Coatney's Call: Wisconsin Game Preview

#15 Nebraska (14-1, 3-0) at Wisconsin (5-11, 1-3)
Thursday, Jan. 12, 7 p.m.  (central)
Kohl Center (Madison, Wis.)
Radio: 25-Station Husker Sports Network (Matt Coatney-PBP; Jeff Griesch-Analyst)
B107.3 FM-KBBK (Lincoln); Twister 93.3 FM-KTWI (Omaha); 880 AM-KRVN (Lexington); 1400 AM-KCOW (Alliance); 94.1 FM-KNEB (Scottsbluff); 1230 AM-KHAS (Hastings)Internet: Free live audio on Huskers.com
Live Video Stream: BTN.com All-Access (subscription required) 

Two seasons ago, I made it my mission in life to tell anyone with a set of ears that Kelsey Griffin should be a National Player-of-the-Year candidate.  This year I'm back on the hunt for more humans with a new message:  Lindsey Moore is the most underrated point guard in the nation. 

Teams and pundits around the nation better start paying attention because 'Zeroes' is leading a young Nebraska women's basketball team on a pretty impressive journey this season.  Moore had one of the best games of her career Sunday afternoon at Iowa in front of a national television audience. She nearly went for the second triple-double of her career with a team-leading 22 points, 11 assists, seven rebounds and three steals in leading the Huskers to a 77-72 come-from-behind victory over the Hawkeyes. 

NU is 14-1 overall and has started their inaugural season in the Big Ten Conference 3-0.  The eight-game winning streak has propelled Nebraska to a top-15 ranking in the Associated Press poll this week. The Huskers will stay on the road when they try to get their first win ever against the Wisconsin Badgers Thursday night in Madison.

Wisconsin will face No. 15 Nebraska at the end of a stretch of facing ranked teams in five out of six games. The only non-ranked opponent the Badgers have faced since Dec. 23 was in their last game, a 70-67 road win at Illinois that snapped a six-game losing streak.  UW is 5-11 overall and 1-3 in Big Ten play.  The program has reached the NCAA Tournament just twice in the last 10 seasons and has a new leader as Bobbie Kelsey assumes her first head coaching role this year.  Wisconsin lost its top three scorers from last season and two of their 12 roster players are recently recovered from torn ACL injuries.

Junior Taylor Wurtz, a 6-0 guard, and 5-9 senior guard Jade Davis are the only players returning this season who had started more than 10 games in their careers.  Wurtz leads the team in scoring (15.3 ppg) and is the only Badger averaging double-figure points.  She also leads the team in three-pointers (34), rebounds (7.9 rpg) and steals.  After being shut out of the scoring column in a loss at Purdue last Thursday, Wurtz bounced back with a team-high 19 points in the win over Illinois. Davis adds 5.6 points per game, leads the team in assists and is second in the team in three-pointers (18).  She can play either guard spot and was one of only three players on last year's team to have more assists than turnovers. 

Anya Covington, a 6-2 senior forward, scored 14 of her 18 points in the second half of Sunday's win at Illinois.  She is second on the team in scoring (8.6 ppg) and rebounding (6.3 rpg).  Sophomore Morgan Paige, a 5-9 guard, comes from an athletic family.  She was coached in high school by her mother, who played basketball at Mount Mercy College and her brother Marcus is a high school senior who will play for Roy Williams and the North Carolina Tar Heels next season.  Paige leads the team in assists and is third on the team in scoring (7.3 ppg).  

Senior Ashley Thomas, another 6-2 forward, rounds out UW's probable starting lineup.  She adds 6.3 points per game. Sophomore center Cassie Rochel brings size at 6-4 off the bench for the Badgers. She leads the team in blocked shots (12) and adds 4.7 points per game. Rochel broke her nose last Thursday in the loss at Purdue and did not play in Sunday's game at Illinois. Her status is listed as day-to-day.  Rochel is the primary backup for Covington and Thomas.

Kelsey is the sixth head coach in Wisconsin history.  She spent the last four seasons as an assistant at Stanford, advancing to the NCAA Women's Final Four each of those seasons.  She helped the Cardinal to three Final Fours in five years as a player, including the 1992 NCAA Championship.

Wisconsin leads the all-time series 5-0 with Nebraska, but the teams have not met since 2000. UW is 3-0 in Madison and 2-0 in Lincoln, with both of those games being decided in overtime.

I cordially invite you to join Jeff Griesch and me for Nebraska Women's Basketball on the Husker Sports Network.  Our radio broadcast Thursday beings with the Husker Courtside pre-game show at 6:45 p.m. (central) with the tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m. on the Husker Sports Network, including Lincoln affiliate KBBK 107.3 FM (B107.3), KTWI 93.3 FM in Omaha, KRVN 880 in Lexington, KCOW 1400 in Alliance, KHAS 1230 in Hastings, KNEB 94.1 FM in Scottsbluff, and available to our entire twenty-five network stations.  All Husker Women's Basketball broadcasts are also available for free worldwide on the internet at www.huskers.com.  I hope you can join us. 

There are a number of ways to get enhanced information about our broadcast and Husker women's basketball via social media.  You can learn more about the team on the Nebraska Women's Basketball Facebook  page or follow the team on their official Twitter  page @huskerswbb.  I also invite you to friend me on Facebook (Matt Coatney) or follow me on Twitter @coatman1.

Go Big Red! 

Matt