Huskers Host Skyhawks Friday Night

Game #5 Tennessee-Martin
Date: Friday, Nov. 28
Time: 7:02 p.m. (CT)
Arena: Pinnacle Bank Arena
Capacity: 15,000

Nebraska Cornhuskers
2014-15 Record: 3-1, 0-0 Big Ten
Head coach: Tim Miles
Record at Nebraska: 37-32 (Third year)
Career Record: 320-252 (20th year)

Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks
2014-15 Record: 3-1, 0-0 Ohio Valley Conf.
Head coach: Heath Schroyer
Record at UT Martin: 3-1 (First year)
Career Record: 87-116 (Eighth year)

Broadcast Information
Television: None

Online: ESPN3 and WatchESPN app
Announcers: Peter Young and Rich Zvosac

Radio: IMG Husker Sports Radio Network, including KLIN (1400 AM) in Lincoln, KFAB (1110 AM) in Omaha and KRVN (880 AM) in Lexington. Also available online at Huskers.com, on the Huskers App and on TuneIn Radio and the TuneIn Radio App.
Satellite Radio: Sirius (Ch. 92); XM (Ch. 195)
Play-by-play: Kent Pavelka
Expert Analysis: Matt Davison

Live Stats: Huskers.com

Huskers Host Skyhawks Friday Night
The Husker men’s basketball team returns to the court Friday night, as Nebraska hosts Tennessee-Martin at Pinnacle Bank Arena. 

As of Wednesday afternoon, a limited number of tickets are still available, including 100 level end court seats, by visiting Huskers.com, calling the Nebraska Athletic Ticket Office at 800-8-BIG RED during business hours or visiting the Pinnacle Bank Arena box office beginning Friday at 5:30 p.m.

Tipoff for Friday’s tilt is set for 7:02 p.m. (central) and will be available on ESPN3 and on the WatchESPN app with Peter Young and Rich Zvosac on the call. For more information on WatchESPN and ESPN3, visit (espn.go.com/watchespn/index). Friday’s game will be one of four ESPN3 broadcasts during non-conference play.

The game will be broadcast across the state of Nebraska on the IMG Husker Sports Radio Network, including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln, 1110 KFAB in Omaha and KRVN 880 AM in Lexington with Kent Pavelka calling the action and Matt Davison adding color commentary. The game can be heard for free on Huskers.com and available on the Huskers’ app on iOS or android devices, as well as on TuneIn Radio and SiriusXM Satellite Radio.

The Huskers look to continue on a roll at Pinnacle Bank Arena, as they are 18-1 since moving into the facility following an 80-67 win over Omaha Tuesday night. Nebraska is riding an 11-game home win streak dating back to last January.

On Tuesday, the Huskers received an outstanding performance from Shavon Shields, who had a career-high 35 points, including four 3-pointers, and eight rebounds. The junior wing is second in the Big Ten at 23.5 points per game and is sixth in rebounding at 8.0 per game. Shields was one of three Huskers in double figures in the win over UNO.
Nebraska has been strong offensively, putting up 80 or more points in each of its first three home games, the first time since the 1995-96 season that Nebraska has scored at least 80 points in its first three home games. It is also the first time since 2006-07 that the Huskers have scored 80 or more points in three consecutive home contests.

Tennessee-Martin comes to town riding a three-game win streak following a 74-56 win at Bethune Cookman on Tuesday. Tonight’s game will be the second of six straight road games for the Skyhawks, as they will not play another home game until Dec. 20. UT-Martin is coached by Heath Schroyer, who served as the head coach of Wyoming for four seasons while Nebraska Coach Tim Miles was at Colorado State.

Numbers 2 Know
6.3 - Rebounds per game for senior Moses Abraham, who has grabbed seven rebounds in each of the last two contests.

.800 -  Under Tim Miles, the Huskers are 24-6 when holding opponents under 40 percent shooting. NU has held three opponents to under 40 percent in 2014-15.

35 - Shavon Shields’ point total on Tuesday against Omaha, which tied for the highest single-game total in the Big Ten this season.

17-2 - Nebraska’s home record in home non- conference games under Tim Miles.

Scouting Tennessee-Martin
The Tennessee-Martin Skyhawks come to Lincoln riding a three-game winning streak following a 74-56 win over Bethune-Cookman on Tuesday night. In that game, UT-Martin put three players in double figures, led by Myles Taylor, who had 16 points and nine rebounds. Twymond Howard added 13 points and seven boards, while Marshun Newell added 15 points. The Skyhawks are coached by Heath Schroyer, who had previous stops at Portland State and Wyoming before spending the last three seasons as an assistant at UNLV. Schroyer helped Wyoming to a CBI appearance and 19 wins during the 2008-09 season. The Skyhawks, who compete in the Ohio Valley Conference, are 2-1 on the road with the lone loss being at Marquette in the season opener. UTM is averaging 81.8 points per game and is out-rebounding teams by 12.8 caroms per outing. Senior forward Myles Taylor is the Skyhawks’ top performer, as the preseason All-OVC selection is averaging 12.8 points and a team-high 8.3 rebounds per game. Taylor was a teammate of Husker senior David Rivers at Hall High School, as the pair led Hall to a pair of state titles in Arkansas. Junior college transfer Twymond Howard is UT-Martin’s leading scorer at 14.8 points per game while averaging 6.3 rebounds per game. In all, four players are averaging double figures for the Skyhawks.

Series History: Friday’s meeting is the first between Nebraska and UT-Martin. The Huskers are 11-2 against current members of the Ohio Valley Conference.

Last Time Out
Behind a career-high 35 points from Shavon Shields, Nebraska roared back from a 16-point first-half deficit to defeat Omaha, 80-67, in front of a sellout crowd of 15,889 at Pinnacle Bank Arena Tuesday evening.

Shields scored 13 of his 31 points in a 23-2 first-half run, as the Huskers bounced back from a four-point overtime loss at Rhode Island on Saturday. Shields finished with 35 points on 12-of-16 shooting, including a career-high four 3-pointers, and added eight rebounds in matching the Pinnacle Bank Arena scoring record set by Terran Petteway last January.

The Huskers withstood Omaha’s best shot early. The Mavericks connected on eight of their first nine shots from the field and used a 14-1 spurt to take a 23-7 lead just five minutes into the contest. From there, Nebraska took over on both ends of the court, holding UNO without a field goal for 6:36.

Petteway, who finished with 20 points and a career-high 12 rebounds, got the run started with a 3-pointer before Shields scored six straight points as part of a 16-0 surge to knot the score at 23 with 9:02 left in the half. Moments later, Shields’ 3-pointer gave the Huskers its first lead of the evening, as the Huskers ran off seven straight points to take a 30-25 lead on Petteway’s dunk with 6:23 left in the half.

Omaha cut the Huskers’ lead to 47-43 on a CJ Carter basket with 13:14 left, but Shields took over again, scoring five straight points to push the margin to 52-43. The Mavericks made one last run, pulling to within 56-50 with 9:42 left after a Tim Smallwood 3-pointer before the Huskers put the visitors away with an 11-2 surge to make it 67-53 after a Shields jumper with 6:44 left.

Tai Webster joined Shields and Petteway in double figures with 10 points and four assists, as the Huskers shot 53 percent from the floor.

Notes from Tuesday’s win over Omaha

• The 16-point comeback matches Nebraska’s largest at Pinnacle Bank Arena (also vs. Indiana on Jan. 30, 2014). It also ties the fourth-largest comeback since the 1996-97 season.
• Shavon Shields finished with a career-high 35 points, topping his previous best of 33 set against Illinois on Feb. 13, 2014. Shields also matched the PBA record, which was 35 by Terran Petteway against Minnesota on Jan. 26, 2014.
• Shields’ 35-point effort matches the highest single-game total in the Big Ten this year, which was done by Penn State’s D.J. Newbill in a double OT game against Charlotte on Nov. 20.
• Shields also had a career high four 3-pointers, topping his previous best of three at Michigan State during his freshman year.
• Terran Petteway posted his third career double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds. His 12 rebounds tied a career high set at Iowa on Dec. 31, 2013.
• Nebraska held Omaha to a season-low 67 points after the Mavericks entered the contest averaging 90.3 points per game. UNO did shoot 41 percent, the highest against Nebraska this season.
• Nebraska was a season-best +14 on the glass, out-rebounding UNO 42-28.

Petteway and Shields Carry Husker Attack
Nebraska features two of the Big Ten’s most dynamic wing players in juniors Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields. Although we are just four games into the season, the pair has been a prolific scoring duo, combining for more than 44 points per game. In Nebraska’s 119-year history, only five duos have combined to average more than 36 points per game.

Defense Keys Husker Turnaround
Nebraska’s turnaround last year was keyed by an emphasis on the defensive end of the court.

The Huskers entered Big Ten play last in field goal defense and eighth in scoring defense, but dramatically improved during conference action. Over the final 16 games of the 2013-14, NU held 10 opponents below 40 percent shooting from the field, including eight straight foes in one stretch. The eight consecutive foes under 40 percent was the longest streak by a Husker defense in at least four decades. The Huskers finished Big Ten play second in conference games in field goal percentage (.415) and third in scoring defense (63.4).
In 2014-15, the Huskers have continued to shine on the defensive end, holding its first three opponents to a combined 36 percent shooting and 62.5 points per game.

• Nebraska has been stout at home over the last two seasons, as only three teams have shot over 45 percent against the Huskers, while 11 of 19 opponents have been held to under 40 percent shooting. Northern Kentucky shot just 36 percent while Central Arkansas was held to 33 percent.
• Nebraska is 24-6 over the past three seasons when holding opponents to under 40 percent shooting.
• Nebraska climbed from 102nd in defensive efficiency to 25th in 2013-14 and is currently 21st entering Friday’s game with Tennessee Martin.

Petteway Leads Husker Returnees
Junior wing Terran Petteway comes into 2014-15 as one of the nation’s premier players. The 6-foot-6 junior wing has been featured on several lists of top players in college basketball and was chosen second-team preseason All-American by The Sporting News and CBSSports.com.

As a sophomore, he led the Big Ten in scoring at 18.1 points per game while adding 4.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists per contest, while starting all 32 contests. Not only did he lead the Huskers in scoring, but also was second on the team in rebounding and third in assists.

Early on, Petteway has been a force for the Huskers, ranking third in the Big Ten in scoring at 20.8 points per game, along with 6.0 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game. In addition to scoring, he is sixth in both 3-pointers per game and blocked shots. Petteway is the only guard or forward in the top seven in blocked shots.

He opened the season with the best long-distance shooting of his career, hitting 6-of-9 from 3-point range on his way to scoring a game-high 25 points against Northern Kentucky on Nov. 15. He followed up with a 23-point effort against Central Arkansas and collected his third career double double with 20 points and a career-high 12 rebounds against Omaha.

• Petteway has been in double figures in 15 consecutive games dating back to last year and 34 of 36 career games at Nebraska.
• He has a pair of 20-point games in 2014-15, including a season-high 25 points against Northern Kentucky, and has 14 career games at NU with 20 or more points.
• With 662 points over the last two years at Nebraska, he is now 12 points away from qualifying for Nebraka’s career scoring list. His 18.4 career points per game average would rank second to Dave Hoppen all-time at Nebraska.
• Petteway looks to become the first player since Ohio State’s Evan Turner (2009-10) to lead the Big Ten in scoring in consecutive seasons. Over the last 30 years, only three players - Turner, Purdue’s Glenn Robinson (1993-94) and Michigan’s Glen Rice (1988-89) - have accomplished the feat.
• On Nov. 16, he was chosen for the Wooden Award Men’s Preseason Top 50. Chosen by a preseason poll of national college basketball experts, the list is comprised of 50 student-athletes who are the early front-runners for the sport’s most prestigious honor. Petteway is the first Husker on the list since Aleks Maric in the 2007-08 season. Earlier this week, he was named to the Oscar Robertson and Lute Olson Player of the Year watch lists.
• Nebraska has had eight All-Americans in program history, most recently Carl McPipe during the 1977-78 season.

Last season, Petteway became the first player to earn unanimous first-team all-conference honors since Venson Hamilton in 1999, and also earned first-team all-district honors by the NABC (coaches) and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association (writers). Petteway finished Big Ten play as the conference scoring leader, averaging 18.6 points per game. He became the fifth Husker in the last century to lead a conference in scoring in conference games and first since former Big Eight Player of the Year Andre Smith in 1980-81. He also led the conference at 18.1 points per game in all games and became the first Husker since 1950 (first year the Big Seven Conference kept records) to ever lead the league in scoring for all games.

Shields Keys Husker Attack
While Petteway has become one of the best players in the Big Ten last season, junior Shavon Shields may be one of the most underrated players in the Big Ten. The 6-foot-7 wing started all 32 games and averaged 12.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game to earn honorable-mention All-Big Ten honors from the coaches and media. As a sophomore, Shields was second on the team in scoring and led Nebraska in rebounding.

This season, Shields has continued his emergence, averaging 23.5 points on 68 percent shooting and 8.0 rebounds per game. He is second in the Big Ten in scoring, fifth in field goal percentage and sixth in rebounding entering Friday’s game. Shields has had back-to-back strong efforts, scoring 25 points and grabbing nine rebounds in the overtime loss to Rhode Island on Saturday before totaling a career high 35 points in Tuesday’s win over Omaha.

• Over his last nine games dating back to last year, Shields is averaging 20.2 points per game on 57 percent shooting along with 7.1 rebounds per game.
• His 35 point effort against Omaha tied for the most in a Big Ten game this year and ties for 10th in school history. It was Shields' second career 30-point game, as he had 33 against Illinois in 2013-14.
• Collected his fourth career double-double against Central Arkansas with 16 points - all in the first half - and 11 rebounds while matching his career best with four assists.
• Scored 18 points on just four field goal attempts, hitting all four shots from the floor while going 10-of-10 from the charity stripe. It was the third time in his career he has gone 10-of-10 or better from the foul line in a game.
• Shields is one of four returnees to rank in the top 15 in both scoring and rebounding in Big Ten play last year, joining Frank Kaminsky (Wisconsin), Rayvonte Rice (Illinois) and Aaron White (Iowa).
• Has started a team-high 55 consecutive games dating back to his freshman year.

Last season, Shields played some of his best basketball since moving to his natural wing position in February, averaging 15.7 points and 6.0 rebounds per game while shooting 49 percent from the field over NU’s last 12 contests. The Huskers went 8-4 over that stretch.

Shields earned Big Ten Co-Player of the Week for his efforts during the last week of the season, averaging 21.5 points per game in wins over Indiana and Wisconsin, as he had 26 points against the ninth-ranked Badgers and 17 points and eight rebounds in the win at Indiana. His best offensive effort came against Illinois on Feb. 12, when he scored a then-career-high 33 points, hitting 8-of-12 shots from the field and all 15 of his free throws. Shields tied Nebraska’s single-game record for free throws without a miss and became only the 11th Big Ten player to hit at least 15 free throws without a miss and the first since 1997.