Huskers Head to Oahu Classic

Nebraska (3-0)
at Oahu Classic
(Honolulu, Hawaii)
vs. Marist (3-1), Friday, Nov. 23, 6:30 p.m.
vs. Utah (1-1), Saturday, Nov. 24, 6:30 p.m.
vs. Akron (1-2), Sunday, Nov. 25, 4 p.m.
Radio: Husker Sports Network (98.1 FM-KFGE, Lincoln)
Live Internet Audio: Huskers.com (free)

Hot Huskers Head to Hawaii for Three Games at Oahu Classic
After completing an exciting three-game season-opening homestand with a perfect 3-0 record, the Nebraska women’s basketball team takes to the road for the first time this season with three games at the Oahu Classic in Honolulu, Hawaii, over the Thanksgiving holiday.

The Huskers tip off their three games in the tournament by taking on 2007 NCAA Sweet 16 qualifier Marist on Friday, Nov. 23, at 6:30 p.m. (Central time, 2:30 p.m. Hawaii Time). Live radio coverage will be provided by the Husker Sports Network on 98.1 FM-KFGE in Lincoln, along with free Internet audio provided by Huskers.com. Matt Coatney and Jeff Griesch will team up to call the action all season long on the Husker Sports Network.

The Red Foxes, who finished with a 29-6 record last season as the Mid-American Conference champions, return four starters from last year. Marist had its season come to an end in the third round of the NCAA Tournament at the hands of eventual national champion Tennessee.

The young Huskers, who feature four new starters in their lineup, passed their first three tests at home with flying colors. After opening with an 81-74 win over a UTEP team that won 22 games a year ago, the Huskers pouned 2007 NCAA Elite Eight qualifier Ole Miss, 80-59. They capped the three-game stand with a 90-63 run past another traditional SEC power in Florida, which returned three starters from a year ago.

In the win over the Gators, five Huskers scored in double figures led by a career-high 16 points from freshman guard Dominique Kelley. Sophomore guard Yvonne Turner added one of the most dominant defensive performances in school history with eight steals in the game’s first 22 minutes, helping the Huskers hold the Gators without a field goal for nine minutes in the second half.

Danielle Page, Nebraska’s lone senior and the first Big 12 Player of the Week of the 2007-08 season, has scored in double figures in all three games for NU this season, including the third double-double of her career with 11 points and 10 rebounds against Florida.

First-team All-Big 12 forward Kelsey Griffin added 13 points and six boards against the Gators, while Kala Kuhlmann pumped in a career-high 11 points along with a career-best five assists for the Huskers.

Scouting The Marist Red Foxes
Coach Brian Giorgis leads his Marist Red Foxes to the Oahu Classic with a 3-1 record after posting their third straight win with a victory over Dartmouth in Hanover, N.H., Nov. 18. While Nebraska will be playing its first road game of the season, the Red Foxes will be playing their sixth straight game away from home to open the year.

Marist opens the Oahu Classic on Thanksgiving Day by taking on Utah at McKinley High School in the tournament’s second game at 6:30 p.m. (Central), after Eastern Washington and Akron tip off the tournament at 4 p.m.

The Huskers will have the advantage of two extra days of rest and one fewer time zone to cross, but Marist will certainly have experience on its side. The Red Foxes rolled to the Mid-American Conference title last year and finished the year with a 29-6 overall record before falling to eventual national champion Tennessee in the NCAA Sweet 16.

Marist returns four starters from last year’s club, including 6-3 senior center Meg Dahlman, who is averaging 10.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game. Rachele Fritz, a 6-0 sophomore forward, has added 12.5 points and 5.0 boards per game, while 5-10 sophomore forward Lynzee Johnson has pitched in 8.0 points and 3.8 points, despite making her first start in Marist’s third game.

Senior guard Nikki Flores (7.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg) and junior guard Julianne Viani (8.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg) round out a balanced Marist starting five. The Red Foxes also play a relatively deep rotation with four more players regularly coming off the bench, led by 6-2 senior forward Sarah Smrdel’s 5.8 points and 3.3 rebounds per game and freshman guard Erica Allenspach’s 5.8 points per contest.

Marist’s lone loss this season came at the hands of defending Big Ten champion Ohio State (63-57) in the season opener, a club the Red Foxes defeated in last year’s NCAA Tournament. Marist owns wins at Fordham, at Stony Brook and at Dartmouth.

Scouting The Utah Utes
Coach Elaine Elliott guides a tradition-rich Utah squad to Hawaii for the Oahu Classic. The Utes head to Hawaii with a 1-1 record with a 91-50 rout of UC Irvine in their home opener on Nov. 15, before falling to No. 5 Stanford, 81-77 in double-overtime, in Salt Lake City on Nov. 18. The Utes will take on Marist on Thanksgiving Day at 6:30 p.m. (Central) in Honolulu, before battling Akron on Friday at 4 p.m. Utah will wrap up its third game in three days by taking on Nebraska at McKinley High School on Saturday at 6:30 p.m.

The Utes return four starters from last year’s squad that finished with a 19-14 record after a trip to the 2007 Postseason WNIT. Morgan Warburton, a 5-11 junior guard, led the Utes with 15.8 points and 4.8 boards per game, while 6-0 sophomore forward Kalee Whipple contributed 10.8 points and 6.8 rebounds per contest. Jessica Perry, a 6-3 senior forward, added 4.8 points and 4.0 boards per game a year ago.

Whipple dazzled in Utah’s opening night win over UC Irvine with 27 points on 9-of-9 shooting from the field, including a trio of three-pointers. Perry added a double-double with 15 points and 10 boards on 7-of-10 shooting from the field, while Katie King, a 6-1 junior forward added 17 points on 8-of-9 shooting from the floor. Warburton was nearly as flawless with 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting.

While those four Ute starters combined to go a staggering 31-of-37 from the field, junior point guard Leilani Mitchell hit just 1-of-8 shots. However, the 5-5 guard from Kennewick, Wash., dished out 13 assists.

Nebraska and Utah have met once in school history, nearly 30 years ago when the Utes notched a 56-52 win over the Huskers at the Utah Invitational in Salt Lake City on Dec. 2, 1978.

Scouting The Akron Zips
Coach Jodi Kest is in her second season at the helm of the Zips, after leading Akron to a 10-19 record in her first season. Akron returns a pair of starters from last year’s club, including 5-9 sophomore guard Sarah Tokodi, who averaged 12.6 points and 3.4 rebounds per game as a freshman.

Riana Miller, a 6-3 sophomore forward, gives Akron size and production inside after averaging 9.0 points and 3.9 rebounds per game a year ago.

Akron heads to Hawaii with a 1-2 record after suffering a 59-47 loss to Cleveland State on Nov. 17. Tokodi led the Zips with 15 points, but hit just 3-of-15 shots from the field while committing 10 turnovers. Freshman guard Keyla Snowden added 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting, including a trio of three-pointers. As a team, Akron hit just 14-of-47 shots from the field at Cleveland State. Akron opened the season with a 67-55 loss at Michigan, before rebounding for an 81-77 victory over Saint Louis in its home opener.

Nebraska and Akron have never met in women’s basketball, but Coach Kest has had a recent encounter with Coach Connie Yori and the Huskers. Kest took her Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders to the Miami Thanksgiving Classic in Coconut Grove, Fla., on Nov. 27, 2005, and suffered a 76-64 loss to the Huskers. In what was the fourth game of her career, Kelsey Griffin went off for 31 points and 14 rebounds against the Islanders.

Huskers Fly By Florida, 90-63
Freshman guard Dominique Kelley led five Huskers in double figures with a career-high 16 points and sophomore guard Yvonne Turner led a stifling defense, as Nebraska turned a six-point halftime lead into a 90-63 run past Florida at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Nov. 17.

Nebraska scored 80 or more points for the third straight game to open the season for the first time since 1987-88. It was NU’s fourth consecutive home game with 80 or points, dating back to last season’s regular-season finale.

Along with a career-night from Kelley, a product of Lincoln Northeast High School, senior forward Danielle Page produced the third double-double of her career with 11 points and 10 rebounds to go along with two blocks.

Kala Kuhlmann also played a major role in Nebraska’s second-half surge by scoring seven straight points. Kuhlmann finished with a career-high 11 points to go along with a career-high five assists.

First-team All-Big 12 forward Kelsey Griffin added 13 points and six rebounds, while sophomore forward Cory Montgomery added 10 points off the bench in a solid effort.

Despite Nebraska’s offensive eruption, which included 52 points on 65.5 percent shooting in the second half, it was the Huskers’ defense that turned the tide of the game in the second half.

Turner recorded a career-high eight steals, with all eight of them coming in the game’s first 22 minutes, when she spent just 12 minutes on the court.

Turner, who helped NU to a 38-32 lead with three steals in the first half, nabbed the first of five second-half steals just 22 seconds into the period by taking it away from Florida star Sha Brooks. Twelve seconds later, Turner took it away from another experienced UF guard, Depree Bowden, before hitting Griffin for a layup. After a Florida timeout, Turner stole the ball from reigning SEC Player-of-the-Week Brittaney Thomas and finished it with a layup to push NU’s lead to 42-34 with 19:07 left in the game.

She wasn’t done yet, plucking the ball away from Brooks on the following possesion just 17 seconds later. After Kelley converted a pair of free throws to push NU’s lead to 10 with 18:39 left, Turner recorded her fifth steal in the first 1:31 of the second half. Turner found Kelley again in transition, and Kelley was fouled by Brooks. Kelley converted one of two free throws to push NU’s lead to 45-34.

In the first two minutes of the second half, Turner recorded five steals, two points, an assist and a defensive rebound, while limiting Florida to just two shots, while the Gators committed three quick fouls.

Turner’s eight steals were just two shy of NU’s school record and tied for the eighth-most in school history by an individual. Turner played a major role in forcing an experienced Florida team into committing 33 turnovers, the same total the Gators committed in their first two games combined to open the 2007-08 season. The Gators’ first two games were also played against 2007 NCAA Tournament qualifiers Xavier and Robert Morris.

With Turner setting the defensive tone for NU, the Gators went nearly nine minutes without a field goal midway through the second half. After the smoke had cleared, Nebraska had built its biggest lead of the night at 33 points after a pair of free throws by Nikki Bober. The Huskers held the Gators to just 17 points in the first 17 minutes of the second half to take a commanding 82-49 lead.

Brooks led the Gators with 16 points, while Bowden and Sharielle Smith added 12 points each on the night. Marshae Dotson, who entered the game averaging 19.5 points and 12.5 rebounds per game, managed just four points on 1-of-10 shooting from the field. Thomas, who entered the contest averaging 15.5 points per game, managed just four points on 1-of-9 shooting from the field.

Page Earns Inaugural Big 12 Player-of-the-Week Award
Nebraska senior Danielle Page captured the first Big 12 Conference Women’s Basketball Player-of-the-Week award on Nov. 12 after an outstanding opening weekend to the 2007-08 season.

Page, a 6-2 forward from Monument, Colo., averaged 23.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game to help Nebraska to a sweep of UTEP and Ole Miss at the Devaney Center over the weekend.

On Nov. 11, Page erupted for a career-high 27 points on 12-of-16 shooting from the field, while pulling down a team-high eight rebounds and blocking two shots. Along with her sparkling play on offense, Page held 6-3 Rebel center Shawn Goff to just four points and four rebounds on the afternoon. In two exhibition games, Goff had averaged 20 points and 10.5 boards per contest.

Page’s effort against 2007 NCAA Elite Eight qualifier Ole Miss followed on the heels of a then-career high 19-point, nine-rebound performance while making her first career start on Friday. Page hit 8-of-14 shots from the field against the Miners, who returned four starters from a squad that finished with a 22-8 record in 2006-07. On the defensive end, Page blocked one shot and drew a pair of offensive fouls, neutralizing UTEP’s 6-5 senior center Izabela Piekarska to just six points and one rebound.

Page added the third double-double of her career with 11 points and 10 rebounds to go along with two blocked shots in Nebraska’s 90-63 win over Florida on Nov. 17.

Huskers Have History of Home-Opening Success
Nebraska owns a strong history of season-opening success on the Huskers’ homecourt at the Devaney Center. Nebraska improved to 32-2 all-time in home openers with its 81-74 victory over UTEP on Nov. 9.

From 1981-82 through 2004-05, Nebraska reeled off a string of 24 consecutive home-opening victores before the streak was snapped by South Dakota State on Nov. 19, 2005. NU’s only other home-opening loss came in an 88-56 setback to Kansas on Nov. 21, 1980.

Nebraska has also been traditionally strong in the second game of its home season, posting a 28-6 all-time record in its second home contest of the year. NU owns a 25-9 all-time record in its third home game of each season.

The Huskers will hope to buck a trend on the road this week when they travel to the Oahu Classic. Nebraska is 0-5 in road openers since the 2002-03 season. The last time NU won its opening road contest of the year came with an 86-45 win over Colgate in the San Juan Shootout in Puerto Rico on Nov. 23, 2001.

NU’s road-opening losses (in order starting with most recent) have come at No. 13 Arizona State, vs. No. 3 LSU (Miami), at No. 10 Notre Dame, vs. Mississippi (Memphis) and at Creighton.

All-Big 12 Forward Griffin Showing Her Toughness
First-team All-Big 12 forward Kelsey Griffin was listed as questionable for NU’s season-opening win over UTEP, but the only question in her mind may have been when she was going to decide that she would start.

She answered that question at 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 9, when she made the decision to start Nebraska’s season opener despite sitting out all week with sore ribs.

Griffin suffered the injury after a pair of collisions early in the second half of a Nov. 5 exhibition win over Nebraska-Omaha. In fact, she was not around to see NU’s win over the Mavs because she was taken by ambulance to Saint Elizabeth’s Regional Medical Center in Lincoln for evaluation and testing. She did not spend the night in the hospital, but she did not practice on Nov. 7 or Nov. 8 and shot around for only a few minutes on Nov. 9.

Griffin showed no ill effects of the injury, grabbing the opening tip-off and helping the Huskers roll to a 31-16 lead in the first 14 minutes by scoring six points and grabbing six rebounds. She finished the night with 15 points and eight boards, almost exactly her averages from her first-team All-Big 12 season in 2006-07.

The injury did seem to affect Griffin in NU’s second game against Ole Miss. She played just 19 minutes and attempted just three shots from the field, settling for a career-low two points. Her interior presence continued to be the focus of the Ole Miss defense, and her teammates benefitted in a big way, as Danielle Page scored a career-high 27 points, while sophomore forward Cory Montgomery added 10 points.

After a 13-point, six-rebound performance in NU’s 90-63 win over Florida on Nov. 17, Griffin is tied for second on the team in scoring with 10 points per game, while ranking second on the team with 6.7 rebounds per game. She also leads the Huskers by taking six charges so far this season, despite playing with those sore ribs.

Big D Off to Big Start in Senior Season
Nebraska’s lone senior, Danielle Page, enjoyed an outstanding opening weekend by averaging 23 points and 8.5 rebounds per game game, including career scoring highs in back-to-back games.

Page, who earned Big 12 Player-of-the-Week honors for her performances, capped the weekend with a career-high 27 points on 12-of-16 shooting from the field in the win over Ole Miss. Page’s performance against Ole Miss included a stretch of 10 straight points when NU exploded for a 15-0 run to turn a tie game into a 33-18 lead late in the first half.

Her effort against the Rebels followed a then-career-high 19 points and nine rebounds in her first career start in the Huskers’ 81-74 victory over UTEP on Nov. 9. Page, a 6-2 forward from Monument, Colo., scored nine points in less than three minutes to spark Nebraska’s decisive 19-2 surge in the final seven minutes of the game. Page was 8-of-14 from the field and a perfect 3-for-3 at the free throw line.

Page, who celebrated her 21st birthday on Nov. 14, added her third career double-doulbe with 11 points and 10 rebounds in Nebraska’s 90-63 victory over Florida. She also added two blocked shots and her first steal of the season against the Gators.

Although Page has made just three career starts heading to Hawaii, she will be appearing in her 100th consecutive game in a Husker uniform when the Huskers take on Marist on Friday.

Last year, Page bounced back quickly from ACL surgery on her right knee on June 29, 2006, to appear in NU’s first regular-season game. She enjoyed her best season, averaging 7.0 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, including a season-high 17 points against Kansas on Jan. 27. It was one of seven double-figure scoring performances for Page as a junior, including her second career double-double with 11 points and 10 boards in NU’s win over No. 25 Kansas State on Jan. 17.

Page showed her defensive dominance throughout the season by setting NU’s junior single-season record with 60 blocked shots, including a record-setting nine blocks, while tying a career high with 11 rebounds in Nebraska’s 76-67 win over No. 13 Baylor on Feb. 3.

Page’s effort against the Lady Bears was one of the best individual defensive performances in school history. She tied the previous school record with seven blocks in just 13 first-half minutes, before adding a pair after halftime. She also grabbed nine defensive rebounds. She added a strong effort in the NCAA Tournament with eight points, a game-high eight rebounds and an NU NCAA Tournament record five blocks in a loss to Temple on March 18.

She added 16 points, eight rebounds and two blocks in NU’s 79-76 overtime loss to Iowa State in the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals (March 7). Page scored eight straight points at the end of regulation and the start of overtime, including a pair of free throws with 9.7 seconds left in regulation to give NU a 70-67 lead over ISU.

Hester Gives Huskers Dual Threat on the Wing
Junior guard Tay Hester put up big numbers in the opening weekend of her Husker career. The 5-10 guard from Moreno Valley, Calif., produced her first career double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds in the season opener against her former teammates from UTEP.

Hester’s double-double was the first by a Husker wing player since Keasha Cannon-Johnson had 11 points and 10 rebounds in NU’s Postseason WNIT victory over Drake on March 18, 2004. Hester also became one of three active Huskers to post double-doubles in their career at NU, joining Kelsey Griffin (13) and Danielle Page (3).

Hester closed her strong weekend by adding 13 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field in the win over Ole Miss on Nov. 11. Hester added a team-high four assists, to go along with four rebounds and a steal against the Rebels. After adding four points, four assists and three rebounds in NU’s win over Florida, Hester is tied for second on the team with 10.0 points per game, while ranking third on the squad with 6.3 boards per contest. She also leads the Huskers with 3.3 assists per game.

Burke Earns Nomination for Best Supporting Role
No stranger to the spotlight, Kaitlyn Burke certainly earned a nomination for best supporting role by a Husker non-starter in her Nebraska premiere against UTEP on Nov. 9. The former childhood actress brought her talents to the Devaney Center stage against the Miners by scoring 13 points, including a trio of three-pointers off the bench, to help the Huskers to the 81-74 win over the Miners.

She added a solid encore in Nebraska’s win over Ole Miss on Nov. 11, when she scored nine points, grabbed two steals and dished out an assist in 21 minutes off the bench.

Burke heads to Hawaii tied for fourth on the team in scoring with 9.0 points per game, while also tying for third on the club with 2.7 assists per contest. She also leads NU with five three-pointers on 5-of-11 shooting from long range. (45.5 percent). She is also a perfect 6-for-6 at the free throw line in NU’s first three victories.

The 5-7 guard from North Vancouver, British Columbia, turned her focus from feature films such as Questar’s Ms. Bear (1997) and Bear with Me (2000), to athletics seven years ago, after appearing with such Hollywood stars as Lindsay Lohan, Tyra Banks and Henry Winkler. Last year, Burke played on the international stage as a member of the Canadian Junior National Team and was one of the first members of the Canadian National Development Academy in 2006-07.

In the opener, Burke showed experience beyond her years by burying her third three-pointer of the night with 6:05 left in the game to pull NU within 61-60. Burke, who just celebrated her 18th birthday on Aug. 30, went 3-of-4 from the field (all three-pointers) and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line despite suffering a dislocated finger on her shooting hand during fall practice.

Turner Off to Solid Start as Sophomore
Sophomore Yvonne Turner has her second season in Lincoln off to a solid start. The 5-8 guard out of Bellevue East High School in Omaha set a career high with 11 points and matched her career best with five rebounds in Nebraska’s 80-59 win over Ole Miss on Nov. 11. She also added three assists and two steals against the Rebels, completing her first weekend as a starter in strong fashion.

She added another career high to fuel Nebraska’s 90-63 win over Florida, this time doing it with defense. Turner grabbed a career-highest eight steals, including five steals in the first 1:31 of the second half. Her eight steals were tied for the eighth-high total in school, just two shy of Kathy Hawkins’ school record. Amazingly, Turner recorded her eight steals in her first 12 minutes of game action on the court in the game’s first 22 minutes.

Last season, Turner produced 18 steals in 336 minutes of action, which ranked second among all returning Huskers behind only first-team All-Big 12 forward Kelsey Griffin (36).

Through three games, Turner is averaging 6.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and a team-leading 3.7 steals per game.

Last season, Turner appeared in 28 games and averaged 2.3 points and 1.6 rebounds per game, and was one of NU’s top reserves down the stretch. She averaged 2.8 points per game while appearing in all 16 Big 12 games.

The 2006 WBCA High School All-American and Nebraska Player of the Year averaged 15.4 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 3.7 steals per game as a senior at Bellevue East.

Montgomery Continues As Force Off the Bench
Sophomore Cory Montgomery continues to show why she is one of the best inside players off the bench in the Big 12 Conference. In Nebraska’s 80-59 win over Ole Miss on Nov. 11, Montgomery scored 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds, including eight points and seven boards in the first half to help the Huskers to a 15-point halftime lead. She followed that performance with another double-figure scoring effort with 10 points and two boards in NU’s 90-63 run past Florida.

Through three games, Montgomery is tied for fourth on the team in scoring with 9.0 points per game, while adding 4.0 boards per contest.

As a true freshman, Montgomery showed her scoring abilities by averaging 5.3 points and 2.2 boards per game while appearing in all 32 contests. She was at her best during non-conference play, averaging 9.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game before Big 12 play began.

Freshman Kelley Produces Solid Early Numbers
Lincoln native Dominique Kelley has her Husker career off to a strong start, after erupting for a career-high 16 points in Nebraska’s 90-63 win over Florida on Nov. 17.

Kelley, who has started all three games for NU to open her career, is averaging 8.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. She is shooting 46.7 percent (7-15) from the field, including 50 percent (2-4) from three-point range. She has also hit 75 percent (9-12) of her free throws.

She produced a solid opening act to her Nebraska career in an 81-74 victory over UTEP on Nov. 9., by scoring seven points, grabbing four rebounds and dishing out three assists in her regular-season debut. She also connected on 2-of-3 three-pointers.

The 2007 Nebraska High School Player of the Year and a WBCA Honorable-Mention High School All-American, Kelley produced one of the best prep careers in Nebraska history at Lincoln Northeast.

Kelley led the Rockets to a 70-3 record in her final three seasons, scoring 595 points as a senior, just 19 points shy of the Class A single-season scoring record set by former Husker and 1988 Big Eight Player-of-the-Year Maurtice Ivy. Kelley averaged 24.7 points per game last year. She will celebrate her 19th birthday on Nov. 20.

Nebraska Reloading after Successful 2006-07 Season
Although the Huskers are one of the Big 12 Conference’s most inexperienced teams in 2007-08, Nebraska Coach Connie Yori is excited by the energy and defensive ability the young Huskers have brought to the court.

Nebraska must fill the shoes of three-time first-team All-Big 12 guard and 2007 WNBA Draft pick Kiera Hardy, three-year starter and honorable-mention All-Big 12 pick Chelsea Aubry, 2005 Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Jelena Spiric and senior point guard Ashley Ford from last year’s team. Those four seniors started all 32 games along with Kelsey Griffin last year and helped the Huskers to their fourth consecutive postseason tournament berth.

The Huskers finished with a 22-10 overall record and a tie for fourth place in the powerful Big 12 with a 10-6 mark, before earning the school’s seventh appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

While Nebraska lost 80 percent of its starting lineup from a year ago, NU’s senior starters accounted for just 47 percent of the Huskers’ scoring and just 38 percent of their rebounding in 2006-07.

NU finished the 2006-07 season ranked third in the Big 12 in scoring offense at 71.2 points per game and second in team field goal percentage at 44.6 percent. However, the Huskers ranked ninth in the league in scoring defense (62.6 ppg) and field goal percentage defense (38.9 percent), including the worst three-point field goal percentage defense in the league (35.4 percent).

"I think we have a chance to be significantly improved on the defensive end," Nebraska Coach Connie Yori said. "Dominique Kelley, Vonnie Turner, Kaitlyn Burke and Tay Hester all bring strong defensive abilities to our perimeter, which we may have lacked a little bit the past few seasons."

Griffin Earns Preseason First-Team All-Big 12 Honors
Nebraska junior Kelsey Griffin claimed one of five spots on the 2007-08 Preseason All-Big 12 team announced by the conference office in Irving, Texas on Oct. 10.

Griffin, a 6-2 forward from Eagle River, Alaska, is Nebraska’s top returning scorer and rebounder and lone returning starter in 2007-08. As a sophomore, Griffin earned first-team All-Big 12 honors by averaging 15.0 points and 8.3 rebounds per game and helped the Huskers to one of the most successful seasons in school history. NU posted a 22-10 overall record, a 10-6 league mark and earned a bid to last year’s NCAA Tournament.

Griffin is the third-leading returning scorer and rebounder in the Big 12 this season, trailing only fellow preseason first-team All-Big 12 selections Courtney Paris from Oklahoma and Jackie McFarland from Colorado.

Paris, the 2007 National Player of the Year, was the choice of the conference coaches to repeat as Big 12 Player of the Year. Texas Tech’s Dominic Seals was picked as the Big 12 Preseason Newcomer of the Year, while Texas A&M’s Tyra White was chosen the Preseason Freshman of the Year.

Joining Griffin, Paris and McFarland on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team were Texas A&M guards A’Quonesia Franklin and Takia Starks. All five of the preseason All-Big 12 selections earned first-team All-Big 12 awards in 2006-07.

Griffin Ranked among Big 12 Leaders in 2006-07
Kelsey Griffin ranked seventh in the Big 12 Conference in scoring with 15.0 points per game, while ranking sixth in rebounding at 8.3 boards per contest. Griffin’s 54.6 field goal percentage ranked sixth in the Big 12 in 2006-07.

The 6-2 forward also ranked eighth in the conference with 3.00 offensive rebounds per game and seventh in the league with 5.28 defensive boards per contest.

Griffin led Nebraska in rebounding, free throws made (125) and free throws attempted (173). She earned spots on the Veterans Day Classic and State Farm Classic all-tournament teams and was the Big 12 Player of the Week on Jan. 8 and Feb. 6. Griffin has scored 904 points and grabbed 457 rebounds while starting 64 consecutive games.

In 2005-06, Griffin became the first NU freshman since Meggan Yedsena in 1990-91 to start every game of her rookie campaign. Griffin was just the fourth Husker freshman in history to start every game in her first year.

Griffin Creates Double Trouble for Opponents
First-team All-Big 12 forward Kelsey Griffin continued to expand her game as a sophomore. The 6-2 native of Eagle River, Alaska, produced 10 double-doubles in NU’s 32 contests, more than tripling her total of three from her freshman campaign when she started all 32 games for the Huskers.

Griffin, who captured her first Big 12 Player-of-the-Week award on Jan. 8, posted her 10th double-double of the season with game highs of 23 points and 13 rebounds in NU’s win over No. 13 Baylor on Feb. 3 to earn her second Big 12 honor of the season.

She notched her ninth double-double with a season-high 24 points and 10 rebounds in NU’s win over Kansas on Jan. 27. She added a double with 16 points and 10 rebounds at No. 21 Texas A&M on Jan. 24. Her 10 double-doubles ranked seventh in the Big 12 last season. Four of her double-doubles came in Big 12 play, and seven came on the road.

She posted a double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds in NU’s first meeting at Kansas on Jan. 13. Griffin opened league play with 21 points and seven rebounds against All-American Tiffany Jackson in NU’s win at Texas on Jan. 3, and added 22 points and eight rebounds against All-American Courtney Paris and No. 8 Oklahoma on Jan. 6. She added 15 points and seven boards on 5-of-5 shooting from the field in NU’s win over No. 25 Kansas State on Jan. 17.

She notched double-doubles with 15 points and 13 rebounds at Florida (Dec. 29) and 18 points and 10 boards against NC State (Dec. 28) to earn a spot on the all-tournament team while leading the Huskers to the State Farm Classic title in Gainesville, Fla. She scored 20 points and grabbed five rebounds in just 20 minutes in the Huskers’ 38-point win over Nicholls State (Dec. 21), after adding her fourth double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds against Creighton on Dec. 19, when she played a season-high 31 minutes.

She posted three straight double-doubles with 17 points and 12 rebounds against Cal State Fullerton (Nov. 17), 13 points and 12 rebounds at UC Irvine (Nov. 24) and a season-high 22 points and 10 boards at USC (Nov. 26).

In 2005-06, Griffin produced her first double-double with a career-high 31 points and 14 rebounds in a win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Nov. 27, 2005. She also tied the school record with 18 free throw attempts against the Islanders. She added her second career double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds against Missouri on Jan. 11, 2006, before erupting for 28 points, 12 boards and a career-best three blocks at Kansas State on Feb. 4, 2006.

Page Swats Way Up Nebraska Blocked Shot Lists
Senior Danielle Page has established herself as one of the Big 12’s best shot blockers during her career. She continued to attack the Husker record book as a junior in 2006-07, smashing the NU single-game record with nine blocks in Nebraska’s 76-67 win over No. 13 Baylor on Feb. 3, breaking the previous mark of seven set by Katie Morse against Texas A&M on Jan. 17, 2004.

In the season finale against Temple on March 18, Page smashed NU’s NCAA Tournament record with five blocks against the Owls to push her season total to 60. Page’s season total set Nebraska’s junior single-season record and ranked as the second-highest single-season block mark in NU history, trailing only 69 by Janet Smith (1979-80).

Page, who owns at least one blocked shot in 14 consecutive games, totaled 34 blocks (3.1 bpg) in NU’s final 11 games of 2006-07. In Big 12 games only, she ranked second in the league (2.38 bpg) behind only Oklahoma’s Courtney Paris (3.75 bpg).

Page ranks second on NU’s career blocked shot list with 134 in her career. With 60 blocks as a junior, she became just the fourth player in Nebraska history to block 50 shots in a season, joining Janet Smith (four times), Katie Morse (54, 2003-04) and Casey Leonhardt (51, 2000-01).

NU’s career leader with 238 blocks, Smith owned the top three single-season block marks in school history with 56 in 1981-82, 59 in 1980-81 and 69 in 1979-80, before Page’s performance in 2006-07.

In 2005-06, Page’s 38 blocks ranked as the second-most in history by an NU sophomore, trailing only Smith’s 69. Page’s 31 blocks ranked fourth in history among NU freshmen. Page has joined Smith as the only Huskers in history to record 30 or more blocks in three consecutive seasons.

Nebraska Ranked High in Final 2006-07 Big 12 Statistics
The Huskers finished second in the Big 12 with their 44.6 field goal percentage, which helped NU rank third in the league in scoring offense (71.2 ppg).

Nebraska ranked third in the conference with its 71.4 free throw percentage, while ranking fifth in the league with 5.4 made three-pointers per game. NU also ranked fifth in the Big 12 in scoring margin (+8.7 ppg) and rebounding margin (+2.6 rpg).

In league games only, Nebraska ranked second in the Big 12 with its 43.2 field goal percentage, scoring margin (+4.6) and rebound margin (+1.8), while ranking third in the conference in scoring offense (67.4 ppg). The Huskers were also third in the league in free throw percentage (74.9 percent). NU allowed Big 12 foes just 35.9 total rebounds per game, the second-best total in the league. Nebraska also ranked fourth in the league in field goal percentage defense at 39.3 percent.

Huskers to Battle Big Names at Devaney Center in 2007-08
Nebraska will face some of the nation’s top teams on the Huskers’ homecourt at the Bob Devaney Sports Center during an impressive 2007-08 schedule.

NU’s schedule features non-conference home battles against traditional Southeastern Conference powers Mississippi and Florida, along with Pac 10 power USC in an eight-game non-conference home schedule.

Nebraska’s home Big 12 schedule will include contests with defending conference co-champion Texas A&M, 2007 NCAA Tournament qualifiers Iowa State and Oklahoma State and traditionally strong Texas.

Overall, NU’s schedule will feature 15 games against 2007 postseason qualifiers, including 10 games against 2007 NCAA Tournament squads. The Huskers could play six games against teams that finished among the top 25 RPI clubs in the nation a year ago.

"From start to finish, our schedule should rank among the best in the Big 12 and the nation again this year," Yori said. "During the non-conference season, we could play seven games against teams that had 20-win seasons a year ago. Obviously, playing Mississippi at home in the second game of the season after they were in the NCAA Elite Eight last year jumps out at you."

The Huskers got a stiff test at home even before taking on the Lady Rebels, opening the regular season with a thrilling 81-74 win over UTEP on Nov. 9. The Miners finished with a 22-8 record in 2006-07. After taking on a pair of 20-win teams in UTEP and Ole Miss (Nov. 11), the Huskers rolled to a 90-63 win over SEC foe Florida at the Devaney Center on Nov. 17. The Gators have advanced to the postseason in 13 of the last 15 years, including 11 NCAA tournaments.

After opening the season with a three-game homestand, Nebraska makes a long road trip to the Oahu Classic in Honolulu during Thanksgiving break. The tournament field features Marist, which finished with a 29-6 overall record as the Mid-American Conference champions last year. Marist knocked off Ohio State in the opening round and advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 before falling to eventual national champion Tennessee.

The Huskers also face Utah in Hawaii. The Utes advanced to the second round of the 2007 Postseason WNIT.

After their trip to Hawaii, the Huskers return home for a three-game homestand that opens with an improving Creighton club, before battling Northeast Conference champion and NCAA Tournament qualifier Robert Morris. The Colonials finished with a 24-8 record a year ago before losing to NC State in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Huskers close the stand by battling USC on Saturday, Dec. 8. NU knocked off the Women of Troy on their homecourt in Los Angeles last season.

After clashing with USC in Lincoln, Nebraska heads to California the following weekend to face Cal State Bakersfield and Long Beach State, before facing one of the toughest tests of the non-conference season at Ohio State on Dec. 22 in Columbus, Ohio. The Buckeyes captured the Big Ten title in 2007 and finished the year with a 28-4 record as the No. 12 RPI club in the country.

After closing the non-conference season with a pair of home games against Denver (Dec. 30), which won 20 games last year, and Arkansas-Pine Bluff (Jan. 2), the Huskers open Big 12 play with a pair of home games against Texas (Jan. 9) and Kansas (Jan. 12). The game against the Jayhawks in an FSN national telecast at 11:30 a.m. will open a thrilling day of border battles at the Bob Devaney Sports Center, as Coach Doc Sadler’s Husker men’s team will joust with KU men that same night at the Devaney Center in an ESPN national telecast.

Nebraska then dives into the thick of conference road action by traveling to defending Big 12 champion and 2007 Sweet 16 qualifier Oklahoma (Jan. 16), before facing Iowa State in Ames. The Cyclones tied for fourth in the league standings with the Huskers last year and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Huskers then return home to face defending Big 12 regular-season co-champion Texas A&M at the Devaney Center (Jan. 23), before traveling to Waco, Texas to take on Baylor (Jan. 26). That four-game stretch will pit the Huskers against the top four teams in the 2007 Big 12 final standings.

NU will then turn its attention to the Big 12 North Division, playing three straight games against intradivision foes, starting with a home game against Kansas State (Jan. 30) and ending with a nationally televised road contest at Missouri (Feb. 3) and Colorado (Feb. 6).

A Sunday afternoon home battle with 2007 NCAA qualifier Oklahoma State (Feb. 10) precedes the Huskers’ lone bye week of the 2007-08 season, before NU heads down the stretch in conference play at Kansas (Feb. 17). Three of the Huskers’ final five regular-season games will be played at the Devaney Center, including a Thursday night tussle with the Missouri Tigers (Feb. 21), a Sunday afternoon battle with the Colorado Buffaloes (March 2) and a Senior Night struggle against Iowa State to close the season (March 5).

Nebraska heads to Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo., for the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship March 11-15, and NCAA Tournament play will begin the following weekend. The 2008 NCAA Women’s Final Four will be held at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Fla., April 6-8.

Yori Leading Impressive Growth in Nebraska Program
Entering her sixth season at Nebraska, Coach Connie Yori has the Huskers in the middle of an impressive growth stage after a major rebuilding project in 2002.

Yori arrived in Lincoln on June 24, 2002, and was left with only a handful of healthy scholarship players and three consecutive losing seasons behind the existing players. After a challenging first season, Yori guided the Huskers to one of the nation’s top turnarounds in 2003-04.

Nebraska finished the season with an 18-12 record and 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 final 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 may have been 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 in 2004-05 by replacing four senior starters from 2003-04 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 kept building in 2005-06 by winning two postseason games for the first time in school history. NU’s 19-13 record also marked the Huskers’ most victories since the 1998-99 campaign. The Huskers finished with an 8-8 league mark and won a game in the Big 12 Championship for the second consecutive season.

Perhaps most impressively, the Huskers went 5-0 in regular-season rematches with Big 12 North Division opponents and completed the first three-game sweep of Colorado in school history. Overall, Nebraska posted a 7-3 regular-season mark against Big 12 North foes.

The Huskers produced a three-game improvement in the win column in 2006-07 with a 22-10 record and the first 20-win campaign at Nebraska since 1998-99. NU also secured a first-round bye in the Big 12 Tournament for just the second time in school history by finishing with a 10-6 league mark. NU went on to claim the schools’ first NCAA Tournament since 2000.

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

Jump to Froggy 98 in Lincoln to Listen to the Huskers
For the second straight year, all of Nebraska’s women’s basketball regular-season games will be available for the flagship station of the Husker Sports Network in Lincoln - Froggy 98.1 FM KFGE.

In 2007-08, all of NU’s regular-season women’s basketball games will be heard exclusively on KFGE in Lincoln and will continue to be available for free worldwide on Huskers.com.

Matt Coatney and Jeff Griesch will team up for their seventh full season on the call of the game, with Coatney providing the play-by-play. The pregame show hits the air 25 minutes before each scheduled tip-off.

In addition to Froggy 98, KHUS 93.3 FM in Omaha will carry every Big 12 game during the season and select non-conference games.

Additionally, 880 AM KRVN in Lexington will also carry most of NU’s conference games, along with select non-conference matchups. Overall, NU’s radio network for women’s basketball consists of 24 stations across the state.

Along with the radio coverage over the airwaves, all of Nebraska’s games can be heard for free on Huskers.com. Nebraska is one of only three Big 12 schools to offer free live audio coverage of its women’s basketball games on its official athletic website.

Nebraska Women’s Basketball TV Show Schedule
The Nebraska Women’s Basketball Show with Coach Connie Yori will enter its sixth year of featuring all the behind the scenes action with the Huskers. Each week, Coach Yori and host Jeff Griesch bring Husker fans all the highlights of NU’s previous games, along with one-on-one interviews, special features and previews of upcoming games. The show is available seven days a week on various cable stations across Nebraska and Iowa.

The show is scheduled to tip-off on Sunday, Dec. 9, on WOWT (DT-620) at 7 p.m., followed by an airing on WOWT in Omaha (channel 6 in Lincoln) at 11:35 p.m. central time each Sunday. KOLN/KGIN (My TV) will air the show on Monday at 10:30 p.m., while Time Warner Cable in Lincoln will air the show weekly on Thursday at 9:30 p.m. The show will also be availabe in Lincoln on Time Warner Cable’s Nebraska On-Demand Channel 101.

Spencer Municipal Utilities in Spencer, Iowa, will air the Nebraska Women’s Basketball Show on Monday at 10 p.m. and Tuesday at 6 p.m. Great Plains Communications in Bloomfield, Grant, Elgin, North Bend, Broken Bow and Chadron will carry the show each week on Tuesday at 6 p.m. and Friday at 5:30 p.m., while Lakes TV in Spirit Lake, Iowa, will carry the show on Friday at 10 p.m. KNOP/KIIT in North Platte will air each show on Saturday at noon.

All days and airtimes are subject to change on a weekly basis, so fans are encouraged to check their local listings for times in their area. The show is also available each week on HuskersNside, the premium website of Nebraska Athletics.

Fastbreakers Booster Club
The Nebraska Women’s Basketball Booster Club, the Fastbreakers, and Lil’ Breakers Booster Club provide dynamic support to the Huskers. The Fastbreakers was organized to generate enthusiasm for the game of women’s basketball by increasing attendance and providing support for the program.

All members receive priority access to travel, meals and invitations to membership-only events.

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 dbrooks@fastbreakersonline.com or call (402) 430-1343.

2008 Fastbreakers Membership Levels

• Tip-In ($50) - (Membership Card, e-mail news flashes, game day program, game notes, year-end banquet invite, backboard banquets, Fastbreakers Appreciation Picnic/Dinner)
• 3-Pointer ($100) - (Same as Tip-In, membership pin, media guide and a free Lil’ Breakers membership)
• Slam Dunk ($250) - (Same as 3-Pointer, plus season highlights DVD)
• All-Star ($500) - (Same as Slam Dunk, turn in pin for ruby accent stone, autographed leather mini-basketball)
• MVP ($1,000+) - (Same as All-Star, plus free admission for two at all Backboard Banquets, turn in pin for diamond accent stone, autographed team photo, preferred seating at year-end awards banquet)

The Fastbreakers announced their Backboard Banquet Schedule for the 2007-08 season in October. Each meal will be served by Premier Catering and reservations can be made by calling Rose Sousek in the Nebraska women’s basketball office at (402) 472-6462.

Fastbreakers Backboard Banquet Schedule
Game Day Meals for Fastbreakers Booster Club Members

• Saturday, Dec. 8 - USC - 5:30 p.m. - 7:05 p.m.
• Wednesday, Jan. 9 - Texas - 5:30 p.m. - 7:05 p.m.
• Sunday, Feb. 10 - Oklahoma State - Postgame - 1 p.m.
• Wednesday, March 5 - Iowa State - 5:30 p.m. - 7:05 p.m.

For more information on the Fastbreakers Backboard Banquets, visit Fastbreakersonline.com or call Kathy Branchaud at 432-8990 or Connie Renken at 476-0306. To make your reservations, call Rose Sousek at 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 313-112 (.736) in games played in the arena, including 114-72 (.613) in conference games. NU is off to an impressive 3-0 start at home this season, after posting a 10-4 home mark in 2006-07.

Over the last five years, NU is 49-16 at the Devaney Center, with no more than four losses in any season.

Nebraska is 3-2 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 WNIT second round.

Attendance is a big part of NU’s success. The Huskers drew their largest January crowd in school history with 7,727 fans for NU’s Big 12 home opener against No. 8 Oklahoma on Jan. 6, 2007. That number surpassed the 7,114 fans at the Devaney Center on Jan. 7, 2006, for the Huskers win over Kansas. NU added a season-high crowd of 7,821 against Missouri on Feb. 17.

Nebraska attendance increased nearly 30 percent in 2006-07, with an average home attendance of 4,110 per game. The Huskers averaged more than 5,000 fans per game during Big 12 play.

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.

Nebraska’s Attendance on the Rise
Nebraska drew its largest crowd of the 2006-07 season with 7,821 fans watching the Huskers take on Missouri at the Devaney Center on Feb. 17. It was NU’s second crowd of more than 7,500 in 2006-07, including the Huskers’ largest January crowd in history with 7,727 fans for the Big 12 home opener against No. 8 Oklahoma on Jan. 6.

The Huskers added 6,105 fans for "Dollar Days" in a 76-67 win over No. 13 Baylor on Feb. 3, and 5,763 fans for Senior Night in Nebraska’s regular-season home finale on Feb. 27.

Nebraska’s final home attendance average of 4,110 represented an average increase of 909 fans per game from the 2005-06 season for an increase of more than 28 percent.

In eight Big 12 Conference home games, the Huskers averaged 5,256 fans per game.