 12 season on Jan. 9. She earned her second award after her performance at Kansas State on Feb. 6.

After earning her second Big 12 weekly award, Griffin produced another dominant week by averaging 19.5 points per game in losses at No. 12 Baylor and to No. 24 Texas A&M. Against the Aggies, Griffin scored 20 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the field for her fourth 20-point performance of the season.

Against the Lady Bears, Griffin hit for 19 points while knocking down 11-of-12 free throws. For the week, she hit 13-of-16 shots from the field and 13-of-15 free throws.

Nebraska at the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship
Nebraska is scheduled to practice at the NU Coliseum from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, before departing Lincoln for Dallas by charter flight at 3 p.m. The Huskers will be staying at the Doubletree Campbell at Centre 8250 North Central Expressway in Dallas.

The Huskers will use their only scheduled practice time at Reunion Arena on Monday at 5 p.m., before attending the pre-championship meeting at the Adam’s Mark at 400 Olive Street in downtown Dallas on Monday at 6 p.m. NU is scheduled for a Tuesday morning shoot-around at Reunion Arena from 9:50 to 10:10.

If Nebraska defeats Colorado in the first round, the Huskers will face the tournament’s No. 3 seed, Texas A&M, on Wednesday, March 8, at 8:30 p.m. All second-round games will be televised nationally by Fox Sports Net.

If the Huskers win two games at the Big 12 Championship, they would advance to the Big 12 semifinals for the first time since 2000 and play the second semifinal game at 8:30 p.m. Both semifinal games will also be televisied by Fox Sports Net.

Friday is an off-day at the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship. The tournament championship game is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Saturday, March 11, and will be televised live nationally by Fox Sports Net.

Hot Huskers Clinch Third Consecutive Winning Season
In Coach Connie Yori’s fourth season at Nebraska, the Huskers have clinched their third straight winning season and are pursuing their third straight trip to the postseason.

Nebraska won four of its last five regular-season games to finish the regular season with a 16-11 overall record, which follows on the heels of a pair of 18-win campaigns for the Huskers in 2003-04 and 2004-05.

The 2005-06 Huskers finished Big 12 play at 8-8 to claim a tie for sixth for the second straight season. NU produced its second straight .500 league mark, accomplishing the feat for the first time since back-to-back .500 or better Big 12 records in 1999 and 2000.

The Huskers’ success over the last three years comes in stark contrast to their three previous seasons, which all ended in losing records. In Yori’s first season in Lincoln, a handful of scholarship players managed just an 8-20 record and a 1-15 league mark in 2002-03.

Nebraska has earned postseason trips to the WNIT the past two seasons and the Huskers have made themselves postseason eligible with a winning record for the third straight season.

Huskers Sweep Big 12 North Foes in Rematches
Nebraska was a perfect 5-0 this season in rematches with Big 12 Conference North division teams. The Huskers, who posted regular-season sweeps of both Kansas and Colorado for the first time in school history, opened their second tour of the league’s northern half with a 70-54 home win over Colorado on Jan. 28. The Huskers opened the conference season with an 80-62 win at Colorado for their first win in Boulder in 20 years.

Four days later, Nebraska notched a 54-42 victory over Iowa State in Lincoln, that avenged a 79-57 loss to the Cyclones in Ames on Jan. 14.

The Huskers closed the sweep of Kansas with a 65-57 win in Lawrence on Feb. 15, after handing the Jayhawks their first loss of the season in a 73-61 win in Lincoln on Jan. 7.

Nebraska came back from a 12-point second-half deficit in a 64-62 overtime win over Kansas State at the Devaney Center on Feb. 18, to avenge a 71-64 loss at Manhattan on Feb. 4.

The Huskers suffered a 64-58 loss to No. 24 Missouri on Jan. 11, in NU’s first loss of the Big 12 season that snapped an eight-game Husker winning streak at the time, but Nebraska avenged that setback with a 75-62 win over the Tigers in Columbia to close the regular season on March 1.

Overall, the Huskers finished 7-3 against the Big 12 North this season and matched Missouri for the best record by a North team against other divisional foes.

Scouting the Colorado Buffaloes
Colorado heads to the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship as the tournament’s No. 11 seed. The Buffaloes finished the regular season with a 9-20 overall record, including a 3-13 Big 12 mark. Colorado’s only league wins came in a season sweep of Kansas and a 73-62 victory over Oklahoma State in Boulder on Feb. 26.

Colorado, which beat Kansas 77-71 in Lawrence on Feb. 1, managed its only other win away from home against UPR-Mayaguez on Dec. 20, 2005. The Buffaloes’ seven road losses in the Big 12 came by an average of 18.7 points per game, including a 16-point loss in Lincoln on Jan. 28.

Sophomore forward Jackie McFarland has been CU’s leader throughout the season, averaging 17.4 points and 9.3 rebounds per game. Along with leading CU in scoring and rebounding, McFarland leads the Buffs with 41 blocked shots and 35 steals. She is shooting 51.6 percent from the field and 80.4 percent from the free throw line.

Junior forward/guard Jasmina Ilic ranks second on the team in scoring with 14.5 points per game, while leading CU with 51 three-pointers. Ilic owns a turnover-to-assist ratio of nearly 3-to-1, which increased to nearly 5-to-1 during league action.

Senior guard Whitney Law gives CU three players averaging in double figures with 10.8 points and 4.3 rebounds per game. She also leads the Buffs with 3.8 assists per game. Law is one of only two players on the CU roster with a positive assist-to-turnover ratio, joining reserve guard Lauren Lubin.

Sophomore guard Yari Escalera has joined the starting lineup late in the season and is averaging 7.4 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. Escalera is shooting 36 percent from three-point range and ranks second on the team with 36 three-pointers. She also ranks second on the squad with 2.1 assists per game.

Junior forward Anna Nedovic is the only Buff to start all 29 games for CU. She is averaging 5.4 points and 4.3 boards per game.

Lubin (3.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg), Caley Dow (4.9 ppg, 5.3 rpg) and Hannah Skilldum (3.7 ppg, 3.0 rpg) have been consistent contributors off the bench for the Buffaloes this season.

Despite their lopsided league record, Colorado has been outscored by just three points per game on the season, and owns a positive team rebounding margin of plus-3.4. The Buffs are also the best free throw shooting team in the Big 12, hitting 74.2 percent of their attempts at the stripe.

The Buffs have been outscored by 12.2 points and outrebounded by 0.7 boards per game, and their free throw shooting has dipped to 71.9 percent in Big 12 play. Colorado has struggled throughout the season in the turnover department, owning a league-worst minus-4.6 turnover margin on the year and a minus-5.6 margin in conference games. CU ranks last in the league in turnover margin and steals, while also ranking last in the league in scoring defense at 69.8 points per game.

Nebraska vs. Colorado All-Time Series
Colorado leads the all-time series with Nebraska 38-20, but the Huskers posted their first regular-season sweep of the Buffaloes since 1984 during Big 12 play this season.

The Huskers won the last meeting with CU, 70-54, in Lincoln on Jan. 28, after opening Big 12 play with an 80-62 victory over Colorado in Boulder on Jan. 4. Nebraska’s league-opening win over the Buffs marked the Huskers’ first win in Boulder since 1985, ending NU’s 21-game road losing streak at Colorado.

The Huskers have never faced the Buffaloes at the Big 12 Tournament, and have not squared off with CU at a conference tournament since losing to the Buffs, 77-67, at the Big Eight Tournament in Salina, Kan., on March 6, 1994.

Nebraska has never defeated Colorado in March, as the Buffs own a 6-0 record against the Huskers during the month. The Huskers have not knocked off CU on a neutral court since a 63-61 win on Jan. 6, 1978, at the Big Eight Tournament in Lawrence, Kan.

Huskers Roll Past Tigers to Close Regular Season
Junior guard Kiera Hardy produced her 10th 20-point performance of the season with a game-high 28 points to lead Nebraska to a 75-62 win over Missouri at Mizzou Arena on Wednesday.

Hardy scored 21 of her 28 points in the first half to help the Huskers to a 34-30 halftime lead before the Huskers won going away in the second half. Hardy had one of her most efficient offensive performances of the season, hitting 11-of-16 shots from the field, including 4-of-6 three-pointers, while adding five assists and three steals.

Junior forward Jessica Gerhart added 15 points on 7-of-16 shooting from the field, including just her second three-pointer of the season to help the Huskers complete a sweep of Big 12 North division foes in rematches this season.

Nebraska finished the game shooting 48.3 percent (29-60) from the field, including 50 percent (6-12) from three-point range. NU was also a perfect 11-for-11 at the free throw line. The Huskers outrebounded Missouri, 35-29, including a plus-nine rebounding effort in the second half. NU was also plus-one in turnover margin, forcing 15 Tiger turnovers, while committing 14 miscues of its own.

Hardy carried the Huskers in the first half, scoring 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting in the opening stanza to shoot NU to a 34-30 halftime lead. Hardy also hit 3-of-5 three-point attempts while adding a pair of steals and an assist in one of her best efforts of the season.

While her scoring nearly doubled any other player on the court, her two biggest plays of the game may have come on the defensive end. After Missouri scored on back-to-back baskets to cut NU’s lead to 32-30, the Tigers had the ball and were holding for a last shot to end the half, when Hardy stole a pass and raced for an uncontested layup as the half ended to preserve NU’s first-half lead.

Midway through the second half, Missouri had trimmed a 14-point NU lead down to just six points when LaToya Bond grabbed a long defensive rebound and raced toward the Husker goal. As Bond neared the lane, Hardy sprinted into position and forced a jump ball while Bond was on her way up.

The Huskers gained the ball on the alternating possession and Bond was whistled for a technical foul, sending Hardy to the line where she made a pair of free throws to push NU’s lead back to eight points. The Huskers went on to extend their lead to 18 points before settling for the 13-point road win over the Tigers.

Husker History at the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship
Nebraska will be attempting to advance to the second round of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship for the second straight season after rolling to a 60-45 victory over Oklahoma State at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo., in the first round of the 2005 tournament.

Chelsea Aubry led the Huskers with 15 points against the Cowgirls, while Kiera Hardy added 13 points and Jelena Spiric contributed 10 points for the Huskers.

Nebraska’s first-round win was the Huskers’ first tournament victory since defeating Kansas at Municipal Auditorium on March 8, 2000 in the second round of the Big 12 Tournament.

The Huskers advanced to the Big 12 semifinals in both 1999 and 2000. The Huskers also picked up a first-round win in their first-ever tournament appearance with a 62-58 victory over Missouri on March 4, 1997. Nebraska is 4-5 all-time in first-round games at the Big 12 Tournament, including 0-2 in Dallas.

Nebraska is 1-0 all-time on March 7 at the Big 12 Tournament with an 82-61 win over Baylor at the 2000 tournament in Kansas City. The Huskers are 2-0 on March 8 in the tournament with wins over Kansas in 2000 and Oklahoma State last season.

Nebraska has never faced Colorado or Texas A&M at the Big 12 Tournament.

Hardy Joins Top 10 on Nebraska Career Scoring List
Two-time first-team All-Big 12 guard Kiera Hardy continues to climb the Nebraska career scoring list.

Heading into the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship, Hardy ranks 10th all-time at Nebraska in scoring with 1,322 points and needs 111 points to move into ninth place.

With 466 points this season, Hardy is nearing a top-five junior single-season scoring total at Nebraska, as she needs 500 points to rank among the top-five scoring seasons by a Husker junior.

The top returning scorer this season in the Big 12, Hardy became the 22nd player in Nebraska history to score 1,000 career points with her 15-point effort in the Huskers’ 96-47 win over Texas State on Dec. 20.

Hardy has scored in double figures 23 times this season, including 10 20-plus scoring efforts. She scored a season-high 32 points in a win over Northern Arizona on Dec. 31. She produced her top performance of the Big 12 campaign with 29 points, including six three-pointers, against Texas on Jan. 18, before adding 28 points on 11-for-16 shooting from the field in the regular-season finale at Missouri on March 1.

Hardy, who has scored 26 or more points six times this season, scored 26 points against No. 3 LSU on Nov. 25, 26 more in a loss at Texas Tech on Jan. 21, and 26 a third time in a win over Kansas on Jan. 7.

Hardy, who owns 25 career 20-point scoring efforts, reached the 1,000-point mark in just her 68th career game.

Hardy Rewriting Nebraska’s Three-Point Record Book
First-team All-Big 12 guard Kiera Hardy will continue to rewrite the Nebraska record book for the rest of her career as the top three-point shooter in school history.

Hardy smashed Nebraska’s three-point record with six three-pointers against Texas on Jan. 18. She finished the night with 158 threes in 75 games, shooting past current WNBA All-Star Anna DeForge’s previous mark of 155 three-pointers in 117 career games.

Not only did Hardy shatter the mark in 42 fewer games played than DeForge, she hit her first 155 three-pointers in 18 fewer attempts. Hardy has increased her career total to 182. She is the only player on Nebraska’s top-10 three-point list who has played fewer than 100 career games.

Hardy matched her season-high with six three-pointers against Texas, after hitting six three-pointers against Texas Southern on Dec. 7. She tied the school single-game record with seven threes against Iowa in the 2005 WNIT.

Hardy ranks among Big 12 leaders with 67 three-pointers this season, an average of 2.48 three-pointers per game. After tying the school single-season record with 85 three-pointers last season and smashing the school’s sophomore record, Hardy has established a Nebraska junior single-season record with 67 threes this year, surpassing the 47 three-pointers hit by Sabrina Brooks in 1987-88.

Hardy ranked second in the Big 12 Conference with 3.06 made three-pointers per game in league contests last season. She hit six three-pointers in the win over No. 2 Baylor on Jan. 12, and matched that total with six three-pointers in the win over Oklahoma State on Feb. 1.

Huskers Set School Turnover Mark Against Cowgirls
Nebraska set a school single-game record by committing just four turnovers in the Huskers’ 81-56 win over Oklahoma State on Feb. 21.

Although it was the lowest turnover mark in school history, the Huskers’ low number in that category continues an impressive trend for Nebraska over the past several seasons.

The Huskers are on their way to producing their fourth of the top five turnover marks in school history in Coach Connie Yori’s four years at Nebraska.

Through 27 games in 2005-06, the Huskers are averaging just 13.9 turnovers per game. Nebraska has turned the ball over just 374 times this season. With one regular-season game remaining and one more game guaranteed in the Big 12 Tournament, even if the Huskers averaged 20 turnovers per game, they would still finish the season with the second-lowest turnover total in school history with 396. NU has committed more than 17 turnovers only three times all season (LSU, Grambling State, Texas A&M).

The Huskers have been even better in Big 12 play, averaging just 12.3 turnovers per game, while forcing 16.6 turnovers per contest to rank second in the league with a plus-4.3 turnover margin. NU has committed more than 15 turnovers just once (Texas A&M, 25) in 16 league games. They have produced single-digit turnover marks against Oklahoma State (4), Missouri (8) and at Kansas (9).

Last season, the Huskers averaged just 15.4 turnovers per game (493 total turnovers) for the third-fewest total turnovers in school history.

In 2003-04, the Huskers committed just 488 turnovers (16.3 per game), which ranked as the second-lowest total in school history, trailing only the 369 turnovers in 32 games in 1991-92 (11.5 per game).

The Huskers achieved their fourth-lowest turnover total with 497 total turnovers (17.8 per game) in Coach Connie Yori’s first season at Nebraska in 2002-03.

Gerhart’s Hot Shooting Fuels Huskers’ Streak
Jessica Gerhart helped ignite Nebraska’s 4-1 record to close the regular season with her hot shooting from the field. Over the past seven games, the 6-2 forward from Fenton, Iowa, has hit 57.4 percent (35-61) of her attempts from the field, including a perfect 8-for-8 shooting night against Oklahoma State on Feb. 21.

Gerhart scored 16 points in just 15 minutes in one of the most efficient performances by a Husker this season against the Cowgirls. She enters the Big 12 Championship after scoring 15 points on 7-for-16 shooting from the field in the Huskers’ regular-season finale at Missouri. She opened NU’s winning streak by hitting 6-of-9 shots from the field to score 14 points at Kansas on Feb. 15.

She began her hot shooting by knocking down 5-of-6 shots from the field against No. 12 Baylor on Feb. 8, and had shot 50 percent or better in five straight games before going 3-for-11 at Oklahoma Feb. 26.

Gerhart is averaging 10.7 points per game during NU’s last seven contests.

Gerhart has increased her season averages to 9.7 points and 3.4 rebounds per game, while shooting 46.7 percent from the field and a blistering 90.5 percent at the free throw line. She scored a career-high 22 points on 10-of-13 shooting against Colorado on Jan. 28, and has scored in double figures 14 times this season.

While her shooting touch has been on fire, her defensive intensity has also heated up. Over the past seven contests, Gerhart has grabbed seven steals, including a career-high four steals in the Huskers’ overtime win over Kansas State on Feb. 18. Her seven steals in the past seven games surpassed her total of six steals from her entire freshman season when she played in all 30 games for NU, while pushing her season total to 19, surpassing the 16 total steals she had in 60 games entering her junior year.

Aubry Giving Huskers Dangerous Threat from Outside
Junior Chelsea Aubry has become a potent threat from long range during Big 12 Conference action. The 6-2 forward from Kitchener, Ontario, Canada, is shooting 41.0 percent from three-point range in league play.

She has hit 16-of-39 shots from beyond the arc against league foes and has been sizzling over the past nine games. Aubry has hit 12 of her last 29 three-point attempts during NU’s last nine contests, including tying her career high with three three-pointers against both Iowa State on Feb. 1 and Oklahoma State on Feb. 21.

Overall this season, Aubry ranks second among the Huskers with 23 three-pointers, nearly doubling her total of 13 three-pointers from a year ago. Aubry’s growing confidence from long range has helped the Huskers down the stretch in regular-season Big 12 play.

Aubry has found her offensive niche while playing somewhat out of position for NU this year. She made the move from power forward to the wing after the season-ending knee injury to Jelena Spiric in fall practice. Aubry’s scoring average has dipped from her sophomore season, but her rebounding, assist and steals totals are on the rise.

Through 27 games, Aubry is averaging 6.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. She has scored in double figures six times this season, including four times in Big 12 play. She has dished out 29 assists this year, nearly doubling her total of 16 in 29 games a year ago, while snagging 18 steals to surpass the 17 steals she had in 29 games as a sophomore.

Aubry provided one of the best efforts of her career with 18 points and eight rebounds in Nebraska’s 84-50 victory over Creighton on Nov. 21.

She added 13 points in the Huskers’ win over Iowa State Feb. 1, when she tied her career high with a trio of three-pointers. Aubry opened Big 12 play by scoring 10 points on 5-of-5 shooting from the field at Colorado on Jan. 4. She contributed 11 points and five rebounds against No. 24 Missouri on Jan. 11. She added 10 points, including tying a career best with a trio of three-pointers at Iowa State on Jan. 14.

Over the summer, Aubry helped the Canadian National Team qualify for the 2006 World Championships in Brazil. The appearance at the 2006 World Championships will be the first for the Canadians since 1994.

Aubry has spent the past two seasons on the Canadian Senior National Team. She was also a member of the Canadian World University Games Team in 2003 as a member of the Canadian Under-20 National Team.

Howell Helps Huskers Push for Postseason Play
Senior LaToya Howell ignited Nebraska to a 4-1 record to close the regular season with drastically improved production in all areas of her game.

The 5-5 point guard from Chicago, Ill., enters the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship averaging 3.6 points, 3.3 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

During NU’s last five games, Howell is averaging 4.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 6.2 assists and 2.4 steals per game. She has grabbed 16 of her 40 steals on the season in her last six games, while setting her career rebounding mark twice with eight rebounds against Kansas State on Feb. 18 and a career-high nine boards at Missouri on March 1. Her eight rebounds in the Huskers’ 64-62 overtime victory over Kansas State on Feb. 18, came in a career-high 41 minutes.

Howell tied her career high with 10 assists in just 24 minutes in the Huskers’ 81-56 win over Oklahoma State on Feb. 21, the second time in league play she has dished out 10 assists (at Iowa State, Jan. 14).

She has started 26 of NU’s 27 games, coming off the bench behind Ashley Ford only against Texas A&M.

Page Surging Down Stretch for Huskers
Sophomore Danielle Page has provided Nebraska with a major lift off the bench during the past five games, playing a major role in NU winning four of its past five games.

The 6-2 forward from Monument, Colo., has averaged 6.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals and 1.0 blocked shot per contest over the last five games. She has pulled down 13 of her 33 offensive boards on the season and grabbed nine of her 21 steals on the year in the past five contests.

Page has also played an average of 21 minutes per game in the past five contests, compared with just 15.4 minutes per game on the season.

Page got off to a slow start to the 2005-06 season while coping with a breathing condition that limited her playing time early in her sophomore season. She averaged just 1.8 points and 1.8 rebounds through the season’s first five games, but Page helped fuel Nebraska’s eight-game winning streak from Dec. 7 through Jan. 7.

During that eight-game winning streak, Page averaged 6.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, 1.3 blocked shots and 1.1 steals per game. She scored a season-high 14 points and grabbed six boards in NU’s win at Northwestern on Dec. 10. She added 12 points and five rebounds against Grambling State and produced her third double-figure scoring effort of the season with 10 points, two rebounds, one block and one steal to help the Huskers win in her home state of Colorado for the first time in Page’s lifetime (20 years).

Page, who blocked 31 shots as a freshman, leads the Huskers with 30 blocks this season to rank as the third-best total by a sophomore in school history. She is just the second player in school history, joining NU all-time block leader Janet Smith, to post back-to-back 30-block seasons during her freshman and sophomore campaigns. Page needs just six more blocks to catch Charlie Rogers (1997-98) in second on NU’s sophomore list.

Page ranks 10th at Nebraska with 61 blocked shots and needs just two more blocks to move into a tie for eighth place on Nebraska’s all-time list with Wade Trophy winner and Kodak All-American Karen Jennings and Pyra Aarden with 63.

Turnover Margin Creating Victories for Huskers
Nebraska has been solid this season in the key area of turnover margin.

Through 27 games, the Huskers have produced a stellar plus-4.9 team turnover margin by averaging just 13.9 turnovers per game, while forcing an average of 18.7 turnovers per contest.

NU’s success in creating turnovers while taking care of the basketball has helped the Huskers attempt an average of 4.6 more shots per game than their opponents, while also getting to the free throw line an average of 1.2 more times per game.

Nebraska produced its most lopsided turnover margin of the season by going plus-12 in the turnover column in a 70-54 win over Colorado on Jan. 28. NU committed just 11 turnovers against the Buffaloes, while forcing 23 CU miscues. The Huskers added a plus-11 turnover total in their overtime win over Kansas State on Feb. 8, forcing 23 Wildcat turnovers while committing only 12 turnovers of their own, including just three after halftime.

The Huskers added a plus-10 turnover margin in their most recent win over Oklahoma State on Feb. 21, committing a school-record low four turnovers while forcing 14 Cowgirl miscues. The Huskers also provided plus-10 turnover margins against Michigan and Texas State in non-conference play.

The Huskers have enjoyed at least a plus-five turnover margin in 17 of 27 games this season, and only four opponents - No. 3 LSU, Iowa State (Jan. 14), No. 12 Baylor, No. 24 Texas A&M - forced negative turnover results by NU. In the other four games, No. 10 Minnesota and Northwestern matched the Huskers’ turnover total, while the Huskers were a plus-one in the turnover column at Texas Tech and plus-two at Kansas State.

Huskers Displaying Defensive Dominance
Nebraska is allowing just 62.1 points per game this season, its best team scoring defense average in the past decade, trailing only the 1996-97 squad’s 58.7 points allowed per contest.

Nebraska’s defense has shown the ability to shut down opponents at a record pace. The Huskers put a stranglehold on Northwestern, giving up just 50 points on Dec. 10. A week later, Nebraska was even better on defense, allowing just 49 points to a solid Michigan squad. Against Texas State on Dec. 20, the Huskers may have played their best defense of the season, giving up 47 points to a team that entered the game averaging 80 points per contest.

The Huskers lowered their best defensive total of the season to 40 points in the win over Grambling State on Dec. 29. The win over Grambling State marked the first time in school history that the Huskers held four straight opponents to 50 or fewer points.

Nebraska held Iowa State to just 42 points on Feb. 1, the third-lowest scoring total by an NU Big 12 foe in the 10-year history of the league.

The Huskers have held six of their first 27 opponents, including Creighton, Northwestern, Michigan, Texas State, Grambling State and Iowa State to 50 or fewer points this season.

Last year, Nebraska held five opponents to 50 or less in 32 games, which marked the first time since 1996-97 that an NU team had held five foes to 50 or less during a season. The 1996-97 squad held six opponents to 50 or fewer points, which was the most since holding eight opponents to 50 or fewer points in a 36-game season in 1978-79. NU has twice held nine foes to 50 or less in a season (1974-75 and 1976-77).

In Coach Connie Yori’s four seasons in Lincoln, the Huskers have held opponents to 50 or fewer points 18 times in 117 games. In Nebraska’s six previous seasons (beginning in 1996-97), which included three trips to the NCAA Tournament, the Huskers held only 19 opponents to 50 or less in a span of 185 games.

Huskers Continue to Rank among Big 12 Leaders at Line
Nebraska has continued its recent tradition of ranking among the top Big 12 teams at the free throw line. Through 27 games, the Huskers have hit 73.8 percent of their free throws.

Nebraska ranks second in the Big 12, trailing only Colorado’s 74.2 percent accuracy. The Huskers’ success rate would rank as the fifth-best percentage in school history. The past two seasons, the Huskers have hit 74.9 percent (2004-05) and 74.0 percent (2003-04) from the line. The school record is 79.0 percent set in 1981-82. NU added the third-best shooting percentage in school history with 74.5 percent accuracy in 1988-89.

The Husker lineup features seven players shooting better than 70 percent at the line, including Jessica Gerhart (90.5 percent), Kiera Hardy (79.8 percent), LaToya Howell (79.1 percent), Chelsea Aubry (74.2 percent), Danielle Page (74.1 percent), Sarah White (73.3 percent) and Kelsey Griffin (70 percent).

Hardy Increases Passing Proficiency in Junior Season
In addition to her dynamic scoring abilities, Kiera Hardy has increased her impact for the Huskers in 2005-06 on both the offensive and defensive ends. Through 27 games, Hardy is averaging 3.4 assists to rank among the top 15 players in the Big 12. She produced a career-high nine-assist effort in the win over Colorado on Jan. 28 and added seven assists at Kansas State on Feb. 4. With 91 total assists this season, Hardy has shattered her 2004-05 total of 67 in 32 games. She has also committed just over half the number of turnovers.

On the season, Hardy also ranks among the top 10 players in the Big 12 with her 1.6-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio (91 assists-57 turnovers). Last season, Hardy’s assist-to-turnover ratio was 1-to-1.34 (67 assists-90 turnovers).

Defensively, Hardy has been solid. She leads the Huskers and ranks among Big 12 leaders with 1.9 steals per game. Her 52 steals are a career high, surpassing the 51 steals she had in 242 more minutes a year ago.

Griffin Off to Record-Breaking Start for Huskers
Kelsey Griffin is off to a record-breaking start to her Nebraska career. The 6-2 freshman forward from Eagle River, Alaska, has scored in double figures in 18 of her first 27 games to become the fastest player in NU history to score 100 points. Griffin went over the century mark on the Huskers’ first basket of the game at Northwestern, and added 20 more points on the day.

The 2005 Gatorade Alaska High School Player of the Year has continued her strong scoring pace by crossing the 200-point plateau in her 14th game against Missouri. She produced the second double-double of her career with 16 points and 12 rebounds against the Tigers. She has demonstrated amazing consistency, crossing the 300-point mark in her 21st game against No. 12 Baylor in Waco on Feb. 8, when she scored 19 points while going head-to-head with Baylor All-American Sophia Young. Griffin added 20 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the field against No. 24 Texas A&M. She has scored 366 points through 27 games and is averaging 13.6 points and a team-leading 6.1 rebounds per game.

Griffin produced possibly the best performance by a freshman in school history with 31 points and 14 rebounds for her first career double-double in a win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. She became the first freshman in history to score 30 or more points in a regulation game and she tied the school record with 18 free throw attempts.

She added another top-five effort by a freshman with 28 points, 12 rebounds and a career-high three blocked shots at Kansas State on Feb. 4. That performance earned her second Big 12 Rookie-of-the-Week honor of the season. She earned her first award on Jan. 9.

Griffin became just the 17th Husker (56 performances) in history to score 30 or more points in a game with her 31-point effort against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Nov. 27.

Griffin Erupts for 31 Points, 14 Rebounds vs. Islanders
After producing one of the top career-opening performances by a freshman in school history against South Dakota State, Kelsey Griffin produced perhaps the best game by a freshman in school history with 31 points and 14 rebounds in NU’s 76-64 victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Sunday at the Miami Thanksgiving Classic.

The 6-2 forward from Eagle River, Alaska hit 9-of-18 shots from the field and 13-of-18 free throws to lead the Huskers with 31 points in 31 minutes. She pulled down six offensive rebounds among her career-best 14 boards, which marked the highest total by a Husker since Margaret Richards grabbed 15 rebounds on Dec. 21, 2003.

Griffin became the first Husker freshman in history to score 30 or more points in regulation, while becoming just the second Husker frosh to hit for 30 points, trailing only Deb Powell’s 34-point outburst on Feb. 25, 1982 in an overtime contest with Notre Dame. Powell got her 34 points while playing 44 minutes against the Fighting Irish. She added 12 rebounds in a stellar all-around performance by one of the best players in NU history.

Griffin’s 18 free throw attempts against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi set the NU freshman mark and tied the overall school record in that category, previously held by Margaret Richards (Eastern Kentucky, Nov. 29, 2003) and Nicole Kubik (Kansas, Jan. 16, 1999).

Griffin, the 2005 Gatorade Alaska High School Player of the Year, tipped off her Nebraska career by scoring a game-high 18 points and adding a team-high seven rebounds to go along with two steals in Nebraska’s opener against South Dakota State on Nov. 19.

Her 18-point effort tied for the third-best scoring total by a freshman in a career-opener, trailing only WNBA All-Star Anna DeForge’s school-record 22 points against Gonzaga on Nov. 24, 1995, and Deb Powell’s 19 points against Pacific Christian on Nov. 20, 1981, among NU freshmen in career-opening games.

All-American Karen Jennings also scored 18 points in her career debut against St. Louis on Nov. 24, 1989, while Angie Miller added 18 points in her first career game against South Florida on Nov. 25, 1983.

All four of the other Huskers who have scored 18 or more points in the first games of their careers went on to score 1,500 or more points at Nebraska.

Huskers Face Loaded 2005-06 Schedule
|Nebraska’s 2005-06 schedule features some of the toughest teams in the nation, including five teams currently ranked in the Associated Press Top 25.

Overall the Huskers play 13 games against 2005 postseason qualifiers, including 10 contests against NCAA Tournament teams. Five opponents are ranked among the top 25 in the current AP poll, including No. 3 LSU, No. 4 Baylor, No. 15 Minnesota, No. 19 Texas and No. 20 Oklahoma.

Minnesota was the fourth consecutive 2005 postseason qualifier the Huskers have faced this season and the second 2005 NCAA Sweet 16 qualifier. Nebraska is 2-2 against 2005 postseason qualifiers so far in 2005-06.

"This is our toughest non-conference schedule since I have been at Nebraska," Head Coach Connie Yori said. "In making our schedule, we have always considered the quality and position of our program. We think this is the best team that we have been able to put on the floor in our time at Nebraska, so we are going to play our best schedule."

After opening against a tough South Dakota State squad on Nov. 19, Nebraska got its first taste of postseason-caliber competition when the Huskers blew past Creighton 84-50 at the Devaney Center on Nov. 21. The Bluejays posted 19 wins a year ago and earned a bid to the WNIT.

NU hit the road for the first time at the Miami Thanksgiving Classic where the Huskers lost to No. 3 LSU, 74-55, on Nov. 25. The Lady Tigers produced a 33-3 record while running the table to win the 2005 SEC title. The Tigers lost to Baylor in the Final Four to end their season.

The Huskers posted their second win of the year over a 2005 postseason qualifier with a 76-64 victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at the Miami Thanksgiving Classic. The Islanders produced a 23-7 mark a year ago and advanced to the second round of the WNIT.

Nebraska remained on the road to start December when the Huskers fell to Big Ten power and No. 10 Minnesota 78-70 in Minneapolis on Dec. 3. The Golden Gophers finished 26-8 last season and advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 where they lost to Baylor. Minnesota earned a trip to the Final Four in 2004.

After returning home for a 93-68 run past Texas Southern, the Huskers continued their road trip through Big Ten cities with an 80-50 rout of Northwestern in Evanston, Ill., on Dec. 10, and a 69-49 win over Michigan in Ann Arbor on Dec. 17. The Huskers added a 96-47 win over a Texas State team that came to Lincoln with a 7-1 record. The Huskers added a 69-40 pounding of Grambling State on Dec. 29, the preseason pick to finish second in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. NU closed non-conference play with a 70-56 win over Northern Arizona on Dec. 31.

The Huskers opened a rugged Big 12 schedule on the road at Colorado on Jan. 4, the site of their final conference regular-season game of the 2004-05 season. After beating the Buffaloes, 80-62, at CU for the first time since 1985, Nebraska returned to the Devaney Center and knocked off previously unbeaten Kansas, 73-61.

Tied with No. 24 Missouri atop the conference standings at 2-0, the Huskers played host to the 12-2 Tigers on Jan. 11. NU carried an eight-game winning streak into the contest, while MU brought an 11-game winning streak to Lincoln, including a win over defending national champion Baylor to snap the Lady Bears’ 30-game winning streak. The Tigers snapped NU’s streak with a 64-58 win.

The Huskers opened an eight-game stretch in which they face seven 2005 postseason qualifiers. The showdowns started on Jan. 14 in Ames, when the Huskers suffered a 79-57 setback at 2005 NCAA qualifier Iowa State. NU then suffered a 70-62 setback to Texas, another NCAA squad, on Jan. 18 in Lincoln.

NU traveled to NCAA qualifier Texas Tech on Jan. 21, and suffered a narrow 61-59 defeat, before returning home to defeat Colorado, 70-54, Jan. 28. The win gave the Huskers their first regular-season sweep of the Buffaloes since 1983-84. NU split the season series with Iowa State by working its way to a 54-42 victory in Lincoln on Feb. 1, before falling to NCAA qualifier Kansas State 71-64 on Feb. 4. NU suffered a 91-69 loss at defending national champion and No. 12 Baylor Feb. 8, before falling 69-50 to No. 24 Texas A&M (Feb. 11), which advanced to the third round of the 2005 WNIT.

Nebraska came away with a 65-57 win at Kansas on Feb. 15, to sweep the season series with the Jayhawks before knocking off Kansas State, 64-62 in overtime on Feb. 18. The Huskers closed their home schedule with an impressive 81-56 win over Oklahoma State on Senior Night Feb. 21, to stretch their winning streak to three games and clinch their third consecutive winning season.

NU fell at 2006 Big 12 champion and No. 9 Oklahoma, 73-45, (Feb. 26) but bounced back in a big way by closing the regular season with a 75-62 win over a Missouri team that finished fourth in the Big 12 and closed the year with 20 wins.

The Huskers head to Reunion Arena in Dallas for the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship (March 7-11).

Spiric Out for Season with Injury in Fall Practice
Nebraska forward Jelena Spiric was lost for the season with a knee injury suffered during the first official week of fall practice. Spiric, a 6-1 senior from Belgrade, Serbia & Montenegro, underwent surgery and will likely apply for a medical hardship.

Spiric captured Big 12 Newcomer-of-the-Year honors in her first season at Nebraska in 2004-05, despite playing most of the season at less than 100 percent after suffering a similar injury to her other leg in the final game of her junior college career. Spiric averaged 8.1 points and 4.1 rebounds per game with 23 starts as a junior, including 9.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game in Big 12 competition. In a pair of Postseason WNIT games, Spiric averaged 15.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per contest.

Yori Establishing Firm Foundation at Nebraska
Now in her fourth season at Nebraska, Coach Connie Yori has the Husker program moving in the right direction. After the Huskers suffered through four consecutive losing seasons, Yori helped Nebraska turn the corner in 2003-04 by producing one of the nation’s top turnarounds. The Huskers’ 10-game improvement tied for the ninth-best swing in NCAA Division I women’s basketball in 2003-04. More impressively, NU’s 18-12 record came against a powerful schedule that included 19 games against teams that advanced to postseason play.

The Huskers raced to a 10-1 non-conference record that included victories over No. 13 Ohio State and eventual WNIT champion Creighton, before notching one of the biggest wins in school history with an 81-63 victory over No. 9 Kansas State in league play. The Huskers finished with a 7-9 record in the Big 12 to finish in a tie for seventh place. NU was a two-point loss to Missouri or three-point loss to No. 13 Colorado away from earning a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2000.

The Huskers made their first postseason appearance since 2000 and played host to a postseason tournament game for the first time since 1993. Nebraska notched just the second home postseason victory in school history with a first-round WNIT win over Drake, before hosting just the third postseason game in school history in the second round against Oregon State.

Nebraska continued the momentum last year by replacing four senior starters from 2003-04 team and finishing with an 18-14 overall mark and its second straight postseason bid. The Huskers’ 8-8 Big 12 mark was their best finish since 2000, and included the biggest victory in school history, a 103-99 triple overtime win over eventual national champion and then-No. 2 Baylor on Jan. 12, 2005.

The Huskers also won their first Big 12 Tournament game since the 2000 campaign and continued their climb in the classroom as well. NU posted a team GPA of better than 3.0 during the spring 2005 semester, as 10 Huskers earned spots on the Big 12 Commissioner’s Academic Honor.

Nebraska has also enjoyed a rejuvenation at the turnstiles, with attendance surging nearly 60 percent over the past two seasons. The Huskers ranked 25th nationally in average home attendance in 2004-05, averaging 4,022 fans per game. The increase represented a nearly 30 percent increase over the 2003-04 season, and included a pair of crowds of more than 12,400 at the Devaney Center with a season-high 13,023 against Kansas State. Nebraska averaged nearly 5,800 fans per game during Big 12 action at the Devaney Center.

The 2002 Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year, Yori led Creighton to a 24-7 overall mark and a 16-2 MVC record in 2001-02 to capture the league’s regular-season and tournament titles. Yori’s success at CU in 2001-02 capped a 170-115 career mark at Creighton. Her teams made two trips to the NCAA Tournament in 1994 and 2002. Before taking over the top job with the Bluejays, Yori led NCAA Division III Loras College to a 25-25 record in two seasons from 1990 to 1992. She also served as an assistant coach at Creighton from 1986 to 1989.

Yori was one of the top players in Creighton history, and she still owns the school record for career scoring average at 20.3 points per game. She ranks as CU’s No. 3 all-time leading scorer with 2,010 points, and she had her No. 25 jersey retired. She was inducted into the Creighton Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992.

A native of Ankeny, Iowa, the 42-year-old Yori is married to Kirk Helms, and the couple had their first child, Lukas, in early July of 2004.

Six Recruits Set to Join Huskers for 2006-07 Season
Nebraska women's basketball coach Connie Yori announced the signing of six impressive recruits to National Letters of Intent during the early signing period for the 2006-07 season.

The Huskers, who are entering their fourth season under Yori, will be joined next season by Nikki Bober (Murdock, Neb.), Ana Fakatou (Long Beach, Calif.), Kala Kuhlmann (Charter Oak, Iowa), Cory Montgomery (Cannon Falls, Minn.), Nicole Neals (Chandler, Ariz.) and Yvonne Turner (Bellevue, Neb.).

On Feb. 15, Turner became just the second Husker recruit in history to earn All-America status from the WBCA. She is scheduled to compete in the WBCA High School All-Star game on April 1 at the NCAA Women’s Final Four at the FleetCenter in Boston. Yori said the large incoming class promises to give the Huskers their deepest and most talented team during her tenure for the 2006-07 campaign. The group also makes it possible to give NU its first full roster since Yori's arrival at Nebraska in 2002-03, when the Huskers had only a handful of active scholarship players.

"We are very excited about this incoming class, not only because of the depth it might create for us next year, but also because there are some very talented players in this group," Yori said. "Hopefully next year we will feel like we have overcome the numbers situation that we have had in our first four years in the program. This class takes us another step closer to being able to play the exciting style of up-tempo basketball we want to be able to play."

For complete biographies on Nebraska’s incoming recruiting class, visit Huskers.com. Click on Basketball under the Women’s Sports menu. Then click Roster and click on 2006-07 season.

Fastbreakers Booster Club
The Nebraska Women’s Basketball Booster Club, the Fastbreakers, and Lil’ Breakers Booster Club provide dynamic support to the Huskers. Membership benefits include regular e-mail news flashes during the season, a free Nebraska Yearbook, game information, invitations to monthly pre-game meals with the coaches, access to preferred parking, an invitation to the postseason awards banquet and much, much more.

For more information on the Fastbreakers and Lil’ Breakers Booster Club, please visit the Nebraska women’s basketball home page on Huskers.com, e-mail Fastbreaker President Susan Ferris at scf333@aol.com or call the Nebraska women’s basketball office at (402) 472-6462.

Nebraska’s History of Success at Home
Since the Bob Devaney Sports Center opened in 1976-77, the Huskers are 299-108 (.735) in games played in the arena, including 109-69 (.612) in conference games. Nebraska finished the regular season 10-4 at home in 2005-06.

The Huskers rolled to a 12-4 home record in 2004-05, after running to a 13-4 home mark in 2003-04. Nebraska is 2-2 all-time in home postseason play, with an 81-58 win over San Diego on March 17, 1993, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the Devaney Center. The Huskers added a 73-60 win over Drake in the first round of the WNIT on March 18, 2004, before losing 75-67 in the next round to Oregon State on March 22, 2004. Nebraska closed its 2004-05 season with a 71-67 loss to Iowa on March 25, 2005 in the second round of the WNIT.

Attendance is a big part of the Huskers’ success. The Huskers drew their largest crowd outside of the month of February in school history with 7,114 fans at the Devaney Center on Jan. 7, 2006, for the Huskers win over Kansas. Nebraska ranks among the top 30 schools nationally with an average home attendance of 3,316 fans per game in 2005-06.

The Huskers ranked 25th nationally last season by averaging 4,022 fans per contest. In 2004-05, the Huskers attracted two of the four largest crowds in school history in back-to-back games on Feb. 12 and Feb. 23. NU drew its fourth-largest crowd in school history with a season-high 12,429 fans in attendance for an 88-59 win over No. 14 Iowa State on Feb. 12. It was NU’s largest crowd in the past five seasons, dating back to a school-record crowd of 13,226 against Kansas State on Feb. 26, 2000.

The Huskers surpassed the mark in their next home game when 13,023 fans filled the Devaney Center to watch NU clash with Kansas State on Feb. 23. It was the first time in school history that Nebraska had back-to-back crowds of more than 12,000.

Nebraska ranked 14th nationally in average home attendance in 1999-2000 with 4,772 fans per game, after ranking 15th nationally with a school-record average of 5,000 fans per game in 1998-99. NU added an average home crowd of 4,204 in 2000-01.