Huskers Face WKU in Final Non-League Road Test

|+| Game Information

Game: Game 7                         

Game Time: 7:05 p.m. CST                   

Game Date: Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2007

Release Date: Monday, Dec. 4, 2007

Television: FSN Midwest in Nebraska only (Greg Sharpe, play-by-play; Matt Davison, color)

Radio: Husker Sports Network (Kent Pavelka, play-by-play; Andy Markowski, color)

Internet: Huskers.com (live radio, stats)

Satellite Radio: Sirius Satellite Radio channel 158

Venue: E.A. Diddle Arena (7,326)

 

|+| Nebraska Hits the Road for Final Time in Non-Conference Play

The Nebraska men's basketball team continues its toughest stretch of the non-conference season this week as it takes on the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers at E.A. Diddle Arena in Bowling Green, Ky., on Wednesday, Dec. 5. In NU's final road tilt before the start of Big 12 Conference action, the Huskers will tip off against the Hilltoppers at 7:05 p.m. in the completion of a home-and-home series.

The game will be telecast back to the state of Nebraska on FSN Midwest (Channel 37 in Lincoln on Time Warner Cable; Channel 47 in Omaha on Cox Cable). Greg Sharpe returns for his fourth season calling the Nebraska games on FSN Midwest while former multi-sport standout Matt Davison adds color commentary for the telecast.

The game will only be seen within the state of Nebraska, per Big 12 Conference regulations on third-tier broadcasts. A new agreement this year will allow several telecasts to also be seen on ESPN FullCourt, in conjunction with the FSN Midwest telecast. Channel capacity limitations will preclude Wednesday's telecast from being seen on FullCourt.

The game can also be heard on the radio as the Husker Sports Network, which consists of 30 stations around Nebraska and Iowa that provide coverage of Nebraska athletic events, will broadcast every Husker game this season. Veteran play-by-play man Kent Pavelka will call the action while former Husker Andy Markowski joins the broadcast team again as color analyst. The broadcast will be carried around the world live on the Internet on Huskers.com.

NU's games can typically also be heard on satellite radio. The Nebraska broadcast of Wednesday's contest against Western Kentucky will be heard on Sirius Satellite Radio on channel 158.

The Huskers are making another quick turnaround after picking up a solid win in the Big 12/Pac-10 Hardwood Series on Sunday. Nebraska struggled early on offense but found its stride midway through the first half and then cruised to the easy victory behind an impressive defensive stand.

Nebraska hopes to continue its strong play on the defensive side where it held ASU to just one field goal in more than 19 minutes of play spanning the first and second halves. The Huskers did not allow a point over the final 8:36 of the opening frame while running to a nine-point lead at the intermission and then continued the surge by giving up just one basket in the first 11:05 of the second frame.

Nebraska's defensive surge came behind the strong play of junior guard Ade Dagunduro. The junior college transfer, who second-year coach Doc Sadler said has the ability to be a defensive stopper for the Huskers, clamped down on McDonald's All-American James Harden, limiting the freshman to four field-goal attempts while posting seven turnovers. Harden scored eight points to tie for the team lead, as the Sun Devils were held without a double-figure scorer.

Dagunduro, one of four newcomers in the Huskers' primary rotation, also burned the Sun Devils for a game-high 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting. His strong offensive push was a continuation of the previous game as he averaged 15.0 points in two games last week while hitting 63.2 percent (12-of-19) from the floor, including 62.5 percent (5-of-8) from 3-point range.

Along with Dagunduro, senior center Aleks Maric provided a strong post presence in both games last week after struggling in Nebraska's first road contest at Creighton, when he posted just nine points on 3-of-9 shooting. Maric had 30 points in the win over IPFW and then came back with 14 points and eight rebounds on Sunday against the Sun Devils. He hit 70.4 percent (19-of-27) from the floor in the two games while adding two blocked shots and two steals.

Freshman point guard Cookie Miller has been a steadying force for the Huskers as all the new faces get acquainted. Miller has 23 assists against just nine turnovers this season, including 10 assists and one turnover in the last two games combined. In NU's first road game of the year at Creighton, Miller led the team with a game-high 19 points while hitting 7-of-13 attempts from the field.

 

|+| Getting Defensive

In what was expected to be its toughest home matchup to date, Nebraska put on a defensive clinic against ArizonaState on Sunday. The Huskers held ASU to just 47 points, including allowing only 31 points with 6:40 remaining in the contest.

After trailing by seven, 17-10, midway through the first half, NU clamped down on defense to take control of the game. Nebraska allowed just one basket ? and only four points total ? over the final 11:26 of the opening period. NU went on a 16-0 run to go into the intermission ahead by nine, 30-21.

After a 3-pointer at the 8:36 mark, ASU had just four more shots in the half and missed all of them while committing eight turnovers in the stretch. The Sun Devils then recorded one basket in the first 11:03 of the second period. That made it 12:48 between baskets (8:36 in first half to 15:48 in second half) and a stretch of 19:39 with only one made field goal and 14 total points (one 3-pointer and 11 free throws).

Sunday's performance against ASU (12:48 between field goals) was the second-longest opponent drought in the Sadler era. It was the fifth time this season NU held an opponent without a field goal for at least five minutes (also 5:38 vs. Presbyterian; 5:05 vs. Alabama A&M; 5:28 vs. Alabama A&M; 7:59 vs. NorfolkState).

Last year, Nebraska saw several similar stretches of strong defensive play. The Huskers' recorded 20 stretches of at least 5:00 off the clock without allowing a field goal, including a season-high 14:28 for Houston between baskets in the second half.

 

|+| Hot Shooting Huskers

Six games into the season and it's obvious why Coach Doc Sadler has been optimistic about his team's shooting ability. Despite providing a solid offensive punch only in short surges, the Huskers have hit 49.2 percent overall from the floor during the opening weeks of the season.

Nebraska began the year by blistering the nets for an impressive 61.0 percent (25-of-41) from the floor in the season opener against Presbyterian. It was the fifth time in the Sadler era NU topped 60 percent shooting.

After connecting on just 42.3 percent of its attempts against Alabama A&M, NU got back into the groove against NorfolkState, knocking down 50.9 percent from the field, including 55.6 percent (15-of-27) in the second period. NU hit at least 50 percent from the field again when it knocked down 56.1 percent (32-of-57) of its shots against IPFW last week.

Two starters have hit at least 50.0 percent from the floor this season to help the Huskers' efforts, including Aleks Maric (59.7; 37-of-62) and Ade Dagunduro (55.6; 25-of-45). Over the past two games, Maric has hit 19-of-27 attempts (70.4 percent) from the field while Dagunduro has heated up to hit 12-of-19 (63.2 percent).

Maric has been at the front of the offensive charge during all four of his years at Nebraska. Last season he led the Big 12 Conference in field-goal percentage by hitting 56.5 percent for the season. In his career, Maric has hit 52.3 percent (435-of-832) from the field.

 

|+| By the Half

Nebraska has had several hot halves this season but is still looking to put together a complete game.

Near the top of the list for the best overall performance was a 51-point second period against NorfolkState. NU hit 55.6 percent in the frame while scoring the most points in any half during the Doc Sadler era. The previous high was 49 points in the second half of three separate games last year. Before the outburst, Nebraska had scored more than 34 points in only one of its previous five halves of play.

Against Creighton, Nebraska again picked up the pace after the intermission, posting 42 points in the second period while making a strong comeback attempt after scoring just 20 points in the first half. It was the third straight game the Huskers had a better shooting percentage in the second half than the first. With a strong second period against ArizonaState, NU has now shot better after the intermission in four of six games this season.

Nebraska has hit at least 50 percent from the field in six halves this season, including each half against Presbyterian and IPFW. NU has scored at least 40 points in a period four times, but has scored 30 or more points in each half of the same game only twice, against Norfolk State (32 first half, 51 second half) and Arizona State (30 and 32).

 

|+| Little Guy, Big Plays

Diminutive freshman guard Cookie Miller has already shown early in his career that he can play with the big boys.

Miller's first explosive offensive game came against Creighton when he took over the Husker offense in its bid for a comeback victory that fell short. Miller, who had recorded 11 points in his first three games combined, posted a game-high 19 points against the Bluejays. After scoring eight in the first half, Miller came out on fire in the second period when he scored another 11 points to help NU outscore Creighton 42-27 after the intermission. Miller hit 7-of-13 attempts from the floor against CU.

While his offense has come in surges, Miller has been steady as a ball-distributor and defender. The true freshman leads the team with 23 assists (3.8 apg) against just nine turnovers and has posted a team-high 14 steals, including two games with at least four steals. Miller needs just seven steals to move onto the Nebraska freshman top-10 list. The NU freshman and career records are also owned by a Husker named Cookie, as Cookie Belcher had 87 steals as a freshman in 1997 and finished with 353 steals in his career.

 

|+| Meet the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers

Western Kentucky enters Wednesday's game looking to avoid a two-game losing streak as it fell on the road against Northern Arizona, 64-61, on Saturday. The Hilltoppers are 5-2 overall this season including opening the year with three straight victories on their home court. WKU defeated Kennesaw State, 96-61, Kentucky Wesleyan, 88-67, and Murray State, 87-63, in that stretch.

The Hilltoppers' first loss of the year was a narrow 74-71 setback against nationally ranked Gonzaga in the first round of the Great Alaska Shootout. WKU then picked up a pair of four-point wins over Alaska Anchorage and Michigan.

In the loss to Northern Arizona, Western Kentucky was led by Tyrone Brazelton and Orlando Mendez-Valdez with 14 points apiece while Courtney Lee, a potential NBA first-rounder, struggled to put up 11 points on 3-of-11 shooting. The Hilltoppers connected on just 33.3 percent, including a paltry 24.1 percent in the second half. WKU actually outscored Northern Arizona, 31-28, in the second half as it hit 15-of-16 at the free throw line while NAU hit 9-of-18 at the stripe. Northern Arizona had a better shooting percentage than free throw percentage as it knocked down 64.3 percent (9-of-14) from the field.

On the year, Lee has been the Hilltoppers' go-to guy as he averages 22.1 points per game. The 6-5 senior guard has hit 53.3 percent from the floor and 82.9 percent from the charity stripe while adding 3.0 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game.

Brazelton is the only other double-figure scorer on the squad, as he has averaged 12.0 points per game and leads the squad with more than three assists per game. Lee (12) and Brazelton (11) have combined for nearly half ? 23 of 48 ? of the team's 3-pointers this season. No other player averages more than 6.7 points per game.

As a team, WKU has hit 47.2 percent from the floor while averaging 78.1 points per game. Opponents have connected on a solid 46.6 percent from the field but have 72 fewer attempts. On the glass, Boris Siakam leads the team with 4.9 rebounds per game as WKU has been outrebounded 32.4 to 32.0 this season. The Hilltoppers have also harassed opposing teams into 21.7 turnovers per game and opponents have made just 4.3 3-pointers per contest.

Western Kentucky is coached by Darrin Horn, who owns an 87-43 record in his fifth season guiding the Hilltoppers. An all-conference and academic All-America player at Western Kentucky, Horn has led WKU to at least 20 wins in three of his four seasons and helped the Hilltoppers to a pair of NIT appearances.

 

|+| Calling the Game

Former Nebraska basketball play-by-play man Randy Lee will be calling another Husker game on Wednesday. Lee, a native of West Virginia and an avid fan of the ABA, is in his first year as the Hilltoppers' play-by-play man after spending four years calling the action for the Husker Sports Network (formerly Pinnacle Sports Network). He was the lead man on the basketball broadcasts, and also helped with the call for football while serving as an analyst for baseball games on the network.

|+| Shut Down Defense

Nebraska has held opponents to 37.2 percent shooting from the field through six games, including limiting two opponents to less than 28 percent.

Over consecutive games, the Huskers held Alabama A&M to just 27.6 percent shooting from the floor while allowing NorfolkState to connect on only 26.8 percent of its shots. The percentages were the lowest under Coach Doc Sadler, respectively.

The last time Nebraska held back-to-back opponents to less than 28 percent shooting was in 2003 when Tennessee hit 27.9 percent followed by Bethune-Cookman hitting a DevaneyCenter opponent-low 21.2 percent. Bethune-Cookman scored just 26 points in that contest, also a building record opponent low.

Nebraska has now held opponents to less than 30 percent shooting 17 times during the Big 12 era.

 

|+| Slowing the Scoring

Nebraska has been solid on defense this season and has allowed a Big 12-leading 54.7 points per game over the first six contests. NU has held teams to less than 50 points three times on the young season, including an opponent season-low 45 points against Alabama A&M. Last year, the Huskers held just two opponents to under 50 points including a Division II school.

The most recent opponent held under 50 points was ArizonaState. The Pac-10 opponent recorded just 21 points in the first period and 26 in the second. In fact, NU turned up the defensive pressure enough that the Sun Devils had just 31 points with 6:40 to play in the contest.

Overall, Nebraska held its first three opponents to 52 or fewer points, the first time NU had accomplished the feat to open the season since 1946-47. The last time Nebraska held three straight opponents to 52 or fewer points at any point in a season was 1981-82.

The 145 combined points allowed through the first three games were the fewest allowed to open a season since 1949-50 when Nebraska allowed just 135 points while going 2-1 to open the year. That season, Nebraska finished 16-7 overall and 8-4 in the Big Seven Conference, the last time Nebraska earned a share of the conference regular-season title.

 

|+| Redshirt Decisions Made

Coach Doc Sadler announced on Saturday, Nov. 17, that two newcomers had made the decision to redshirt this season to better acclimate to Division I play. Sadler said that sophomore transfer Alex Chapman and freshman Brandon Richardson will redshirt this season.

After taking a while longer to decide, Sadler said on Dec. 2 that freshmen Alonzo Edwards and Toney McCray, who have dressed for every game this season, also decided to redshirt, giving NU a solid core for the future.

 

|+| Huskers Continue Strong Non-Conference Run

Nebraska improved its mark to 9-1 in the month of November under second-year Coach Doc Sadler when it defeated IPFW last week. The Huskers then continued the strong surge into December, where they now own a 5-3 record under Sadler. Nebraska is just 2-0 at home in the month of December under Sadler as last season the Huskers played 6-of-7 December contests away from Lincoln. 

Overall, Nebraska is 13-0 in home non-conference games under Sadler since he took over the program last season. The Huskers are 3-4 against non-league teams away from Lincoln, including 0-3 in true road games.

The Huskers have won 18 straight home non-conference games dating to a 73-72 loss to UAB in the 2005-06 campaign. Nebraska is 81-13 in non-league tilts at the DevaneyCenter since the formation of the Big 12 Conference in 1996-97.

 

|+| Under Pressure

Since his introductory press conference, Coach Doc Sadler has said that he wants to get to the point where his team can pressure the opponent for 94 feet. With an upgrade in athleticism, speed and talent, that philosophy will come into play more often this year.

If the early season has been any indication, Sadler's penchant for a disruptive defense will be widely embraced by the players and fans alike. Through six games, Nebraska has forced 99 turnovers and recorded 59 steals. Nine players have posted a steal in a game this year, including four players averaging at least one steal per game.

Nebraska posted a season-high 14 steals against Alabama A&M and came back with 11 steals against NorfolkState, giving NU five games with at least 10 steals under Coach Doc Sadler. The consecutive games with at least 10 steals was the first time at NU since 2005-06.

The Huskers have now posted at least nine steals in five straight games, and have had at least seven steals in every game this season. Nebraska had just four games with at least nine steals in 2006-07.

 

|+| New Faces Gain Court Time

Despite returning eight letterwinners from a year ago, the Huskers knew there would be a completely different look to the squad this season. Among the 19 players on the roster, eight are scholarship newcomers. There are also two walk-ons who redshirted last year in the program and one new invited walk-on.

Coach Doc Sadler started two newcomers in the opening lineup of each of the first two games of the season opener, including junior Ade Dagunduro and freshman Cookie Miller.  Junior Steve Harley also made a start in the Huskers' last two contests, making him the third newcomer to join the starting five.

Overall, Sadler has played a total of six players this season who had never worn a Nebraska uniform before, including bringing Shang Ping, Cole Salomon and Andrew Wicklund off the bench. Four of them ? Dagunduro, Miller, Harley and Ping ? have played in every game and are all averaging at least 13 minutes per contest. Salomon and Wicklund are walk-ons who made their first career appearances this season.

 

|+| Sadler Opens Second Season with Huskers

After a whirl-wind first season that saw several solid performances despite fielding an undersized and oft-injured team, Coach Doc Sadler is back for his second year on the Husker sideline looking to return Nebraska to the postseason. Sadler, who owns a 70-33 record as a Division I head coach, guided the Huskers to 17 wins last season, making him the third-winningest first-year coach in Nebraska history.  NU also finished with a 6-10 record to tie for seventh in the Big 12 standings after earning a ranking of 10th or 11th in every preseason conference poll.

With a year under their belts coaching in the Big 12 Conference, Sadler and his staff brought in a recruiting class that ranked among the top 25 in the nation by several media sources, including ESPN.com's Bob Gibbons (21st) and CSTV.com's Van Coleman (12th). The class is considered one of the deepest in Nebraska history, and is possibly the largest ever with eight scholarship newcomers.

Sadler also has a strong staff helping him on the bench and on the recruiting trail. Overall, the Husker staff has combined for 85 years coaching on the sideline and helped 21 teams to Division I postseason appearances. Together the Husker staff has produced 31 NBA players and more than 660 career victories as head coaches.

 

|+| Opening It Up

Nebraska opened the regular season at home with a 67-52 victory over PresbyterianCollege. With the win, the Huskers improved to 55-11 in program history when opening the season at home in Lincoln (although information on two years in the early 1900s is incomplete), including winning their 18th straight season opener at the Devaney Center since falling 62-59 against Wyoming in overtime in 1980.

The Huskers will play a total of 19 home games during the regular season, including 18 at the BobDevaneySportsCenter, one off the facility record. The other home contest will be at the QwestCenter in Omaha when the Huskers take on Oregon (Dec. 15), a top-25 team.

 

|+| All-American Aussie?

After a solid junior campaign that saw him average 18.5 points and 8.7 rebounds per game, center Aleks Maric is the top returning scorer and rebounder in the Big 12 Conference and will contend for All-America honors this winter.

A second-team all-league selection following last season, Maric was named an Athlon Sports magazine third-team  preseason All-American this fall and was a member of the  preseason All-Big 12 team selected by the coaches. If he picks up All-America honors, Maric would become just the ninth Husker ever to earn postseason All-America honors and the first since Carl McPipe in 1978.

In addition to the preseason honors, Maric is among 50 players named to the initial watch lists for two prestigious player-of-the-year honors, the Wooden Award and the Naismith Trophy.

With continued improvement from last season, Maric will have a chance to earn several postseason honors as he is one of the top returning players in the country. Between players from BCS conferences, Maric is third among returning scorers from last year, trailing only Chris Lofton of Tennessee (20.8 ppg) and Sean Singletary of Virginia (19.0 ppg). Maric is also sixth among returning BCS conference players in field-goal percentage and seventh in rebounding average.

 

|+| Anderson Looks for Repeat Performance

Entering last season with only a handful of players with Division I experience meant that some newcomers would have to step up. The first to answer Coach Doc Sadler's call was Ryan Anderson, who despite standing just 6-4, played the majority of the season at the 4 spot and created offensive mismatches against opponents on a nightly basis.

As one of five returning scholarship players, the Seattle native hopes to improve on his stellar first season with the Huskers. A starter in each of the Huskers' first six contests, Anderson has been solid but has not had a breakout contest this season. He posted his most complete game Sunday against ArizonaState, knocking down four 3-pointers on his way to 14 points with seven rebounds and two steals in 31 minutes.

Anderson is averaging 9.3 points per game this year to rank third on the squad and has pulled down 6.3 rebounds per contest, second only to Aleks Maric's 9.0 boards per game. Anderson owns the team lead with 10 3-pointers and has been on the floor more than anyone, averaging a team-high 29.7 minutes per contest.

Last year, Anderson was second on the team with 10.1 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, while ranking among the top 10 freshmen all-time at Nebraska in points scored, field goals, rebounds, 3-pointers and steals. Though he battled an injury early in the conference season that slowed his production for a couple of weeks, Anderson put up some of his best games against the top competition as he averaged a team-best 15.8 points over four games against ranked teams while hitting 55.0 percent from the floor.

Anderson was second on the squad with 48 3-pointers, the second-highest total by a freshman in Nebraska history. He tied the NU single-game 3-point percentage record with a 5-for-5 effort from beyond the arc at Rutgers and equalled NU freshman record with seven treys against Hawaii.

Anderson had a dominant performance against the Rainbows as he finished the game with 29 points, six rebounds, five assists (one turnover) and a steal in a career-high 38 minutes. The 29 points were the second-highest freshman single-game scoring total in NU history, trailing only Tyronn Lue's 30 points in a game in 1996.

 

|+| Strowbridge on the Mark

Sophomore guard Jay-R Strowbridge received great praise from Coach Doc Sadler during the preseason as one of the most improved players on the team.

Despite suffering an injury that slowed him in the preseason, Strowbridge earned a starting nod in each of the season's first four games but has come off the bench the past two contests. He posted a strong opening performance against Presbyterian, as Strowbridge gained 12 points on 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range while playing 27 minutes. Strowbridge's 12 points were two off his career high while the four treys tied his career-best total.

Last year, Strowbridge averaged 3.9 points and 1.5 assists per game as a true freshman, and was an extremely valuable asset from beyond the arc where he ranked fifth on the squad with 25 3-pointers. Strowbridge was on target more often than not as he led the team in 3-point percentage, hitting 46.3 percent from downtown. His mark ranked third in single-season history and was the highest mark in the freshman record book. Strowbridge is one of three current Huskers who hit at least 25 treys last year.

 

|+| One for the Record Book

Already among the best centers all-time at Nebraska, Aleks Maric became only the second player in NU history to record at least 1,000 points and 600 rebounds before the end of his junior season. Entering Wednesday's contest with Western Kentucky, Maric now has 1,208 career points and 734 rebounds.

 By matching his production from last year (556 points, 260 rebounds), Maric would finish his career ranked fifth all-time on the Nebraska scoring chart and second in rebounds. He needs just 49 rebounds to take over second place on the career chart and has a chance to rank on top 10 career lists in at least eight other categories.

 

|+| Newcomers Earn Praise

While they still have a lot to prove on the floor, the newest group of Huskers were welcomed to Lincoln with impressive fanfare by the recruiting analysts. As a group, this year's recruiting class was ranked among the top 25 in the country by several top analysts, including No. 11 by Van Coleman (CSTV.com) and No. 21 by Bob Gibbons (ESPN.com). Clark Francis of HoopScoop had the Huskers as high as No. 5 among early signing classes.

Individually, several new Huskers joined the program after all-star caliber careers in junior college and high school. Guard Steve Harley, a transfer from South Plains (Texas) College, was a two-time All-American, including earning first-team honors last year, and was ranked No. 4 in the country among guards by nbadraft.net. Shang Ping was ranked No. 8 at small forward by the same service. Alonzo Edwards was No. 18 among small forwards and in the top 125 overall  by ESPN.com.

 

|+| Making History

Coach Doc Sadler is quickly making a name for himself at Nebraska. Last season, he was the third-winningest first-year coach in program history by helping the Huskers to 17 victories.

This year, Sadler became one of only two coaches in program history to win at least three straight games to open the season in each of his first two years on the Husker bench. He joined E.O. 'Jumbo' Stiehm who opened 1911-12 and 1912-13 with five victories each year.

This is the third consecutive season Nebraska opened with three wins in the first three games. The last time Nebraska won at least three contests to open a campaign in three straight seasons was 1977-78 to 1979-80.

 

|+| Chairman of the Boards

Senior center Aleks Maric is the top returning rebounder in the Big 12 Conference after posting 8.7 rebounds per contest last season, including 9.4 boards per game against Big 12 foes. Maric set his career high with 19 rebounds against Missouri at home last year, bettering his previous mark of 17 at KSU as a sophomore.

With 252 rebounds last season, Maric moved into ninth place on the Husker rebounds chart. This season, Maric has already had a game with 16 rebounds (against Alabama A&M) ? his fifth career game with at least 15 rebounds ? and needs just 49 rebounds this season to take over sole possession of second place on the Husker chart.

 

 

|+| Doubling Down Low

Center Aleks Maric established himself as a dual threat in the post from his first career game when he recorded 12 points and 14 rebounds in the season opener against Arkansas-Pine Bluff in 2004. Maric went on to record three double-doubles as a freshman and had 10 as a sophomore. Each of the marks in his first two years tied the NU class record.

Maric added 10 double-doubles last season and now has 24 in his career, a total that ranks third in Nebraska history. Maric added his first double-double of the 2007-08 campaign with a workmanlike 21 points and 16 rebounds against Alabama A&M. He now needs just one more double-double to tie Carl McPipe for second on the all-time list.

 

|+| Last-Second Shots

? The Huskers’ 35-point victory against NorfolkState was the largest under Coach Doc Sadler at Nebraska, and also marked NU’s most lopsided victory since a 107-67 victory over North Carolina A&T on Dec. 19, 2005.

? Nebraska held its first three opponents to 52, 45 and 48 points, respectively, the first time since the 1946-47 that all of NU’s first three opponents failed to score more than 52 points. In the exhibition season, the Huskers’ opponents scored 50 and 51 points respectively. 

? The Huskers’ 83 points against NorfolkState were a season high as Nebraska improved to 7-0 under Coach Doc Sadler when scoring at least 80 points in a game.

? The loss at Creighton was Nebraska's 12th straight loss in a true road opener, including six losses at CU in that span.

? Aleks Maric has only 10 turnovers in the first six games (1.7 per game) after posting 97 turnovers last season (3.2 per game).

? Maric also only has nine fouls through six games (including three against Creighton) after averaging 2.7  fouls per game last year.

? Maric has 14 blocked shots through six contests. Nebraska's opponents have combined for just 14 blocked shots. Maric needs seven blocks to rank 10th on the NU senior class chart.