Huskers Tip Off Big 12 Tournament Tonight

>>>Game Information

Game: 31

Game Date: March 8

Release Date: March 7

Game Time: 6 p.m. CST

Television: ESPN Plus and ESPNU

     (Dave Armstrong, play-by-play; Reid Gettys, color)

Radio: Husker Sports Network

     (Kent Pavelka, play-by-play; Matt Davison, color)

Internet: Huskers.com (live radio, stats)

Satellite Radio: None

Venue: FordCenter (18,879)

 

Three days after its last contest with the Cowboys, the Nebraska men's basketball team returns to the court to take on OklahomaState in the first round of the Big 12 Championship in Oklahoma City on Thursday, March 8. The Huskers enter the tourney as the No. 10 seed while OSU earned the seven seed based on a tiebreaker following a four-way tie for seventh place in the final standings.

 

Nebraska and OklahomaState will tip off at 6 p.m. at the FordCenter, the home of the NBA's New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. It will be the third time this season the Huskers play in a professional team's home venue.

 

The game between the Huskers and Cowboys will be seen nationally on ESPNU and regionally as part of the Big 12's syndicated package on ESPN Plus with Dave Armstrong calling the action and Reid Gettys adding color commentary. KLKN (channel 8) in Lincoln, Cox-2 in Omaha and KIIT in North Platte are expected to carry the contest within the state of Nebraska, and it can be seen nationally on DirecTV and Dish Network. Fans around the country should check their local listings for a complete schedule of games from the Big 12 Championship.

 

The game can be heard on the 25-station Husker Sports Network and on the Internet at Huskers.com. Kent Pavelka, the basketball voice of the Huskers, will call the action while Matt Davison adds color commentary.

 

The Huskers have a tough task ahead of them as they try to knock off a highly talented OklahomaState squad for the second time in four days. Nebraska will need to continue its strong shooting from Monday night it if hopes to make an extended stay at the Big 12 Championship for the second straight season.

 

NU hit 54.2 percent from the floor against OSU on Monday, snapping a five-game slump when the Huskers failed to connect on at least 40 percent in a contest. Nebraska lost four of the five poor shooting games, although the last three loses came by a combined 14 points including two road games.

 

Center Aleks Maric has been the primary focus of opposing defenses this season. Despite facing double and triple teams, Maric has been strong down the stretch as he has produced five straight double-doubles heading into the postseason tourney, the longest string of his career. Maric has averaged an impressive 24.6 points (123 total) and 13.6 rebounds (68 total) during that span.

 

In the first meeting with the Cowboys this week, Maric finally had some pressure taken off him as two other Huskers stepped up to produce 20-point games.

 

Senior Marcus Perry recorded a career-high tying 25 points while hitting seven 3-pointers, giving him 12 treys over the past two games (12-of-24 from 3-point range). Perry became the first Husker in school history to hit at least seven 3-pointers in two separate games during the same season. School record holder Cary Cochran is the only other Husker who had at least two games with seven treys, one as a freshman and one as a senior.

 

Along with Perry, sophomore Paul Velander stepped up big for the Huskers, posting a career-high 20 points on 5-of-10 shooting. Velander got the nod in the starting lineup in place of freshman Ryan Anderson, who sat out the game as he received an automatic one-game suspension after being called for a flagrant technical for fighting in the Colorado game on Saturday. Anderson is expected to play Thursday and may return to the starting lineup.

 

>>>Nebraska's League Championship History

The Huskers enter the Big 12 Championship after ending the regular season on a high note with an 85-73 victory over OklahomaState on Monday. The win was Nebraska's 14th victory by double figures this season and sixth over a team that currently has at least 20 victories. The win also gave the Huskers a boost as it moved NU into a tie for seventh place in the final regular-season standings. A loss would have left NU in 10th place.

 

Nebraska hopes to use its recent momentum to give it a boost on Thursday when the teams meet again. It will be the second straight season NU played its final regular-season game against the same team (Missouri) it faced in the first round of the Big 12 Championship.

 

Last year, NU used that familiarity to produce a first-round victory, its first since 1999 and only the third in the Big 12 era. NU added a second-round win over Oklahoma to advance to the 2006 Big 12 Championship semifinal, only its second semifinal appearance in Big 12 history.

 

The Huskers own a 4-10 record in the conference tournament since the Big 12 formed for the 1996-97 campaign. The two victories last year were the most in the Big 12 era and the most overall since NU went 3-0 to win the 1994 Big Eight Tournament title. Before last year, the Huskers had posted at least two wins at the league tourney just two other times (1994 and 1991).

 

Nebraska's all-time record in the postseason conference tournament is 14-30 since the Big Eight started a postseason tourney in 1977. NU has won at least one game 10 times, but has won at least one game in consecutive seasons only two times in school history (1982 and 1983; 1998 and 1999).

 

The Huskers have matched up with OklahomaState in the conference tournament five times, earning a 4-1 record over the Cowboys. Nebraska won the first four meetings before OSU topped the Huskers in the 1995 tournament, assuring NU it would not repeat as tourney champions. The Huskers defeated OklahomaState the previous year in the Big Eight title game.

 

NU-OSU in the Big Eight/Big 12 Championship

Year     Result

1978     Nebraska 71, OklahomaState 63

1982     Nebraska 60, OklahomaState 49

1986     Nebraska 82, OklahomaState 75

1994     Nebraska 77, OklahomaState 66

1995     OklahomaState 68, Nebraska 48

 

>>>Familiar Foes

The rematch between NU and OSU on March 8 in the first round of the Big 12 Championship will mark the second straight season the Huskers have played their regular-season finale and the first round of the Big 12 postseason tournament against the same team. Last year, NU lost a two-point contest at Missouri on Sunday, March 5, but turned around and defeated the Tigers on Thursday, March 9, by seven points, snapping a seven-game conference tournament losing streak.

 

In the past, Nebraska has played its final game of the regular season and first-round contest of the league tournament against the same team four times since the postseason tourney format went into effect in 1977.

 

The first time it happened was 1978 when NU defeated OklahomaState in Stillwater by 11 points to end the regular season and then topped the Cowboys by eight in Kansas City at the Big Eight Tournament. Nebraska also faced Oklahoma in back-to-back games at this time of year in 1980 (OU won regular-season finale, NU won tournament game) and 1992 (OU won both).

 

>>>Huskers Place Seventh in Big 12 Standings

Despite all the seeds for the Big 12 Championship being set last weekend, the final conference standings were not settled until Monday night's NU-OSU contest.

 

With the Huskers' 85-73 win, Nebraska created a four-way tie for seventh place in the final Big 12 regular-season standings, as NU joined Oklahoma State, Oklahoma and IowaState with identical 6-10 league records. Based on tiebreakers, the Huskers fell to the No. 10 seed.

 

The final conference placement is much higher than preseason predictions may have indicated were possible as Nebraska was picked to finish 10th by the league coaches and was selected as the 11th or 12th ranked team by several media outlets.

 

The placement may seem modest to some, but it could be considered a solid accomplishment for the Huskers considering a few key facts:

 

1) the new coaching staff did not take over until Aug. 8,

2) the Huskers had seven scholarship players miss at least one game with an injury or illness (in fact, all but one player -- Charles Richardson Jr. -- missed either a whole practice or a game with injury or illness), and

3) Nebraska played the full conference slate with a maximum of 10 scholarship players, including only one over 6-4 who averaged more than 7.0 minutes per game.

 

It is the second straight season the Huskers have finished seventh or higher in the league standings, and the seventh time in the history of the Big 12 Conference.

 

>>>Playing in the Top Venues

This week's site of the Big 12 Championship will be the third professional arena the Huskers have played in this season ? along with the Rose Garden (NBA's Portland Trailblazers, vs. Oregon) and BankAtlantic Center (NHL's Florida Panthers, vs. Miami).

 

Overall, Nebraska has played in four different professional venues in the psat five seasons. Nebraska is 3-6 in pro sports venues since the start of the 2002-03 season. All three of the Huskers' victories in professional arenas came in the last 12 months.

 

>>>All in the Family

Nebraska Coach Doc Sadler and Oklahoma State Coach Sean Sutton share a rich history with the same mentor ? Coach Eddie Sutton.

 

The elder Sutton gave Sadler his start in the business as Sadler was a manager for Eddie Sutton's Arkansas Razorbacks as an undergraduate. Sadler then made his assistant coaching debut on Eddie Sutton's staff, helping the team to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 1983 to 1985.

 

Sean Sutton has been the head coach designate the past few seasons at OklahomaState, where he studied under his father as an assistant for 13 seasons.

 

Nebraska Director of Operations Chris Croft also has ties to OklahomaState as he was an assistant coach for Eddie Sutton, helping the Cowboys to the NCAA Tournament in 1997 and 1998.

 

>>>In Focus

Junior center Aleks Maric has been the focal point of the Husker offense all season, especially during the past seven games.

 

In the last seven games of the regular season, the 6-11, 270-pound native of Sydney, Australia, has scored 178 points for a 25.4 points-per-game average. He has hit 60-of-118 (50.8 percent) from the field and 58-of-83 (69.9 percent) from the free throw line while adding 11.3 rebounds per game (79 total) in that stretch.

 

In a two-game span against Missouri and IowaState at home, Maric scored 67 points, the second-most points by a Husker in a two-game span in school history. His total trailed only Eric Piatkowski's 68 points against Missouri (26) and Oklahoma (42) in the 1994 Big Eight Tournament. Maric posted 31 points in overtime against Missouri and came back with 36 points against IowaState, the first time in school history a Husker has recorded consecutive 30-point games.

 

Maric recorded 131 points in his last four home contests, including a career-best 41-point effort vs. KansasState. That translates to a 32.8 points-per-game average to go along with 13.0 rebounds per game.

 

>>>The Series vs. OklahomaState

Nebraska and OklahomaState hit the floor Thursday at the FordCenter in the 111th meeting between the teams since the series began in 1926-27, and the second matchup in four days. In the second-closest series with a former Big Eight opponent, the Huskers lead OklahomaState by an all-time mark of 62-49. Only the Colorado-Nebraska series (NU leads 73-67) has a smaller series win margin for the Huskers.

 

Like the first season of the series when the teams split a pair of games, the recent history has been an even match as NU holds a 6-5 record over the Cowboys in the past 11 contests.

 

The Huskers have won each of the last three contests overall. In the past seven NU-OSU games (Nebraska leads 4-3), two have gone to overtime while the only one to be decided by more than seven points came on Monday in NU's 85-73 win at home.

 

Nebraska will be gunning for its fourth straight victory over the Cowboys after picking up wins in 2005 (vs. No. 4 OSU, 74-67), 2006 (59-57) and earlier this week. The last time NU won four straight games over the Cowboys came during a six-game win streak from 1985 to 1987.

 

The last time the teams met in a neutral site was 1995 when the 19th-ranked Cowboys earned a 68-48 victory over the Huskers in the Big Eight Tournament. That was the second straight year the teams had matched up in the league postseason tourney.

 

>>>Scouting the Cowboys

Oklahoma State enters the first round of the Big 12 Championship looking to avenge a loss at Nebraska on Monday night that pushed the Huskers into a four-way tie with OSU, Oklahoma and IowaState for seventh place in the league standings. The Cowboys shot 49.1 percent from the floor and connected on 14 3-pointers, one more than Nebraska (13), but could not overcome a huge Husker run early in the second period.

 

NU went on a 21-0 surge spanning the first and second halves to move ahead by 26 points and eventually stretched the lead to 29 points before OSU hit eight straight 3-pointers over a 10-minute span. The Cowboys eventually cut the deficit to seven but could get no closer.

 

Obi Muonelo led the charge with eight 3-pointers to tie the Nebraska opponent record while Byron Eaton connected on five treys and had a career- and team-high 25 points. Muonelo added 24 points while helping the Cowboys hit 11-of-15 3-point attempts after the intermission.

 

The loss was its sixth in the past seven games and left OSU without a true road win this season.

 

Oklahoma State, however, owns a 5-1 record on neutral courts this year, including victories over Auburn, Missouri State (overtime), Syracuse and nationally ranked Pittsburgh (two overtimes) while running out to a 16-1 record and top-20 national ranking. Nebraska is 3-1 on neutral courts this season with its lone loss coming against current top-25 foe Oregon. The Huskers were within four points in the final two minutes but fell by 12, 68-56.

 

Mario Bogan leads the Cowboys with 19.7 points and 7.8 rebounds per game while JamesOn Curry adds 17.9 points and 3.7 assists per contest. Bogan had 10 points on 5-of-9 shooting while Curry hit just 2-of-8 attempts for seven points on Monday against NU. Curry did not score until nearly five minutes into the second half after posting 40 points two days before at Baylor.

 

>>>Following Up OklahomaState

? Nebraska had three players score at least 20 points in a game for the first time in more than decade. Marcus Perry (25), Aleks Maric (23) and Paul Velander (20) topped the 20-point mark, the first Husker trio to accomplish the feat since Tyronn Lue (30), Jaron Boone (30) and Erick Strickland (20) did it against Oregon in the 1995 season.

? Perry tied his career high with 25 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including hitting 7-of-10 from 3-point range.

? Perry tied his career high with six rebounds and would have played his second 40-minute game of the year had he not been pulled in the final seconds to be able to leave the court to a rousing ovation on Senior Night.

? Perry became only the second player in school history with two games with at least seven 3-pointers. He now has 12 treys over the past two games.

? Perry's 25 points were the most he had ever scored in a Big 12 Conference game, topping the 17 he had against Colorado one game earlier and against Texas.

? NU's other senior, Charles Richardson Jr., set a career high with five steals and tied his career conference high with eight assists.

? Aleks Maric posted his 12th 20-point game of the year and his fifth consecutive double-double with 23 points and 13 rebounds. Maric also hit better than 60 percent in a game for the 15th time this season.

? Sophomore Paul Velander scored a career-high 20 points while making his first career start. He hit 5-of-10 from the floor, including four 3-pointers.

? Nebraska hit 13 3-pointers, its second-highest total of the year and the most at home. OSU countered with an opponent high of 14 3-pointers, including draining 11-of-15 (73.3 percent) in the second half.

? NU shot better than 50 percent from the floor for the 10th time this season and third time in conference play. Nebraska connected at a 54.2-percent clip, including hitting 61.9 percent (13-of-21) after the intermission. It was the seventh time in 16 league games NU hit better than 50 percent in the second half.

? Nebraska held a 31-21 advantage on the glass, the third time in four games NU outrebounded an opponent. The 21 rebounds were one off NU's opponent season low.

 

>>>Maric Gains Several Postseason Honors

Junior center Aleks Maric earned several postseason honors in the past week. His first honor came when he was named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) second team for District 12 on Wednesday, Feb. 28. He was named to the All-Big 12 second team by both the league's coaches and the Associated Press on March 4 and 5, respectively, and he was named to the Big 12's All-Improved team by a panel of media that regularly covers the league.

 

Maric joined 149 student-athletes selected to the all-district teams who now go onto the All-America ballot. The NABC All-America teams will be announced at the conclusion of the regular season.

 

One of the top post players in the nation, Maric has averaged 18.7 points and 8.6 rebounds per game this season to rank in the top four in the Big 12 standings in each category. The Sydney, Australia, native also is second in the league in field-goal percentage by hitting 57.0 percent from the floor this season to pace the Huskers and is third with 10 double-doubles, including his personal high steak of five straight over the past five games.

 

Maric, who earned accolades as the Big 12 Player of the Week in November, was an honorable-mention All-Big 12 (coaches and AP) selection last year and was named to the 2006 All-Improved team by the Associated Press.

 

>>>Velander Named to Academic All-Big 12 Team

Sophomore guard Paul Velander was one of nine players named to the academic All-Big 12 men's basketball first team, announced Thursday, March 1, by the conference office. Overall, 22 student-athletes were honored on the first or second teams by the league.

 

A native of Blacksburg, Va., Velander is the 24th Husker named to the all-academic squad since the formation of the Big 12 Conference, a total that ranks second in the league.

 

Despite battling injuries earlier in the year, Velander has come on strong on the court this season while also picking up the first academic award of his career. He is currently third on the team from beyond the arc with 31 treys, and is one of five current Huskers with at least 20 3-pointers on the season.

 

The only walk-on to see significant playing time this year, Velander has played in 26 games while averaging 4.4 points per game in 14.3 minutes of action. He has hit 38.8 percent (31-of-80) from 3-point range and 82.6 percent (19-of-23) from the foul line.

 

Nominated by the school's director of student-athlete support services and the media relations office, first-team members consist of those student-athletes who have maintained a 3.2 or better grade-point average while second-team members posted a 3.0 to 3.19 GPA.

 

To qualify, student-athletes must have maintained a 3.0 GPA or higher cumulative for their career or over the past two semesters and must have participated in at least 60 percent of the team's contests. Freshmen and transfers are not eligible in their first year at an institution. Seniors who have participated for a minimum of two years and meet all criteria except playing time are also eligible.

 

>>>40-Minute Man

Senior Charles Richardson Jr. has become a fixture on the court for the Huskers during his senior season. After averaging 19.2 minutes per game in his first three seasons (1,671 minutes in 87 games), Richardson ranks third in the league this year by playing 36.2 minutes per game (1,085 minutes in 30 games).

 

No other Husker has played even 850 minutes this season. The closest to Richardson is center Aleks Maric, who has played 832 minutes (28.7 per game).

 

Against Missouri on Feb. 24, Richardson played all 45 minutes of the overtime game, a career high. It was the most minutes by a Husker in one game since Larry Florence played 45 minutes in the season-opening overtime victory against Eastern Illinois in 1999.

 

Richardson has played every minute of eight games this year. In fact, Richardson has played 387 of the 405 possible minutes over the past 10 games.

 

The last Husker to record more than eight games of at least 40 minutes played in a season was Dave Hoppen when he set the single-season record with 1,155 minutes played as a junior in 1985. He played all 40 minutes in 17 contests that season. Teammates Brian Carr and Curtis Moore also got into the act that year with 14 and six games, respectively, of at least 40 minutes played.

 

>>>Comeback Kids

Despite a history of struggling to come back from large deficits in the past, this year's Nebraska squad has increasingly shown toughness and determination to come back after being down by significant deficits.

 

Four times this year the Huskers have trailed by at least nine points and rallied for a victory, including both wins over Missouri. Nebraska posted its largest road comeback in the Big 12 era when it won at the buzzer against Texas Tech in a game that the Huskers trailed by 13 at halftime.

 

NU has also had two close calls in its last two games. Nebraska cut a 16-point deficit against IowaState last Wednesday to three points with under three minutes remaining, but could not get over the hump in a six-point setback, and it erased a 10-point deficit at Colorado on March 3 to eventually take a one-point lead in the final two minutes before falling by four.

 

Nebraska's Largest Comebacks in 2006-07

Opponent          Trailed By         Final Score

at Texas Tech  13 points          NU 61-59

vs. Houston      10 points          NU 70-57

Missouri           10 points          NU 82-77 (ot)

at Missouri       9 points            NU 66-61

 

>>>Rare Air

One of the best big men in the Big 12 Conference this season, junior center Aleks Maric became only the ninth junior in Nebraska history to record 1,000 career points when he picked up his 14th point against Missouri on Feb. 24. Maric, who finished that game with 31 points, leads the Huskers with 18.7 points per game, an average that ranks fourth in the Big 12 Conference.

 

Maric became only the 24th player in the 111-year history of the program to top 1,000 points. The last player to reach the mark was Cary Cochran, who hit the plateau during his senior season in 2002. Cookie Belcher is the most recent junior before Maric to reach the mark in 1999.

 

Maric has 543 points this season and is 22nd in NU history with 1,098 career points entering Thursday's game vs. OklahomaState. Maric scored 339 points last year in 31 games and had 216 points as a freshman. He needs 41 points to move into 19th all-time, as he will pass Carl Hayes (1,136 points), Clifford Scales (also 1,136 points) and Marvin Steward (1,138 points)

 

At his current pace, Maric would finish with the highest scoring average by a Husker since Tyronn Lue had 21.2 points per game in 1998 before becoming an early entry into the NBA Draft.

 

>>>Awesome Aussie

Junior center Aleks Maric already had his name in the NU record book, but he moved it up a couple lines on Feb. 13 when he posted a career-best effort against Kansas State. The Sydney, Australia, native recorded 41 points, the second-highest single-game total in Nebraska history.

 

Maric's total was one point off Eric Piatkowski's school- record 42-point effort. Piatkowski's record game came vs. Oklahoma in the 1994 Big Eight Tournament, making Maric's the highest-scoring effort in a regular-season contest and the most points scored by a Husker in Lincoln.

 

Maric's new career high came almost one year to the day ? 363 days to be exact ? after his previous best effort of 37 points at Iowa State, making him the only player in school history with two games of at least 37 points.

 

Maric's 41 points represents one of nine 40-plus point games by a league player in the Big 12 era (since 1996-97) and is the top scoring effort by a player from the Big 12 Conference this season.

 

>>>More Maric Notes

Aleks Maric set more than just a career scoring high in his 41-point outburst against KansasState. Among his other notable stats from that career night are:

? Maric had 19 field-goal attempts, nearly half of the team total of 40.

? Despite the high number of attempts, Maric still shot 68.4 percent as he hit 13 attempts. The rest of the team combined to hit 10-of-21 (47.6 percent).

? After going 5-of-10 in the first half, Maric hit 8-of-9 from the floor in the second period.

? His 13 made field goals were three off the school record and two off the record against a conference opponent.

? Maric set a Big 12 and school record with 25 free throw attempts, making 15. Both were career highs, and his attempts nearly doubled KSU's attempts (25 to 13).

? Maric's 25 free throw attempts were the most ever in a Nebraska game, by a Husker or opponent, and were also the most ever by a player in the Devaney Center.

? Maric had 18 points at the intermission, more than he had in the first halves of the previous six games combined (13). Twice in the previous six games he had not scored in the opening period.

? Maric had 23 points in the second half, which by itself represented his eighth 20-point game of the season. It was one point off the school record of 24 points in a half set by three players, most recently Tyronn Lue against Virginia in 1997.

? Maric set the Nebraska single-game scoring record by a junior. He also set the top scoring mark as a sophomore last year.

? Maric played just 29 minutes, averaging 1.41 points per minute played.

? Maric raised his scoring average in Big 12 play from 14.4 points per game to 17.1 (+2.7) following the KSU contest. He had 130 points entering the game, meaning nearly one-quarter of his conference point total through 10 games (171) came against KSU.

 

>>>Above the Competition

Aleks Maric may not have set the Big 12-era scoring record, but he did set a first for his position with his 41-point outburst against KansasState: He is the first player who works exclusively in the post to reach the mark.

 

Maric became the first league player over 6-6 to score at least 40 points since the formation of the league. All seven of the other league players who have scored at least 40 points in a game since 1996-97 were 6-6 or shorter and played predominantly in the back court or on the wing.

 

>>>Double Duty

Junior Aleks Maric joined elite company when he reached the 1,000-point plateau against Missouri. Maric, who had already surpassed the 600-rebound mark, became only the second player in NU history to surpass those plateaus before the end of his junior season.

 

Maric joined Nebraska all-time scoring leader Dave Hoppen, who finished his career with 2,167 points (1st on NU all-time list) and 773 rebounds (3rd on NU all-time list). Hoppen had 1,747 points and 626 rebounds when he finished his junior season.

 

In Nebraska's loss at Kansas, Maric recorded three rebounds to become only the third player in NU history with 600 boards before the end of his junior season. Seven players have recorded 600 rebounds in three seasons at Nebraska, but four of those played before freshmen were eligible and therefore did not reach 600 in their junior campaign.

 

Maric has 668 rebounds to rank 11th all-time at Nebraska heading into Thursday's game with OklahomaState. He needs just one board to move into the NU career top 10, tying Eric Piatkowski for 10th with 669 career rebounds.

 

>>>Climbing the Coaching Ladder

First-year coach Doc Sadler has gotten the Huskers to play hard on a consistent basis. He has said from day one that getting everyone to play hard and compete was his only goal for the year, and if they accomplished that, the wins would take care of itself.

 

Sadler is third among first-year Husker head coaches in terms of victories. Only Paul Schlisser (22) in 1919-20 and Danny Nee (21) in 1986-87 have won more games in their first year as Husker head coaches than Sadler.

 

First-year Nebraska Head Coaches (by wins)

Coach  First-year record

Paul Schlisser  22-2

Danny Nee       21-12

Doc Sadler       17-13

Moe Iba            15-12

E.O. Stiehm      14-1

Sam Waugh      13-1

Barry Collier     13-15

 

 >>>Chairmen of the Boards

Junior center Aleks Maric entered this season as the top returning rebounder in the Big 12 Conference after posting 8.1 boards per game last season. Currently he ranks second in the league with 8.6 rebounds per game in 2006-07, including averaging 13.6 rebounds per game in the past five contests. 

 

Maric set his career high with 19 rebounds against Missouri at home on Feb. 24, surpassing his previous mark of 17 rebounds at KansasState last year.

 

Nebraska Career Rebound Leaders (since 1952)

No.       Player (seasons)          Rebounds

1.         Venson Hamilton (1996-99)       1,080

2.         Leroy Chalk (1969-71)   782

3.         Dave Hoppen (1983-86) 773

4.         Rich King (1988-91)      761

5.         Andre Smith (1978-81)  753

6.         Chuck Jura (1970-72)   740

7.         Carl McPipe (1976-79)  723

8.         John Turek (2002-05)    682

9.         Rex Ekwall (1955-57)    679

10.       Eric Piatkowski (1991-94)         669

11.       Aleks Maric (2005-present)       668

12.       Mikki Moore (1994-97)  661

13.       Bob Siegel (1974-77)    632

14.       Herschell Turner (1958-60)       626

15.       Bruce Chubick (1991-94)           618

 

>>>Piling Up the Points

Aleks Maric posted 31 points against Missouri and 36 points against IowaState in a two-game homestand, giving him four 30-plus point games to tie for fourth in school history. Maric's back-to-back 30-point performances marked the first time in school history a player topped the 30-point plateau in consecutive games.

 

Dave Hoppen and Tyronn Lue own the school record with seven 30-point games apiece, while Jerry Fort is third with five. Maric, Andre Smith, Marvin Stewart, Herschell Turner and Eric Piatkowski are tied for fourth.

 

Nebraska is now 45-13 in games when a Husker scores at least 30 points in a game.

 

>>>Iron Man

Senior point guard Charles Richardson Jr. is giving everything he has to help the young Husker squad reach its potential this season. Richardson is looking for his third postseason appearance after leading Nebraska to NIT bids following his freshman and junior campaigns.

 

To his credit, Richardson has held up well after averaging 36.17 minutes per game this season, a mark that ranks third in the Big 12 conference. Only Jarrius Jackson (37.90) of Texas Tech and JamesOn Curry (36.97) of OklahomaState have averaged more minutes per game this season among league foes.

 

Richardson set a career high by playing all 45 minutes in Nebraska's overtime win against Missouri on Feb. 24. It was the most minutes in a game for a Husker since Larry Florence played 45 minutes vs. Eastern Illinois in 1999.

 

Richardson ? who has played every minute of a game eight times this season ? is on pace to average more minutes per game in a season than any Husker since Dave Hoppen (38.5 mpg) in 1985. Tyronn Lue averaged 35.9 minutes per game in 1997 and 1998. 

 

>>>Most Improved

Senior guard Charles Richardson Jr. has been a Husker fan favorite throughout his career and will long be remembered for his determination and gutsy play despite his size. With a strong senior season as possibly one of the league's most improved players, Richardson has etched his name into Husker lore on the NU single-season and career top-10 charts.

 

Richardson moved into the NU career top 10 for assists against Texas and now has 397 in his career to rank sixth, 17 behind Erick Strickland for fifth place. With 177 assists this year, Richardson is third on the Nebraska single-season top-10 chart and is only the second player in school history with at least 153 assists in a season, joining Brian Carr (237 in 1985; 201 in 1986; 166 in 1987).

 

Richardson set the NU senior class record last weekend against Colorado. He posted eight assists against CU to surpass Carr, who held the previous record for an NU senior with 166 assists in his final year.

 

Richardson also is within reach of the Husker top 10 chart for career steals (needs five), single-season steals (needs seven) and moved onto the senior class list as he now has 56 to rank seventh. With a strong run at the league championship or in the postseason, Richardson, who is averaging 36.1 minutes per game, could also challenge for the most minutes played in a season by a Husker.

 

>>>Getting Defensive

Coach Doc Sadler took over the Husker program after gaining a reputation as a strong defensive coach at Texas-El Paso. The Miners finished last season ranked 15th nationally by allowing just 59.5 points per game, including setting a Conference USA season record by giving up just 56.0 points per contest in league action.

 

That defensive effort has carried over to Lincoln as the Huskers have held 16 of 30 opponents to 63 or fewer points in their first year under Sadler. Nebraska's 64.5 points per game allowed is fourth on the year in the Big 12 and its 67.9 points per game in league games-only is fifth.

 

>>>Digging the Long Ball

A pair of Husker guards have had impressive nights, scoring career highs while scorching the net from long range late in the non-conference slate.

 

Freshman Ryan Anderson was the first as he scored 29 points against Hawaii. Hitting primarily from long range, the rookie hit seven 3-pointers on 13 attempts. Anderson's 3-point total was the second-highest single-game effort in school history and tied the NU freshman record. He is the first true freshman to ever record seven 3-pointers in a game (Cary Cochran was a redshirt freshman in 1998-99). Anderson also hit six 3-pointers against No. 6 Kansas in a home loss.

 

Senior Marcus Perry matched Anderson's effort with seven 3-pointers of his own against Miami and again earlier this week against OklahomaState. Perry scored a career-best 25 points in each contest.

 

On Monday, he hit four in a row at one point and had six at the half before connecting on just one after the break. He is only the second player in school history with at least seven 3-pointers in two separate games.

 

Nebraska Single-Game Record ?  3-pointers Made

Rank    Player (season)            3-pointers

1.         Cary Cochran (2001-02)            8 (13 att.)

2.         Marcus Perry (2006-07, vs. UM)           7 (12 att.)

            Marcus Perry (2006-07, vs. OSU)         7 (10 att.)

            *Ryan Anderson (2006-07)        7 (13 att.)

            Cookie Belcher (2000-01)          7 (11 att.)

            *Cary Cochran (1998-99)          7 (9 att.)

            Chris Cresswell (1991-92)         7 (10 att.)

*school freshman single-game record

 

>>>3s All Around

Nebraska has been solid from beyond the arc all year long and currently is hitting at 38.1 percent from 3-point range, an average that would rank third in school history.

 

NU's best game from beyond the arc came against Rutgers, when the Huskers hit a season-high 64.7 percent, their highest percentage in a game since hitting 66.7 percent (10-of-15) against Pacific in 2000. Freshman Ryan Anderson tied the school record for 3-point field-goal percentage (minimum five 3-point attempts) at Rutgers as he hit 5-of-5 from beyond the 3-point line.

 

Against Miami, Nebraska set a season-high with 15 treys, the third-highest total by a Nebraska squad ever and tied the record for most 3-pointers away from the DevaneyCenter. The team record for 3-pointers is 18 set against No. 1 Kansas in 2002.

 

 >>>Doubling Down Low

Center Aleks Maric established himself as a dual threat in the post last season as he recorded 10 double-doubles to tie the Nebraska sophomore record.

 

Maric's 10 double-doubles last season were third in the Big 12 Conference behind NBA Draft picks LaMarcus Aldridge and P.J. Tucker of Texas, and his seven double-doubles in conference play were a league high. Maric also was the top returning rebounder in the league after averaging 8.1 boards per game in 2005-06.

 

This season, the 6-11, 270-pound Australian has matched that total with 10 more double-doubles and now has 23 in his career. He also tied the NU freshman record with three double-doubles in 2004-05.

 

Since 1972 when complete game-by-game statistics are available, Maric's career total is third in the Nebraska record book and is just two from second place.

 

           

>>>Return Game

Nebraska made an impressive 21-8 run to end the game at Texas Tech, culminating with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by Charles Richardson Jr. that gave the Huskers a 61-59 victory, NU's first win in Lubbock since the formation of the Big 12 Conference.

 

Nebraska overcame a 13-point halftime deficit to win the game, the largest deficit the Huskers have overcome to win a contest since 1997 when the Huskers defeated KansasState after trailing by 20 in the opening period and by 18 at halftime. That game against KSU marked the largest halftime deficit overcome by an NU squad since complete box scores are available beginning in 1972-73.

 

The win over Texas Tech marked the largest comeback at any point in a game during a road victory by the Huskers since the Big 12 began in 1997. Nebraska's largest deficit overcome at home this season was 10 points against Missouri in an overtime victory.

 

>>>Anderson Hits Scoring Stride

Coach Doc Sadler said that freshman guard Ryan Anderson was the first young player to fully buy into the new coaches' system this year, and it paid dividends for the rookie on Dec. 22 against Hawaii as he scored a career-high 29 points.

 

Anderson's 29 points were the second-highest total by a Husker freshman in school history, trailing only the 30 points Tyronn Lue ? who is currently playing for the NBA's Atlanta Hawks ? posted against Oregon in 1995. Anderson broke the 20-point barrier by hitting 8-of-20 shots, including seven 3-pointers, against Hawaii.

 

Anderson has also barely missed the 20-point plateau three times this year when he had 19 points in a game. He is only the fifth Husker freshman in school history to record at least four games of 19 or more points, joining Joe McCray (10, 2005), Jerry Fort (6, 1973), Dave Hoppen (5, 1983) and Eric Piatkowski (4, 1991).

 

With his strong scoring output, Anderson is ninth on the Nebraska freshman scoring chart with 281 points; second on the NU freshman 3-point charts with 48 treys; and eighth on the freshman steals chart with 25.

 

>>>Setup Man

Senior point guard Charles Richardson Jr. has been on a tear this season. The 5-6, 165-pounder from Illinois has gotten the Husker offense into high gear, much like his days running the powerful ProvisoEastHigh School squad that included current NBA players Dee Brown and Shannon Brown, each also a college standout at Illinois and MichiganState, respectively.

This season, Richardson has collected 177 assists against just 66 turnovers through 30 games. His 5.90 assists per game rank second in the league while his 2.68:1 assists-to-turnover ratio is first in the Big 12. In last week's NCAA statistics, he ranked 15th nationally in assists per game. Last year, Richardson had 100 assists in 30 games (3.33 apg).

 

With four assists against Colorado on Jan. 20, Richardson became the first Husker since Tyronn Lue to record at least 100 assists in consecutive seasons. Lue reached the mark each of his three years at Nebraska (1996-98).

 

Richardson will be only the second player in school history to average at least 5.0 assists per game for a whole season. Brian Carr, the Huskers' all-time assist leader, surpassed the mark in each of his final three seasons, including posting a school-record 7.90 assists per game as a sophomore in 1985.

 

>>>One to Remember

After recording 28 assists in his first five games combined, senior point guard Charles Richardson Jr. set the tables in record fashion at Rutgers. Richardson posted a career high with 15 assists, becoming the first Husker to record double-figure assists in a single game since Jake Muhleisen had 10 assists against Minnesota in 2002. Richardson's previous game high was nine assists on two occasions, including earlier this season in an upset of No. 20/25 Creighton. 

 

The 15 assists were the most by a Husker since Brian Carr set the school single-game record with 18 assists at Evansville on Jan. 5, 1985. The total was the third-highest single-game mark by a league player in the Big 12 era.

 

Richardson is just the eighth Husker since 1984 to post double-figure assists. Tom Wald in 1994-95 and Beau Reid in 1988-89 are the only Huskers since Carr to post two double-figure assist games in a season. Carr had eight double-figure assist games in 1984-85, five in 1985-86 and two in 1986-87. 

 

>>>Back on Track

While senior guard Charles Richardson Jr. has been a catalyst for the Husker offense this season, his lone classmate ? senior guard Marcus Perry ? is getting back into action.

 

One of 10 current Huskers to miss practice or playing time with an injury this season, Perry suffered a knee injury that required arthroscopic surgery during the exhibition season. He missed the first three regular-season games before making his season debut against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Nov. 27. He also suffered a stress fracture in his foot that required him to wear a boot when not on the court and still limits his practice time.

 

The team's top long-range threat, Perry got untracked quickly despite the extended injury layoff as he hit nine of his first 17 attempts (52.9 percent) from 3-point range in his first three games back and averaged 10.3 points per game during that span.

 

Perry nearly reached uncharted territory as he hit seven 3-pointers against Miami while scoring a career-high 25 points. He was 7-of-12 from beyond the arc against the Hurricanes, matching the second-best 3-point effort in school single-game history. Perry added five more 3-pointers against SavannahState to give him 12 over two games. He had his third game with at least five treys against Texas when he scored a team-best 17 points.

 

Earlier this week, Perry knocked down seven more 3-pointers against OklahomaState, becoming only the second player in school history with at least seven treys in two different games. He tied his career high with 25 points, and has now recorded 12 treys in the past two games.

 

Last year Perry ranked fourth on the team with 31 3-pointers in 32 games while hitting 36.0 percent from beyond the arc. Currently he leads the team with 66  3-pointers while shooting 42.0 percent from long range.

 

>>>Locking Down

Coach Doc Sadler has always had his teams ready to play solid defense for 94 feet, whether on the Division I level or when he was a head coach in the junior college ranks. Sadler's first Husker squad has shown similar traits throughout the season.

 

To date, the Huskers have allowed just 64.5 points per game ? a mark that ranks fourth in the league only behind Texas A&M (59.3 ppg), Oklahoma (59.3) and Kansas (60.7) ? this week.

 

It makes sense that Nebraska and Texas A&M would be near the top of the defensive statistical categories as the school's head coaches have the same approach to playing the game: play hard and play every foot of the floor on defense. They have a long history together as well, as A&M coach Billy Gillispie hired Sadler at UTEP as an assistant and when Gillispie left to coach the Aggies, Sadler took over as the Miners' head coach.

 

 >>>Getting the Job Done

Nebraska's strong shooting performances this season can be attributed in part to better shot selection, but another big reason is the presence center Aleks Maric has made in the paint.

 

A junior from Sydney, Australia, Maric ranks fourth in the conference with 18.7 points per game this season, including 12 20-point contests. Despite drawing constant double teams, Maric has dominated the paint and is second in the Big 12 Conference by hitting 57.0 percent (199-of-349). Maric also ranked 38th nationally in field-goal percentage this week.

 

In the season opener ? just 11 days after he had his appendix removed ? Maric scored 29 points in 29 minutes against Nebraska-Omaha. Four times this season Maric has scored as many points as he played minutes, including a season-best ratio of 41 points in 29 minutes against KansasState.

 

Overall, Maric has shot better than 70 percent from the floor in four games and at least 60 percent in 10 other games. In conference play, he has hit 52.4 percent (109-of-208) to rank second in the league.

 

>>>Maric Earns Big 12 Honors

Junior Aleks Maric was named the Big 12 Player of the Week on Monday, Nov. 20, following his performance in the Huskers' first two games of the season. The 6-11, 270-pound center led Nebraska to a 2-0 start by averaging 23.0 points and 9.5 rebounds per game while hitting 65.5 percent (19-of-29) from the floor.

 

Maric, who returned to the court for the season opener just 11 days after an appendectomy, posted 29 points and 10 rebounds in 29 minutes against Nebraska-Omaha in the Huskers' first regular-season game. He hit 11 field goals on a career-high 18 attempts and missed his second career 30-point contest by just one point. Last year, Maric had 37 points at ISU, the fifth-highest single-game mark in NU history and first 30-point game since 1997.

 

Against No. 20/25 Creighton on Nov. 18, Maric posted 17 points and nine rebounds to lead the Huskers to a 12-point victory. Maric was saddled with foul trouble in the first half, but played 19 minutes in the second period when he recorded 15 points and eight boards.

 

Maric was the first Husker to be named the Big 12 Conference Player of the Week since 1999 when Venson Hamilton won it in back-to-back weeks on Jan. 18 and 25.  Maric is only the third Husker to earn the conference's top weekly award, joining Hamilton and Tyronn Lue, who won the award three times including twice in 1997-98.

 

Maric earned Big 12 Rookie-of-the-Week honors as a freshman on Feb. 28, 2005. He was one of nine Husker newcomers to earn the honor since the formation of the league for the 1996-97 season.

 

>>>More Honors

Junior center Aleks Maric was not the only Husker to earn an honor following the first week of the season. On Monday, Nov. 20, Nebraska coach Doc Sadler was tabbed the Coach of the Week on collegeinsider.com's Weekly Honor Roll. The web site said:

 

"Expectations at Nebraska just got a little higher, and credit new coach Doc Sadler. The Huskers finally ended a seven-game losing streak to in-state rival Creighton, surprising the mid-major darlings 73-61 to open the season 2-0. Nebraska shot 67% from the field, scored on its final 13 possessions of the game, and discovered it has a clutch performer in freshman guard Ryan Anderson (19 points and a key 3 in the final minutes). Yet, it all comes back to Sadler, who came to Lincoln this year after an impressive two-year stint at UTEP. With the win, he has already made a difference, earning some much-needed positive attention for the basketball team at a traditional football school."

 

>>>More Honors . . . Part 2

Individual awards have come in bunches for the Huskers this year. Junior center Aleks Maric was the first Husker honored as he was named Big 12 Player of the Week on Nov. 20.

 

Maric followed up with an impressive showing at the Outrigger Rainbow Classic as he helped the Huskers to a third-place finish. Maric averaged 17.0 points and 9.0 rebounds per game while being named to the all-tournament team. He also hit 62.9 percent from the floor and had two 20-point contests as well as a season-high 15 rebounds against Houston.

 

In the first game back from the trip to Hawaii, senior guard Marcus Perry was honored as the player of the game for the MetroPCS Orange Bowl Basketball Classic as he scored a career-high 25 points. Perry hit 8-of-13 from the field, including 7-of-12 from 3-point range, while nearly doubling his previous scoring best. He helped Nebraska to 15 3-pointers on the day, the most ever by a Husker squad away from the DevaneyCenter.

 

>>>Plus 20

Junior center Aleks Maric leads four active Huskers who have combined to post 18, 20-point games this season. He has recorded 12 of those games with at least 20 points, including a career-best 41 points in 29 minutes against KansasState at home. He has also had impressive performances with 29 points in 29 minutes in the season-opener; 28 points on 10-of-12 shooting in 29 minutes of action against Colorado; 31 points in 37 minutes against Missouri in overtime; and 36 points in 36 minutes at home vs. IowaState.

 

Along with Maric, freshmen Sek Henry and Ryan Anderson have each added games scoring at least 20 points, including 29 points by Anderson against Hawaii, the second-highest single-game scoring total by a Husker freshman in history and just one point off the school frosh record.

 

Senior guard Marcus Perry dropped in 25 points on 8-of-13 shooting against Miami and added 25 more against OklahomaState on Monday on Senior Night. His total included seven 3-pointers ? the second-highest single-game total in school history ? in each contest.

 

Paul Velander, whose previous career best was 12 points, added 20 points against OSU. Along with Maric and Perry, Velander gave the Huskers three 20-point scorers in a game for the first time since 1995 when Jaron Boone, Tyronn Lue and Erick Strickland matched the feat.

 

Jamel White, who was suspended for the remainder of the season on Feb. 11, led NU past Western Kentucky in the non-conference finale by scoring 23 points.

 

>>>Overtime

? With its victory over Missouri in Lincoln, Nebraska won its ninth straight home overtime game dating back to 1996. It was NU's first overtime game, home or away, since a two-overtime victory against KansasState at home to open Big 12 play in 2005.

? Against Kansas State, Nebraska picked up its 10th home win of the season, the 24th time in the 31-year history of the building that the Huskers had double-figure wins at home.

? Nebraska's wins over Missouri and Texas Tech gave the Huskers their first two-game conference road win streak since 1999.

? The Huskers hit at least 50.0 percent from the floor in the second half of seven of 16 conference games this season.

? With the win over Western Kentucky, Nebraska finished 11-3 in non-conference play. It marked NU's most wins before conference play since 1994-95, when the Huskers also had 11 pre-conference wins. The last time NU had more than 11 wins before league play was 1990-91, when it had 13 wins before the start of Big Eight action.

? With a win over North Texas on Nov. 29, Nebraska improved to 5-0 to start the season. The win marked the second time in school history that NU started consecutive seasons with a 5-0 record and the first time in more than 80 years since the 1911-12 and 1912-13 campaigns.

? Nebraska hit 62.2 percent from the floor against Western Kentucky, its second straight and third overall game above 60 percent. The last time Nebraska had consecutive games of shooting at least 60.0 percent from the field was February 1984 when NU shot at least 60 percent in three straight games.

? Nebraska forced Arkansas-Pine Bluff (24) and North Texas (25) into a combined 49 turnovers, the most in consecutive games for the Huskers since 1993. That season the Huskers forced 19 against Southern Cal (Dec. 23, 1992) and 33 against Texas-Arlington (Dec. 21, 1992). In the game before the UTA matchup, the Huskers forced Appalachian State into 25 turnovers on Dec. 19.

? Nebraska has forced six teams into at least 20 turnovers this season.

? Nebraska recorded 15 steals against North Texas, the most by a Husker squad since posting 15 against Oklahoma in 2001. NU came back to nearly match the mark with 14 steals against Alabama A&M.

? Nebraska's game against Nebraska-Omaha on Nov. 14 marked the earliest season-opener in program history, tying the mark set in the 1998-99 campaign. Prior to this season, Nebraska had played only four games before Nov. 19, but played twice this year before that date.  

? Aleks Maric moved into the NU career top 10 for blocked shots with four against North Texas. He now owns 87 blocks in his career, good for eighth place on the Husker chart.

? Maric tied the Nebraska conference-game record with 15 field goals against IowaState and also tied the NU DevaneyCenter record. His 30 attempts were also a Nebraska record in the building.

? Charles Richardson Jr. helped NU to a 50-18 home record during his career, including a 5-5 record against ranked teams.

? Richardson is the Huskers' active leader with 123 career steals and is the first Husker to record 100 career steals since Cary Cochran reached the mark as a senior in 2002. He needs five more steals to move into the NU career top 10.