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|+| Game Information
Game: Game 33
Game Date: Monday, March 24, 2008
Game Time: 8:05 p.m. CDT
Release Date: Friday, March 21, 2008
Television: ESPNU (Dwayne Ballen, play-by-play; Daymeon Fishback, color)
Radio: Husker Sports Network (Kent Pavelka, play-by-play; Matt Davison, color)
Internet: Huskers.com (live radio)
Satellite Radio: None
Venue: Tad Smith Coliseum (8,910)
|+| Cornhuskers Ready to Face Rebels in NIT Second Round
After picking up its first postseason victory in four years with a dominating 67-48 win over Charlotte at home, the Nebraska Cornhuskers hit the road looking to keep their season alive as they take on the Mississippi Rebels on Monday, March 24, in Oxford, Miss., in the second round of the 2008 MasterCard National Invitation Tournament (NIT).
Nebraska and Ole Miss will tip off at 8:05 p.m. at Tad Smith Coliseum in a game seen nationally on ESPNU. Dwayne Ballen will call the action and Daymeon Fishback will add color for the first contest between the Huskers and Rebels on the hardwood since 1978.
Monday's game can be heard live on the radio on the Husker Sports Network, consisting of 30 stations around Nebraska and Iowa that provide coverage of Nebraska athletic events. Veteran play-by-play man Kent Pavelka will call the action while former Husker Matt Davison adds color commentary. The broadcast will be carried around the world live on the Internet on Huskers.com.
Ole Miss and Nebraska are the No. 2 and 3 seeds, respectively, in their portion of the NIT bracket. Each cruised to an easy victory on its home court on Wednesday, setting up Monday's second-round matchup. The winner of the Nebraska-Mississippi contest will play the winner of the Virginia Tech-UAB matchup in an NIT quarterfinal contest that will determine one of the four teams to make the trip to New York. The quarterfinal contest will take place on Wednesday, March 26, on the home court of the highest seed and will tipoff at either 7 or 9 p.m. in a game televised by ESPN2.
The Huskers have posted their first 20-win season since 1999 by applying tremendous defensive pressure on opponents, holding teams to 39.7 percent shooting from the field this season. Nebraska's field-goal percentage defense ranked among the top 30 in the country last week, and is the lowest in the school annals since 1961.
After starting league play with an 0-4 record, that strong defense has helped Nebraska post a solid 9-6 mark since Jan. 27. The nine wins tie for the third-best total in the Big 12 Conference in that time frame behind only Texas (12) and Kansas (12). Of the six losses, three were to ranked teams and five were on the road, including a four-point setback at No. 9 Texas and a 10-point loss in the league tournament against No. 5 Kansas.
The Huskers have thrived off stellar defensive execution this season, which helped NU rank 13th nationally in scoring defense last week. Of the 12 teams ahead of NU, four are in the NCAA Tournament and six are in the NIT.
Nebraska is allowing a Big 12 Conference-best 59.9 points per game, the lowest point total allowed by a Husker squad in 26 years and the second-lowest in the NU record book since 1951. The only NU team to allow fewer points per game in that span was the 1982 Husker squad, which gave up just 55.3 points per contest, the 10th best total in the nation that year.
Nebraska's strong defensive play has come against some top teams, as the Huskers have held nine of their last 16 opponents to 62 or fewer points, including eight Big 12 Conference teams. Nebraska actually limited four of its last seven foes to under 50 points, with Charlotte's 48 points being the fewest by any team in the first round of the 2008 NIT. The total was also the fewest ever allowed by Nebraska in postseason action, bettering the previous Husker opponent low of 52 points in an NCAA playoff game in 1949.
Overall, Nebraska has held nine teams (seven non-conference, two Big 12) to 50 or fewer points this season, the most by a Husker squad since NU held 10 opponents to 50 or fewer points in 1949-50. During that span, only three Husker squads held at least six opponents to 50 or fewer points (7 in 1981-82; 8 in 1958-59; 6 in 1950-51) in a season.
While defense has been the biggest story of the Husker season, Nebraska has come together on offense over the final weeks of the season. Nebraska has hit better than 47 percent from the field over the last nine games, earning a 6-3 record with first-team All-Big 12 center Aleks Maric adding 14.2 points and 11.2 rebounds per game in that span. Junior guards Steve Harley (11.9 ppg) and Ade Dagunduro (8.3 ppg), both junior college transfers, have also become more comfortable in the offense in that time, ranking second and third in scoring, while junior guard Paul Velander has come off the bench for 7.1 points per game on 48.6 percent shooting from 3-point range.
Sophomore guard Ryan Anderson has seen his scoring drop to 6.8 points per game, but has still made impressive contributions. He is second on the squad in the last nine games with 21 assists against 13 turnovers (trailing only Maric's 24 assists) while adding a team-high 15 steals.
|+| Maric Milestones
Senior all-conference center Aleks Maric reached a pair of milestones in the same night while helping Nebraska prolong its season with a 67-48 victory over the Charlotte 49ers in the first round of the NIT on Wednesday.
Likely playing in the last home game of his career at the DevaneyCenter, Maric had nine points and 10 rebounds, just missing a chance to add to his impressive career double-double total.
With the solid performance, Maric improved his career total to 1,612 points to move into fifth place on the Nebraska career scoring chart, while his 10 boards gave him 1,005 in his career. He became just the second player in NU history and only the fifth in the Big 12 era to post 1,000 or more rebounds. Maric is 75 boards shy of the NU career record.
Maric also improved his season rebound total to 325, the second-best total in school history and just 10 boards short of tying the NU single-season mark.
|+| Road Play
Nebraska has been impressive at home this season, earning a 16-3 record at the DevaneyCenter and a 1-0 mark in the QwestCenter for a 17-3 overall record at home. The 16 wins at the DevaneyCenter are second in history and just one off the building record.
While the home record has been outstanding, Nebraska is still looking to find consistency when playing on the road. Nebraska is just 3-9 away from Lincoln this season, including posting a 2-8 mark in true road games.
NU is 2-3 in its last five games away from Lincoln, including its first true road victory over a ranked team since 1999. Nebraska defeated then-No. 22 Texas A&M, 65-59, in College Station, Texas, on Feb. 23.
In two years under Coach Doc Sadler, Nebraska is 8-19 away from home, including 3-5 against non-conference teams. In that span, NU is 0-4 in true road contests against non-conference teams, with losses at Rutgers and Hawaii in 2006-07 and at Creighton and Western Kentucky this season.
|+| Recent Developments
As Nebraska continues postseason play, several team and individual milestones are coming within reach, including:
? Senior center Aleks Maric is currently second in the NU single-season record book with 325 rebounds in 2008. He is only the third player in school history with 300 boards in a season and needs 10 boards to tie Venson Hamilton's single-season record of 335.
? Maric's 10.156 rebounds per game are the most by a Husker since Chuck Jura set the school single-season record with 11.7 boards per game in 1972.
? Sophomore Ryan Anderson surpassed his total from last season (48) with 49 3-pointers this year and now is three away from 100 in his career. He needs six 3-pointers to tie for 10th in Nebraska career history.
? Freshman point guard Cookie Miller owns 57 steals this season to rank third in the Big 12 Conference at 1.97 steals per game. Miller needs six steals to move into the Nebraska single-season top 10.
? Along with Miller, Anderson is 12th in the Big 12 Conference with 1.38 steals per game while Maric is tied for 15th with 1.28 per game.
? Six Huskers each have at least 30 steals this year, the highest total since complete steals statistics are available in 1978. Nebraska had only one player with more than 30 steals in three of the last four years before 2008.
? As a team, the Huskers have seven players with at least 40 assists this season, the most since NU won a school-record 26 games in 1990-91. Nebraska had eight players with at least 40 assists in 34 games that season.
? Maric ranks second in the league in blocked shots per game at 1.72, and needs just one blocked shot to tie Derrick Chandler for seventh on the NU career list with 144.
? Nebraska's defense is allowing 59.9 points per game, and ranked 13th nationally last week. It is the fewest points per game allowed by a Husker squad since Nebraska finished 10th nationally in 1982 by allowing just 55.3 points per contest.
? Nebraska ranked 28th in field-goal percentage defense entering the postseason. The Huskers have allowed opponents to hit just 39.7 percent from the field in 32 games. The last time a Nebraska squad held opponents below 40 percent in a full season was 1961, when teams hit just 36.7 percent. The 1998 Husker squad held opponents to exactly 40.0 percent shooting.
|+| Fans Play a Part
Nebraska's solid defense has been a key to its success this season, but having a good home-court advantage behind a solid fan base has also helped. Among the loudest crowds of the season was the 9,427 fans in attendance for Nebraska's NIT first-round victory over Charlotte.
It was the third-largest crowd among all NIT first-round games. Overall, nine of the 16 first-round games had crowds of at least 5,000, although only one ? Syracuse's 10,536 ? was over 10,000.
NIT First-Round Crowds Over 5,000 (9 games of 16)
Home team listed first Attendance
1. Syracuse vs. Robert Morris 10,536
2. Virginia Tech vs. Morgan State 9,628
3. Nebraska vs. Charlotte 9,427
4. Creighton vs. Rhode Island 7,948
5. OhioState vs. UNC-Asheville 7,117
6. Dayton vs. Cleveland State 7,012
7. IllinoisState vs. Utah State 6,397
8. Southern Illinois vs. Oklahoma State 5,353
9. Florida vs. San Diego State 5,188
|+| Nebraska Feels At Home in NIT
While the Huskers did not reach their goal of earning a spot in the 65-team NCAA Tournament, Nebraska is excited to continue its season in the National Invitation Tournament, an event NU has had tremendous success in throughout the past three decades.
Overall Nebraska is making its third postseason appearance in the last five years (all in the NIT) and first under Coach Doc Sadler, who owns a 37-26 record in two years in Lincoln. It is Nebraska’s 21st all-time postseason appearance, including the program's 15th selection to the NIT field.
NU holds a 23-13 record in 15 NIT appearances (including 2008), and owns a 6-4 record during the Big 12 era. The Huskers are one of 19 schools to make at least 14 appearances in the NIT.
Nebraska has reached the semifinals of the NIT in New York City three times (1983, 1987, 1996), including winning the 1996 NIT title. That season, Nebraska lost nine of its last 10 regular-season games and its Big Eight Tournament opener before running off five straight victories to earn the NIT championship. NU defeated ColoradoState (91-83) on the road, WashingtonState (82-73) at home, FresnoState (83-71) on the road and Tulane (90-78) and Saint Joseph's (60-56) in MadisonSquareGarden for the title.
The Huskers had lost two straight NIT games dating to 2004, before picking up a 67-48 first-round win over Charlotte on March 19. Overall, the Huskers have won at least one game in the postseason NIT 12 times in 15 appearances, including at least two victories five times.
Among the current Huskers, senior center Aleks Maric was the only player to compete in the postseason prior to the matchup with Charlotte. Maric had nine points, 12 rebounds and a career-high five blocked shots at Hofstra in 2006, despite battling a virus that kept him from practicing the two days prior to the game.
Junior guard Paul Velander and sophomore Chris Balham were also on the 2006 NIT team, however neither saw action in the contest. Velander made a strong impression in his first postseason action in 2008, hitting 3-of-5 3-point attempts against Charlotte while scoring nine points.
With the win over the Niners, NU improved to 10-0 at home in Lincoln in the first round of the NIT. Overall, the Huskers now have a 15-1 record in Lincoln during NIT play, all in the DevaneyCenter. Nebraska's only loss at home in NIT play came in the second round of the 1995 NIT when PennState defeated the Huskers 65-59.
On the road, Nebraska owns an 8-12 record in the NIT. The Huskers have lost their last two contests away from Lincoln in the NIT, with the last victory coming just 60 miles from home at Creighton in Omaha in 2004.
When Nebraska won the 1996 NIT title, the Huskers did so by taking four games away from Lincoln, including winning the first round at ColoradoState and the quarterfinal matchup at FresnoState.
|+| Huskers Reach 20-Win Plateau
Nebraska has posted at least 19 wins for the second time in three years, although this season's campaign is much sweeter as it marks the firs time a Nebraska squad has posted 20 wins since 1999.
Nebraska, with a 20-12 record entering Monday's game at Mississippi, hopes it does not repeat history, as the 1999 squad finished 20-13 while reaching the second round of the NIT. The Huskers won their first game of the 1999 NIT by a 68-55 margin over UNLV at home in Lincoln before falling on the road at TCU, 101-89.
Nebraska earned six 20-win seasons in the 1990s. The 2008 Huskers picked up just the 12th 20-win season in 112 years of Nebraska basketball.
20-Win Seasons in Nebraska History
Year Final Record Coach Postseason
2008 ??? Doc Sadler NIT (?-?)
1999 20-13 Danny Nee NIT (1-1)
1998 20-12 Danny Nee NCAA (0-1)
1996 21-14 Danny Nee NIT (5-0)
1994 20-10 Danny Nee NCAA (0-1)
1993 20-11 Danny Nee NCAA (0-1)
1991 26-8 Danny Nee NCAA (0-1)
1987 21-12 Danny Nee NIT (4-1)
1983 22-10 Moe Iba NIT (3-1)
1978 22-8 Joe Cipriano NIT (1-1)
1966 20-5 Joe Cipriano None
1920 22-2 Paul Schlisser N/A
|+| NU Solid vs. Postseason Squads
Nebraska built a solid resume this winter, earning 19 wins including eight against Big 12 Conference teams before entering the National Invitation Tournament. Twenty-two of the 32 teams in the NIT had at least 20 wins starting NIT play, although all four of the No. 1 seeds in the NIT had 19 wins just like the Huskers.
The Huskers faced 11 teams (14 games) in the regular season that went on to play in the NCAA Tournament or the NIT. Nebraska was 4-7 against NCAA qualifiers, including victories over Oregon, Kansas State, Texas A&M and Oklahoma. The Huskers were 1-2 in the regular season against teams that made the NIT field, including a win over No. 1 seed ArizonaState.
|+| Full Throttle
Nebraska has been up and down throughout the season with its offensive performance, but has seen its best ball movement and execution the past nine games. During that span, the Huskers have gone 6-3 while connecting at a 47.7 percent clip from the floor.
Nebraska hit at least 50.0 percent in each of the first four contests in the stretch, knocking down 51.9 percent against KansasState, 59.0 percent at Texas A&M and 50.0 percent against both Oklahoma and OklahomaState. NU hit 44.8 percent at Texas to snap the streak. Nebraska has also hit above 44 percent in two of the last three games as well.
The four-game stretch to start the surge marked the first time in the Big 12 era that Nebraska hit at least 50.0 percent against four consecutive league teams. NU's previous high was two straight games at or above 50 percent.
Nebraska's 59.0 percent shooting (23-of-39) at Texas A&M was the second-highest single-game shooting performance by Nebraska against a league squad since the formation of the Big 12 Conference. The highest game total was 66.0 percent against Oklahoma in Norman, Okla., in 1999.
Nebraska hit better than 44 percent in a game just once in its first 10 conference games, but then has hit at least 44 percent in eight of the past nine games.
|+| Uncharted Territory
Senior center Aleks Maric has been a steady force for the Huskers during the last 15 games as he has averaged 15.7 points and 12.3 rebounds per game since going scoreless at Kansas on Jan. 26. In that span, Maric has 12 double-doubles and has hit 59.6 percent from the field and 75.3 percent from the free throw line.
With the strong surge, Maric has moved into rare company.
Maric is now fifth in scoring in Nebraska history, as he passed former Huskers Tyronn Lue (1,577 points) and Erick Strickland (1,586) on the scoring chart with 17 points against Missouri in the first round of the Big 12 Championship, and passed Jaron Boone (1,609) for fifth by scoring nine points in the first round of the NIT.
Maric is the only player in school history with at least 1,600 career points and 800 rebounds.
Nebraska Career Scoring Chart
No. Name (Years) Career Points
1. Dave Hoppen (1983-86) 2,167
2. Eric Piatkowski (1991-94) 1,934
3. Jerry Fort (1973-76) 1,882
4. Andre Smith (1978-81) 1,717
5. Aleks Maric (2005-pres.) 1,612
6. Jaron Boone (1993-96) 1,609
7. Erick Strickland (1993-96) 1,586
8. Tyronn Lue (1996-98) 1,577
9. Cookie Belcher (1997-2001) 1,552
10. Rich King (1988-91) 1,475
Maric moved onto the Big 12-era career rebounds chart when he gained 17 rebounds against No. 24/25 KansasState at home. Maric improved that to a top-5 position in the regular-season finale against Colorado with 16 rebounds. With five boards against Charlotte in the first round of the NIT, Maric became just the fifth player in Big 12 history to record 1,000 career rebounds, and only the third with at least 1,600 points and 1,000 rebounds.
Big 12 Conference Career Rebound Leaders
No. Player, School (seasons) Rebounds
1. Nick Collison, Kansas (1999-2003) 1,143
2. Arthur Johnson, Missouri (2001-04) 1,083
3. James Thomas, Texas (2001-04) 1,077
4. Stephane Pelle, Colorado (1999-2003) 1,053
5. Aleks Maric, Nebraska (2005-08) 1,005
6. Ivan McFarlin, Oklahoma State (2001-05) 967
7. Chris Mihm, Texas (1998-2000) 945
8. Eric Chenowith, Kansas (1997-2001) 933
9. Venson Hamilton, Nebraska (1997-99) 919
10. Eduardo Najera, Oklahoma (1997-2000) 910
|+| Harley Riding High
While it took him some time to get going, junior guard Steve Harley came on strong in the conference season when the Huskers needed him most.
Harley has played his best basketball and looked the most comfortable on the court over the second half of the league season. In the last 11 games, Harley ranks second on the squad by averaging 11.4 points per game while hitting 48.5 percent from the floor including 39.3 percent from 3-point range.
On the heels of his strong finish, Harley was one of two Huskers (along with junior guard Ade Dagunduro) named to the Big 12 All-Newcomer Team selected by sportswriters who regularly cover the conference.
Harley's improvement was dramatic. In 13 non-conference games to open the season, he averaged just 6.6 points per game on 37.3 percent shooting, including hitting only 27.3 percent from beyond the arc.
|+| Finding the Range
Nebraska has struggled at times finding consistency from long range this season, as the Huskers have hit 34.4 percent from beyond the arc on the year. NU has made up for it with strong play in the paint, converting at better than 51 percent on two-point attempts.
Recently, however, the Huskers have done a better job of getting looks from long range and connecting. Junior guard Paul Velander has been the biggest boost to the Huskers' recent surge as he has connected on 17-of-35 3-point attempts in the last seven contests. Velander hit 18-of-52 from long range in the first 25 games.
|+| Free Throw (Not So) Woes
Nebraska's occasional struggles at the free throw line have been well documented this season, but one Husker who may be overlooked for coming on strong at the end of the season at the free throw line is senior center Aleks Maric.
After hitting 58.9 percent (53-of-90) in non-conference play, Maric has been more focused against league foes, knocking down 72.5 percent (79-of-109) since the start of Big 12 play.
Maric has hit 66.1 percent from the line in his career, connecting on 444-of-671 attempts. His attempts are second in the NU record book only to Dave Hoppen's 724 free throw tries, while Maric's made free throws rank third in Nebraska history behind Hoppen (559) and Jack Moore (446).
|+| Maric Approaches Rare Numbers
Nearing the end of a solid career in the powerful Big 12 Conference, senior center Aleks Maric can certainly stand up statistically with the best post players in the Big 12 era. Maric is tied for fifth among the Big 12 career leaders in double-doubles and is 17 points from moving into the top 20 scorers. With his first rebound against KansasState at home, Maric moved among the Big 12's top 10 rebounders and currently stands in fifth place.
With 10 free throws against Texas Tech, Maric reached 400 in his career, becoming only the eighth player in the Big 12 era with 400 or more made free throws. He hit 12-of-14 against Missouri to move into fourth in the Big 12 era and now trails only Texas Tech's Martin Zeno (1st), Texas A&M's Joseph Jones (2nd) and former Texas A&M guard Bernard King (3rd).
With 11 rebounds against Oklahoma, Maric became the all-time Big 12 leader in conference-only rebounds. He finished his career with 574 boards in the regular season vs. Big 12 teams, passing the previous mark of Texas's James Thomas, who held the former record with 535 rebounds in league games between 2001 and 2004.
One impressive list Maric joined against Texas A&M is the 1,500-point, 900-rebound club. During the Big 12 era, Maric is only the sixth conference player to reach the mark, joining players from Kansas (2), Missouri (1), Oklahoma (1) and OklahomaState (1).
Big 12-era Players with 1,500-Points, 900-Rebounds*
No. Player (school, years) Points Rebounds
1. Nick Collison (KU, 2000-03) 2,097 1,143
2. Arthur Johnson (MU, 2000-04) 1,759 1,083
3. Eduardo Najera (OU, 1997-00) 1,646 910
4. Aleks Maric (2005-pres.) 1,603 1,005
5. Ivan McFarlin (OSU, 2001-05) 1,526 978
Drew Gooden (KU, 2000-02) 1,526 905
* List sorted by points
** Currently only other Big 12-era players with at least 1,500 points and 800 rebounds are Wayne Simien, KU, 2002-05, 1,593 points, 884 rebounds; and Texas A&M's Joseph Jones (2005-pres.), 1,655 points, 811 rebounds.
|+| Leader of the Pack
Preseason all-conference center Aleks Maric is Nebraska's leader and is one of the top centers in the nation. The senior from Sydney, Australia, led NU to 17 wins last season under first-year coach Doc Sadler while earning second-team all-conference honors, and helped NU to its first 20-win season since 1999 while earning first-team all-league honors in 2008.
This year, Maric has earned first-team honors from the media and second-team honors from the coaches as he and freshman Michael Beasley of Kansas State were the only players in the Big 12 ranked among the league's top eight in scoring (Maric, 7th; 15.7 ppg), rebounding (3rd; 10.2 rpg) and field-goal percentage (2nd; 57.5) to date.
Along with his powerful offensive game, Maric has improved defensively as well. He is second in the league and 60th nationally in blocked shots per game (1.72 bpg) and he has easily set a single-season career high with 41 steals.
In Big 12-only games, Maric was second in the league in rebounding at 11.6 boards per game, just behind Beasley (11.8 rpg), while ranking sixth in scoring at 15.9 points per contest.
Maric is the active career leader in the Big 12 for rebounds (1,005), double-doubles (38) and double-figure rebound games (42). Freshman Michael Beasley of Kansas State is the only other active player in the league with 20 career double-doubles or double-figure rebounding games, as he has an NCAA freshman record and Big 12 single-season record 26 double-doubles this season.
|+| Chairman of the Boards
Senior center Aleks Maric was 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 league foes. The active career leader in the Big 12 Conference, 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 had four home games with at least 16 rebounds (17 vs. KansasState; 16 vs. Alabama A&M, Missouri and Colorado). He now has nine career games with at least 15 rebounds. With eight rebounds against Maryland Eastern Shore on Jan. 4, he took over sole possession of second place on the Husker career chart.
Nebraska Career Rebound Leaders (since 1952)
No. Player (seasons) Rebounds
1. Venson Hamilton (1996-99) 1,080
2. Aleks Maric (2005-present) 1,005
3. Leroy Chalk (1969-71) 782
4. Dave Hoppen (1983-86) 773
5. Rich King (1988-91) 761
6. Andre Smith (1978-81) 753
7. Chuck Jura (1970-72) 740
8. Carl McPipe (1976-79) 723
9. John Turek (2002-05) 682
10. Rex Ekwall (1955-57) 679
|+| 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 had 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 11 double-doubles last season and, after posting 14 this season, now has 38 in his career, a total that ranks second in NU history. He is currently tied for fifth in double-doubles Big 12 Conference history. Maric has 26 double-doubles in Big 12 play to rank first in league-only games, bettering the mark of NU's Venson Hamilton who had 24 double-doubles in Big 12 action from 1997-99.
Maric added his first double-double of the 2007-08 campaign with 21 points and 16 rebounds against Alabama A&M and posted 17 points and 13 rebounds at Western Kentucky. He then went 11 games without a double-double until posting 13 points and 13 rebounds at Missouri.
During his 11-game stretch without a double-double he had nine rebounds and double-figure points five times.
Between Jan. 30 against Missouri and Feb. 20 against KansasState, Maric recorded seven straight double-doubles, the longest streak of his career. Last year, Maric finished the season with six straight double-doubles. During the seven-game surge, Maric averaged 14.4 rebounds per game, including 5.9 offensive boards per game.
The streak came to an end against the huge frontcourt of Texas A&M, as Maric had just five rebounds while helping NU upset the No. 22 Aggies. He then returned to his normal ways by posting double-doubles in five straight games, including three contests away from home, before being held to 10 points and seven rebounds against Kansas in the Big 12 Championship, and nine points and 10 rebounds against Charlotte in the first round of the NIT.
Nebraska Career Double-Doubles
Rank Player (Years) Double-Doubles
1. Venson Hamilton (1996-99) 46
2. Aleks Maric (2005-present) 38
3. Carl McPipe (1976-79) 25
4. Dave Hoppen (1983-86) 22
5. Rich King (1988-91) 21
6. Derrick Chandler (1992-93) 19
7. Kimani Ffriend (2000-01) 18
8. Steffon Bradford (2000-01) 16
Andre Smith (1978-81) 16
10. Mikki Moore (1994-97) 11
Big 12 Career Double-Doubles
Rank Player, School (Years) Double-Doubles
1. Chris Mihm, Texas (1998-00) 47
2. Venson Hamilton, Nebraska (1997-99) 46
3. Drew Gooden, Kansas (1999-02) 44
4. Raef LaFrentz, Kansas (1996-98) 40
5. Aleks Maric, Nebraska (2005-present) 38
Wayne Simien, Kansas (2001-05) 38
6. Stephane Pelle, Colorado (1999-03) 37
Nick Collison, Kansas (1999-03) 37
9. Arthur Johnson, Missouri (2001-04) 36
10. Eduardo Najera, Oklahoma (1997-00) 30
Big 12 Career Double-Doubles (conference-games only)
Rank Player, School (Years) Double-Doubles
1. Aleks Maric, Nebraska (2005-present) 26
2. Venson Hamilton, Nebraska (1997-99) 24
3. Chris Mihm, Texas (1998-00) 22
4. Stephane Pelle, Colorado (1999-03) 20
Drew Gooden, Kansas (1999-02) 20
6. Raef LaFrentz, Kansas (1996-98) 19
7. Wayne Simien, Kansas (2001-05) 16
Kimani Ffriend, Nebraska (2000-01) 16
9. Eduardo Najera, Oklahoma (1997-00) 14
10. Michael Beasley, Kansas State (2008) 13
|+| Sadler Quickly Setting Marks
Coach Doc Sadler will give all the credit to the players for making plays on the court, but he has put Huskers in position to find success like no coach in program history.
In his first two seasons in Lincoln, Sadler's teams have already posted 37 wins with at least 17 victories in each season. Sadler is the first coach in Nebraska basketball history to post at least 17 victories in each of his first two seasons at the helm of the program.
Sadler is 12th overall in victories at Nebraska among 26 all-time NU head coaches. He has 37 overall wins, a total that ties for first place among all Husker coaches in their first two years at NU. Only Paul Schlisser had as many as 37 combined wins at Nebraska in the 1920 (22 wins) and 1921 (15 wins) seasons. Danny Nee, who holds the Nebraska career head coaching record with 254 victories in 14 seasons, had 34 wins in his first two years, including 21 victories in 1987 and 13 wins in 1988.
Coach 2-year win total Years
Doc Sadler 37 (17, 20) 2007-08
Paul Schlisser 37 (22, 15) 1920-21
Danny Nee 34 (21, 13) 1987-88
Moe Iba 31 (15, 16)* 1981-82
E.O. 'Jumbo' Stiehm 31 (14, 17) 1912-13
Barry Collier 27 (14, 13) 2001-02
W.E. Kline 23 (11, 12) 1924-25
Harry Good 21 (10, 11) 1947-48
R.G. Clapp 20 (9, 11) 1904-05
*first two years listed as full-time head coach
|+| Henry Picks Up Pace
Sophomore guard Sek Henry has always had a solid offensive game according to Coach Doc Sadler, so it is no surprise that it has been on the defensive end where Henry has made his most improvements. Henry has struggled to find a balance between offense and defense, but started to show signs of finding a comfortable middle ground in a road victory against Missouri.
Henry kept the Huskers afloat in the first half, scoring 12 points in the opening frame on a career-high four
3-pointers. He entered the Missouri contest with just eight 3-pointers in the first 17 games of the season.
Henry, who finished the contest with MU with 14 points, became the fourth Husker with at least four treys in a game this season. He joined Jay-R Strowbridge (4 vs. Presbyterian), Ryan Anderson (4 vs. ArizonaState; 4 vs. Missouri at home) and Cookie Miller (4 vs. Colorado). Paul Velander set the team high with five treys against Colorado in the regular-season finale.
The 14 points were one off Henry's season high of 15 against North Carolina Central. It was his sixth career double-figure scoring game, and first in Big 12 Conference play. It was his highest scoring effort in his first 21 career Big 12 contests. His previous high was nine in his first career league game last year.
After the strong mid-week contest, Henry followed with 11 points and five rebounds against IowaState and 10 points at KansasState. It was the first time in his career that Henry scored double-figures in three straight games. He had scored double figures in back-to-back games only once before his current stretch, against Hawaii and Houston in the non-conference slate last year.
Henry again came up big for the Huskers on the road against No. 22 Texas A&M. After point guard Cookie Miller was knocked out of the game with an injury, Henry stepped up to hit a pair of 3-pointers while also guiding the offense from the point guard spot. Henry finished with a team-high-tying 11 points.
At Texas, Henry made his third straight start at point guard and had a quiet eight points with three assists in 19 minutes. Henry scored five points in the final minute as he hit a 3-pointer and a driving layup that kept Nebraska within two points in the last 60 seconds.
|+| Velander Making Noise
During the Huskers' surge to end the season on a strong note, Nebraska saw several players come off the bench to provide a spark and give NU the winning edge, however Paul Velander's presence may have been the most surprising.
In his first 12 league games, Velander hit 7-of-22 attempts (38.1 percent) from 3-point range and 8-of-25 from the floor overall while averaging 2.2 points and 8.8 minutes per game. Over the last seven contests, Velander is fourth on the squad by averaging 8.1 points in 18.9 minutes per game while hitting 17-of-35 (48.6 percent) attempts from 3-point range.
Velander started his season-best streak with a pair of good practices before the Oklahoma game. He carried the momentum into the contest, as he hit all three 3-point attempts against the Sooners before coming back two games later to hit three 3-pointers at Texas. He helped NU to a season-high 10 treys as NU came back from a 17-point second-half deficit and had the game tied in the final minute on the road against the
No. 9 Longhorns.
In the regular-season finale, Velander set a career high with five treys, including making a four-point play, for a season-best 16 points as NU ran past Colorado, 68-49. Velander also completed a four-point play against Kansas in the Big 12 Championship, when he went 3-of-6 from long range, and attempted a four-point play against Texas, but missed the free throw.
|+| Stepping Up
In addition to Paul Velander, a couple other Huskers have come off the bench to provide a boost in recent wins.
At Texas A&M, Nebraska sophomores Sek Henry and Chris Balham each posted one of their best games of the year to help NU to its first road victory over a ranked team since 1999. Henry had 11 points including a pair of 3-pointers while running the point the final six minutes after point guard Cookie Miller went out with an injury. Balham added a career-high 10 points while hitting 5-of-7 shots from the floor, both career highs.
Balham also had a solid impact with five points off the bench against KansasState. Sophomore guard Jay-R Strowbridge also came off the bench to hit a pair of
3-pointers at key moments to help Nebraska upset of the then-ranked Wildcats.
|+| Road Warrior
Diminutive guard Cookie Miller showed early in his career that he can play with the big boys, especially in hostile environments.
Miller proved how explosive his offensive game can be when he took over for the Huskers in the second half against Creighton in Omaha. Miller, who had recorded 11 points in his first three games combined, posted a game-high 19 points against the Blue Jays. 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 in a come-from-behind attempt that fell short. Miller hit 7-of-13 attempts from the floor against the Blue Jays.
In his first Big 12 Conference road game against Colorado, Miller again stepped up to pace the offense as he posted a game-high 18 points on 6-of-10 shooting while hitting four 3-pointers. Miller's third double-figure scoring game also came on the road as he had 14 points to go with eight assists at Kansas State.
In regular-season road games, Miller was second on the team in scoring at 11.4 points per game. Center Aleks Maric was the only other double-figure scorer as he has posted team highs with 11.9 points with 10.8 rebounds away from home in the regular season.
Miller has hit 31-of-73 field-goal attempts (42.5 percent) away from the DevaneyCenter, including nailing nine shots from beyond the arc. At home, Miller has averaged 4.4 points per game on 35.5 percent shooting (32-of-90) including connecting on just 7-of-36 3-point attempts (19.4 percent) at home.
|+| Dishing It
Freshman point guard Cookie Miller had a tremendous impact on the outcome of Nebraska's first game back from a three-day break for Christmas, as he posted eight points, 10 assists and five steals in the Huskers' 77-53 win over Alcorn State. Miller just missed his first career double-double while recording a then-personal high scoring effort in the DevaneyCenter (eight points; season high is 19 on the road).
Miller's double-figure assists marked the 25th time since 1984-85 and he became the ninth Husker in that span to record at least 10 assists in a game. He is the first freshman in that time to record double figure assists, making him the first Husker freshman in the Big 12 era to post at least 10 assists in a game.
Miller is only the second Husker in the past five years to record 10 assists in a game joining Charles Richardson Jr. who had 15 in a road game last year at Rutgers. The Huskers' previous 10-assist game was 2002-03 when Jake Muhleisen had 10 against nationally ranked Minnesota at home.
Miller nearly made it two straight games with double-figure assists as he had nine assists against Maryland Eastern Shore in the non-conference finale. His 19 assists in two games were the most since Richardson had 22 (15 vs. Rutgers; 7 vs. Oregon) last year.
In conference play, Miller had 33 turnovers in 415 minutes (32.2 mpg), including only one turnover in 32 minutes against No. 3 Kansas at home and one miscue in 34 minutes in his first Big 12 road game against Colorado.
Miller's steady hand as a ball-distributor has helped the freshman lead the team with 108 assists (3.7 apg) against 63 turnovers, including 46 assists in 13 league games.
NU Freshman Top 10 ? Assists
No. Name (Year) Assists
1. Tyronn Lue (1996) 144
2. Cookie Miller (2008) 108
3. Jake Muhleisen (2002) 105
4. Jaron Boone (1993) 87
5. Brian Carr (1984) 78
|+| Stealing the Show
Freshman Cookie Miller has quickly made a name for himself on the defensive end of the floor as he moved onto the Nebraska freshman top-10 steals list with five thefts against AlcornState on Dec. 29. He had at least one steal in each of his first 14 career games until seeing the streak snapped against Colorado on the road. The only games Miller has not recorded a steal were against CU on the road, and Texas Tech and Missouri at home.
After posting four games this season with at least five steals, Miller now ranks second in NU freshman history with a team-leading 57 steals this season. The Nebraska 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.
Miller is fourth in the league and 54th nationally in steals per game (1.96 spg) on the year, and finished Big 12-only games leading the conference at 2.0 spg.
NU Freshman Top 10 ? Steals
No. Name (Year) Steals
1. Cookie Belcher (1997) 87
2. Cookie Miller (2008) 57
3. Tyronn Lue (1996) 50
4. Erick Strickland (1993) 47
5. Joe McCray (2005) 32
Clifford Scales (1988) 32
|+| Sadler Reaches Milestone
While the win over KansasState meant more to the Huskers in the Big 12 team race, second-year Coach Doc Sadler reached a noteworthy coaching milestone as he recorded his 200th career victory as a college head coach.
With 37 wins in his first two years at Nebraska, Sadler currently owns an 85-44 record at the Division I level. He was 48-18 at UTEP in two seasons and 120-39 in five years at Arkansas-Fort Smith, giving him a 205-83 career record in his ninth season as a college head coach.
Sadler, who also had 38 wins in one season as a high school head coach, has averaged more than 22 wins per season in his college coaching career. His average at the Division I level will remain at least 20 wins per season. Sadler posted the seventh-highest win total by a first-year head coach in NCAA history when his UTEP squad won 27 games in 2004-05.
|+| Meet the Rebels
Nebraska will be facing a tough Mississippi squad that holds a 22-10 record this season after finishing third with a 7-9 record in the SEC West. The Rebels have won four of their last five contests, including an 83-68 victory over UC Santa Barbara in the first round of the NIT.
Ole Miss won 13 straight games to open the season, including a victory over Clemson before falling by just two points, 85-83, at Tennessee in the SEC opener. The Rebels won their next two contests, including a victory over two-time national champion Florida, before dropping eight of their next 11 contests. Six of the losses were on the road and four were by four or fewer points.
Ole Miss has not lost to a non-conference team this season, as it owns a perfect 15-0 record, including a 9-0 mark at home. On the year, Mississippi owns a 15-2 record at Tad Smith Coliseum, with loses coming against South Carolina and Auburn.
The Rebels are led by freshman point guard Chris Warren, who paces the squad with 15.5 points and 4.5 assists per game. Warren has hit 91 3-pointers, knocking down shots beyond the arc at a 37.9 percent clip. He is also one of four Rebels with at least 30 steals this season and is among the team's best free throw shooters by hitting 77.9 percent from the line.
Warren is not the only Rebel who can score, as Ole Miss has three other players averaging double figures in Dwayne Curtis (15.1 ppg), Eniel Polynice (10.8) and David Huertas (10.5). Ole Miss is averaging 79.6 points per game while hitting better than 45 percent from the field.
Curtis is the team's leading rebounder at 9.5 boards per game while Polynice, who missed the last game with an injury and whose status is uncertain for Monday's game, has pulled down 5.5 rebounds per contest. Kenny Williams, the second-leading rebounder on the team at 6.5 boards per game, is the only other player averaging eight points per game (8.3).
|+| Defined by Defense
Nebraska has been defined by its defense as the Huskers entered the postseason ranked in the top 30 in both scoring defense (13th) and field-goal percentage defense (28th). While the Huskers earned much of the lofty ranking in non-conference play, Nebraska has also been solid in league action with a high-water mark coming in the opening half of the game at IowaState.
The Cornhuskers set a then-Big 12 record for conference-only games by allowing ISU to score just 11 points in the opening period (OU broke the mark three weeks later, holding A&M to 10 points in the first half). The mark surpassed the effort of Oklahoma which held Texas Tech to 12 points in the first half of a contest in 2006.
The Cyclones were limited to just 19.0 percent in the frame on 4-of-21 shooting. ISU went more than 10 minutes (10:26 to be exact) between field goals, scoring just two free throws while being forced to miss eight straight shots and committing nine turnovers in the span.
In what could be seen as a microcosm of the Huskers' season, the defensive effort went for naught as ISU scored an opponent second-half high 49 points.
Nebraska also posted strong opening halves against Oklahoma and Colorado at the DevaneyCenter. NU held OU to just 12 first-half points while CU posted only 14 first-half points.
|+| Anderson Makes Impact
Guard Ryan Anderson was the second-leading returning scorer from last season and because of the early success as a true freshman, he has had high expectations put on him in his young career. After struggling to find his rhythm early in the season, Anderson made a huge impact for the Huskers between Jan. 30 and Feb. 23.
During the eight-game surge, Anderson averaged 10.1 points and 6.0 rebounds per game while hitting 44.4 percent from the field, including 42.1 percent from 3-point range. Sixteen of his 27 made shots during the stretch came from beyond the arc. He also had 21 assists against just 12 turnovers and added 16 steals in those eight league contests.
Anderson added two double-doubles during the eight-game span and is the only current Husker with a career double-double besides center Aleks Maric, who is sixth in the Big 12 era with 38 career double-doubles. Both of Anderson's double-doubles came against Missouri, with 11 points and 10 rebounds in Columbia and 15 points and a career-high tying 11 rebounds in Lincoln.
|+| 40-pointers
Nebraska's impressive defensive performances against SavannahState and North Carolina Central marked the first time in the 31-year history of the DevaneyCenter that NU held consecutive opponents in the building to less than 40 points. NCCU's 28 points was the second-lowest total in building history and the second-fewest points allowed in a game by Nebraska since 1947. SSU's 37 points were the sixth-lowest in building history.
Overall, the Huskers have held just five teams to less than 40 points in DevaneyCenter history, including two this season.
The last time Nebraska held consecutive teams to less than 40 points at home was the first two games of the 1949-50 campaign. That season marked the last time Nebraska won a league title, as it tied for first place in the Big Seven Conference that year.
|+| 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 has already come into play more often this year.
Sadler's penchant for a disruptive defense has been widely embraced by the players and fans alike. Nebraska has forced 500 turnovers while recording 268 steals. Twelve Huskers posted at least one steal in a game this year, including five players averaging at least one steal per contest.
Nebraska posted a season-high-tying 14 steals against North Carolina Central, equaling the mark set against Alabama A&M. The 14 steals are the second-most by a Husker squad under Sadler, trailing only the 15 against North Texas last year. The 14 steals against NCCU made it three consecutive games with double-figure steals.
Nebraska also had at least 10 steals in four straight games against Baylor, at Kansas, at Missouri and against IowaState. It was the first time since 1999 the Huskers had double-figure steals in four straight games.
Overall this season, Nebraska has posted double-figure steals 12 times. The Huskers have had at least nine steals in 17 games this year after posting at least nine steals in just four games in 2006-07.
Nebraska led the Big 12 in league-only contests with 7.9 steals per game. NU ranks second overall in the league in steals with 8.38 per game.
Nebraska Team Steals (Big 12 era)
Year Steals Games Avg/G Ind. High
2007-08 268 32 8.4 57
2006-07 205 31 6.6 56
2005-06 207 33 6.3 33
2004-05 163 28 5.8 32
2003-04 194 31 6.3 36
2002-03 188 30 6.3 47
2001-02 203 28 7.3 48
2000-01 237 30 7.9 82
1999-00 215 30 7.2 42
1998-99 359 33 10.9 102
1997-98 319 32 9.9 75
1996-97 298 33 9.0 87
|+| Accurate Trio Climbing Chart
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 battling injuries that have set him back twice this season, Strowbridge has again proven to be one of the Huskers' top 3-point shooters.
After setting a blistering pace as a rookie last season, Strowbridge has hit at a 36.9-percent clip from beyond the arc this season, knocking down 24-of-65 3-point attempts. While it is behind last year's average that ranks third in single-season history and first in the NU freshman record book (47.3 percent, 25-of-54), Strowbridge still ranks on the career chart with a 41.2-percent (49-of-119) average.
With 119 attempts in his career, Strowbridge now qualifies for the Nebraska career record where he is in third place behind Brian Conklin, who knocked down 43.2 percent (176-of-407) in his career, and NU's career 3-point leader Cary Cochran, who hit 268-of-630 attempts (42.5 percent) from long range.
Along with Strowbridge, two other current Huskers are on pace to land on the list at the end of their careers. Sophomore Ryan Anderson is currently sixth all-time in
3-point percentage at Nebraska and is on pace to break onto the NU career 3-pointers made list early next year. Paul Velander, a junior walk-on, has also bounced between the No. 9 and No. 11 spots on the career chart this season.
Nebraska Career 3-point Pct. (min. 90 attempts)
Rank Player (seasons) 3FG 3PA Pct.
1. Brian Conklin (2001-04) 176 407 .432
2. Cary Cochran (1999-2002) 268 630 .425
3. Jay-R Strowbridge (2007-pres.) 49 119 .412
4. Clifford Scales (1988-91) 45 110 .409
5. Henry T. Buchanan (1987-88) 67 165 .406
6. Ryan Anderson (2007-pres.) 97 243 .399
7. Chris Cresswell (1990-92) 103 261 .395
8. Marcus Perry (2006-07) 98 249 .394
9. Paul Velander (2006-pres.) 67 172 .390
10. Ray Richardson (1989-90) 105 278 .377
|+| Anderson Builds Solid Resume
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 is continuing to build a strong resume as one of the Huskers' top all-around players. A starter in every game this year, Anderson has averaged 8.5 points per game this year to rank fourth on the squad. Anderson owns the team lead with 49 3-pointers and 29.8 minutes per contest.
Anderson posted one of his most complete games against then-No. 16 Oregon, when he poured in 21 points on 5-of-9 shooting and added nine rebounds and four steals as the Huskers knocked off the nationally ranked Ducks. Two weeks earlier, Anderson knocked down four 3-pointers on his way to 14 points with seven rebounds and two steals against ArizonaState, helping the Huskers go 2-0 against the Pac-10 this season.
Anderson has been forced to become one of Nebraska's best rebounders, and has done a terrific job despite standing just 6-4. He has averaged 5.3 boards per game to rank second on the squad and 17th overall in the Big 12 conference. He posted his first career double-double ? and third career double-figure rebounding game ? with 11 points and 10 rebounds in a road win against Missouri this season and came back with 15 points and a career-high tying 11 rebounds against Missouri in Lincoln.
Anderson had his best offensive game in league play against Texas Tech, posting 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting. He hit all three of his attempts from long range and added seven rebounds, two steals and an assist in 37 minutes.
Anderson put up some of his best games against the top competition.
In his career, Anderson has faced 12 ranked teams and averaged 11.6 points per contest (139 total points). As a true freshman last year as he averaged a team-best 15.8 points over four games in 2006-07 against ranked teams.
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.
Anderson was second on the squad with 48 3-pointers in 2006-07, 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.
|+| Nebraska Picks Up First-Round NIT Win Over Charlotte
Nebraska remained perfect at home against non-conference teams this season behind a strong defensive effort as the Huskers held Charlotte to more than 20 points below its season average in a 67-48 victory at the DevaneyCenter in front of a crowd of 9,427.
Earning its 10th straight first-round home win in the National Invitation Tournament, Nebraska improved to 20-12 on the season, making the 2007-08 Husker squad just the 12th in 112 years of Nebraska basketball to earn 20 wins.
The Huskers held Charlotte, which finished its season with a 20-14 record, to 31.5 percent shooting on the game, as the 49ers hit just 17-of-54 shots from the field, including only 6-of-29 from 3-point range. It was the sixth time NU held a non-conference opponent to under 35 percent shooting, and the eighth time overall on the season. It was the second time in three games Nebraska held a team to under 32 percent shooting.
Nebraska did a tremendous job in containing explosive guard Leemire Goldwire, who came into the game averaging 19.0 points per contest and 3.8 treys per game, the ninth-best 3-point average in the country. Goldwire was frustrated into 2-of-13 shooting, including hitting just 2-of-9 from 3-point range, while scoring just six points. He needed six 3-pointers to set the school record, but fell four short against the stiffling Husker defense.
Lamont Mack led the way for Charlotte with 13 points and Charlie Coley added 12 points on 6-of-9 shooting, but it was not enough to get past the Huskers who had four players score at least nine points in the game. Ade Dagunduro led the way with 15 points, his highest total since recording a season-high 17 points against Western Kentucky. It marked the second straight game Dagunduro, a junior college transfer, led the team in scoring.
Jay-R Strowbridge came off the bench to produce his second-highest scoring game of the season, pitching in 10 points on 2-of-3 shooting while hitting 5-of-6 at the free throw line. Paul Velander also came off the bench for three 3-pointers to produce nine points, while Aleks Maric added nine points and 10 rebounds, just missing adding to his career double-double total.
Maric still managed to reach a pair of milestones.
With his fifth rebound of the first half, Maric became only the second player in Nebraska history and the fifth player in the Big 12 era to record 1,000 rebounds. He now has 325 rebounds this season to rank second on the NU single-season list, just 10 boards behind record-holder Venson Hamilton. Maric is now 75 rebounds behind Hamilton on the career chart, as he has 1,005 to his credit.
With his seventh point of the game, Maric moved into sole possession of fifth place on the Nebraska career scoring chart. He passed Jaron Boone, who had 1,609 points in his career. Maric now has 1,612 points, becoming only the third player in Big 12 history with at least 1,600 career points and 1,000 rebounds.
Maric's milestone-reaching points capped the end of a game-changing scoring run for the Huskers.
After leading by 12 at the 16:27 mark of the second half, Nebraska went on an 11-1 run capped by Maric's conventional three-point play that gave Nebraska a 47-25 lead with 12:28 remaining. From there, the Huskers moved the lead out to 26 points on two occasions, with the last coming at 62-36 with 5:28 remaining.
Following Paul Velander's third 3-pointer of the game, Charlotte outscored Nebraska 8-2 in the last four minutes to cut the deficit to 19 points. It was the 49ers' worst loss of the season and the second straight game they were held under 50 points.
In the opening period, Nebraska fell behind 16-15 before Maric connected on his first two field goals to start a 13-3 run. The surge included 3-pointers from Ryan Anderson and Velander along with a three-point play from Dagunduro, as Nebraska opened a 28-19 lead with 2:39 remaining before intermission.
Coley hit a basket to pull the Niners back within seven before Anderson added another jumper and Cookie Miller, who had eight points off the bench, added a trey with 28 seconds remaining to give NU a 33-21 lead going into the locker room.
Overall, Nebraska hit 46.0 percent (23-of-50) from the field but struggled at the free throw line, where the Huskers connected on just 13-of-23 charity attempts. NU held a 39-33 advantage on the glass against the smaller Niners, and had 15 turnovers, although five were in the final three minutes when Nebraska cleared its bench with the game easily in hand.
Nebraska postgame notes vs. Charlotte
? Nebraska improved to 23-19 all-time in postseason play, including 23-13 in the NIT.
? The Huskers reached the 20-win mark in a season for just the 12th time in the program’s 112-year history and for the first time since winning 20 games in the 1998-99 season. Only six teams in program history have won more games than the 2007-08 Huskers.
? Aleks Maric became just the second Husker to reach 1,000 rebounds for a career with his fifth carom of the game. He is now just the third player in Big 12 history to score more than 1,600 points and grab more than 1,000 rebounds, joining Nick Collison of Kansas (2000-03) and Arthur Johnson of Missouri (2000-04). Maric now has 1,005 rebounds in his career following his 10-rebound effort against Charlotte, 75 behind NU record-holder Venson Hamilton.
? Nebraska held Charlotte to 48 points, the lowest total ever allowed by the Huskers in postseason play. The previous low was 52 in the 1949 NCAA Playoff game against OklahomaState.
? The Huskers have held nine opponents to under 50 points this season and are a perfect 9-0 in those games.
? By holding Charlotte to 48 points, it marked the seventh time in Nebraska’s 42 postseason contests (NCAA or NIT) that the Huskers have held a team to under 60 points.
? With the win, Coach Doc Sadler has now won 37 games in his two seasons at Nebraska, equaling the highest total ever by a head coach after two seasons. He tied Paul Schlisser, whose teams won 37 games in his first two seasons (1920-21).
? The 19-point margin of victory for Nebraska is its largest in postseason history. The previous high was 13 points, set on two occasions (1999 NIT First Round vs. UNLV; 1985 NIT First Round vs. Canisius).
? With 10 rebounds, Maric reached double digits in rebounds for the 15th time this season and the sixth time in the last seven games. Maric finished one point shy of a double-double with nine points and 10 rebounds while leading the Huskers with five assists.
? Maric moved into sole possession of second place on Nebraska’s single-season rebounds list with 325 this year. He is now 10 rebounds shy of Venson Hamilton’s single-season mark of 335 set in 1998-99.
? With his nine points, Maric climbed into fifth place on Nebraska’s career scoring list with 1,612 points, passing Jaron Boone, who scored 1,609 points from 1993 to 1996.
? Ade Dagunduro’s 15-point performance was his best offensive effort since scoring a season-high 17 points at Western Kentucky on Dec. 5, 2007. Dagunduro has now led the Huskers in scoring in each of its last two games.
? Nebraska improved to 8-11 all-time against teams from the Atlantic-10 Conference with the win.
|+| Single Digits Rarity?
In what is typically an uncommon sight, the Huskers held SavannahState without a double-figure scorer on Dec. 11. Only two players scored more than five points on the night with Anthony Jones leading the way with eight points.
While it may not be common, it was the second time this year ? and the second time in three home games ? the Huskers held every player on the opposing team to nine or fewer points. NU also turned the trick against ArizonaState on Dec. 2, when three players each scored eight points to lead the team in a 62-47 loss to Nebraska.
Against North Carolina Central, the Huskers nearly made it three games without allowing a double-figure scorer as NCCU posted just 28 points in the contest, the second-fewest points NU has allowed since 1947. But Bryan Ayala's last basket gave him 11 points on the night to lead the Eagles. Only three other players scored for NCCU, one with seven points, one with six and one with four.
|+| Taking Care of Business
Coach Doc Sadler stresses the importance of ball security and being smart with every pass. The Huskers have done a solid job of listening to Sadler's direction while taking care of the ball this season as they have averaged just 13.4 miscues per game (430 turnovers in 32 games).
Nebraska had a season-low seven turnovers against then-No. 16 Oregon, including going the final 9:27 of regulation and all of overtime without a turnover. The Huskers also posted just seven turnovers in the non-conference finale against Maryland Eastern Shore.
NU opened conference play by posting only 12 turnovers against the strong defensive pressure of the No. 3 Kansas Jayhawks and had nine turnovers on the road against Colorado and 10 turnovers at both Texas A&M and Texas.
The Huskers had their most secure league game handling the ball against Oklahoma, when they committed just eight turnovers. In Big 12 play, NU averaged 13.0 turnovers per game in conference action.
NU's season high for turnovers came on the road against Western Kentucky when the Huskers had 23 miscues. Nebraska also had 21 turnovers in its road opener at Creighton, including 17 in the first half, and added a Big 12-high 19 turnovers at OklahomaState.
|+| Getting in Gear
Nebraska struggled at times early in the season to get the offense in full gear, but cranked it up a notch over the last five games of the non-conference season. During that span, the Huskers averaged 80.8 points per game on 52.0 percent shooting in five straight victories.
The Huskers had one of their most productive offensive games against SavannahState despite playing 14 players (everyone on the roster except five redshirts). All but two players scored in the contest with three earning career highs and one gaining a season high. Eleven Huskers scored at least five points apiece with junior forward Shang Ping leading the way with a game-high 11 points.
Nebraska started the game on a 26-2 run and hit 60.0 percent from the floor in the opening half before finishing the game hitting half of its attempts (27-of-54). The 82 points were just one off the then-season high and tied for the third-highest scoring game in the coach Doc Sadler era.
Nebraska came back to add 88 points in an overtime win over then-No. 16 Oregon and posted 71 points in a 43-point victory against North Carolina Central. Nebraska topped the 70-point mark for the fourth straight game with 77 points against AlcornState and rounded out the non-conference slate with 86 points against Maryland Eastern Shore.
The five-game streak scoring at least 70 points was the second-longest under second-year head coach Doc Sadler. Last year, NU had a seven-game streak, all in non-conference action.
|+| Holding at 80
Nebraska has allowed just three teams (four occasions) to top the 80-point plateau in the Coach Doc Sadler era. Kansas (84 points) and Missouri (86 points in overtime) have topped the mark this season while Kansas (92) and Hawaii (81) reached the plateau last year. The first three contests were on the road while Missouri became the first team to score 80 points against a Sadler-led squad in Lincoln. All four games ended with Husker losses.
NU had gone 22 games without allowing a team to reach the 80-point plateau until Kansas scored 84 points against the Huskers in Lawrence earlier this season.
Much of Nebraska's success this season has come as a result of a pesky defense that ranked 13th nationally in scoring defense through the regular season and a field-goal percentage defense that was 28th nationally.
|+| Scoring Droughts
Nebraska has dominated games this season by holding opponents to lengthy scoring droughts.
Among its best defensive starts to a game, Nebraska held North Carolina Central without a point for the first 5:00 of the game and allowed only one field goal in the opening 15:07 of the contest. NCCU went 10:07 between its first and second basket as NU ran to a 25-4 lead.
That strong start is becoming a similar trend as the Huskers also ran out to a 26-2 lead to start the contest with SavannahState. NU allowed just six points in the first 18:22 of the game as SSU went 6:07 without scoring a point to open the contest and then after its first field goal, did not score another point for another 7:46.
Nebraska has held an opponent without a field goal for at least five minutes 31 times this year (5:38 vs. Presbyterian; 5:05 and 5:28 vs. Alabama A&M; 5:28 vs. Alabama A&M; 7:59 vs. Norfolk State; 12:48 and 6:51 vs. Arizona State; 5:02 and 5:33 vs. Rutgers; 6:07, 7:46 and 5:05 vs. Savannah State; 5:00, 10:07, 10:05 and 6:58 vs. North Carolina Central; 5:04 and 5:24 vs. Alcorn State; 5:09 and 6:05 vs. Maryland Eastern Shore; 5:48 vs. Baylor; 5:42 and 7:19 vs. Iowa State; 5:25 at Kansas State; 6:08 vs. Texas Tech; 10:26 vs. Iowa State; 7:05 vs. Oklahoma; 7:36 and 5:56 vs. Colorado; 5:23 and 6:09 vs. Missouri; 6:55 vs. Charlotte).
In what was expected to be its toughest non-conference matchup of season at the Devaney Center, Nebraska put on a defensive clinic against ArizonaState. Nebraska allowed just one basket ? and only four points total ? over the final 11:26 of the opening period. 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).
The performance against ASU (12:48 between field goals) was the second-longest opponent scoring drought in the coach Doc Sadler era. Last year, 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.