Huskers Return home to Face Creighton on Sunday

Game #7 Creighton
Date: Sun., Dec. 7
Time: 6:06 p.m. (CT)
Arena: Pinnacle Bank Arena
Capacity: 15,000

Nebraska Cornhuskers
2014-15 Record: 5-1, 0-0 Big Ten
Head coach: Tim Miles
Record at Nebraska: 39-32 (Third year)
Career Record: 322-252 (20th year)

Creighton Bluejays
2014-15 Record: 6-2, 0-0 Big East
Head coach: Greg McDermott
Record at Creighton: 113-40 (Fifth year)
Career Record: 393-235 (21st year)

Broadcast Information
Television: Big Ten Network

Online: BTN.com and BTN2GO
Announcers: Cory Provus and Jim Jackson

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.
Play-by-play: Kent Pavelka
Expert Analysis: Matt Davison

Satellite Radio: Sirius (Ch. 84); XM (Ch. 84)

Live Stats: Huskers.com

Huskers Return home to Face Creighton Sunday Night

The Nebraska men’s basketball team returns to Pinnacle Bank Arena on Sunday evening, as the Huskers play host to the Creighton Bluejays in the annual matchup of the two programs.

A sellout crowd of nearly 16,000 is expected and tipoff from Pinnacle Bank Arena is set for 6:06 p.m. (central) and will be nationally televised on BTN with Cory Provus and Jim Jackson on the call. Sunday’s game is also available online at BTN.com and BTN2Go on mobile platforms.

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 will be looking to complete a sweep of their in-state Division I foes, as Nebraska knocked off Omaha, 80-67, at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Nov. 25.
The Huskers are 5-1 on the season following a 70-65 win at Florida State Monday evening. In that game, Nebraska built an 18-point second-half lead, only to withstand a furious Seminoles comeback in the final 10 minutes. Nebraska won the game on the defensive end, holding the Seminoles to 41 percent shooting and forcing 17 turnovers.
While Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields carried the bulk of the offensive load and combined for 46 points, the Huskers’ role players made significant plays down the stretch, as baskets by David Rivers and Tarin Smith kept NU in the lead after the Seminoles cut the lead to one in the final two minutes.

Petteway and Shields are one of only two duos in the country averaging at least 20 points per game, joining the Georgia State pair of R.J. Hunter and Ryan Harrow.
Sunday’s game with Creighton begins a three-game homestand for the Huskers, all against teams which won at least 20 games in 2013-14. Nebraska has been tough at Pinnacle Bank Arena, going 19-1 at home over the last two seasons and has won 11 straight in the building dating back to last January.

Creighton comes into Sunday’s game with a 6-2 record following a 77-64 loss at Tulsa Wednesday night. The Bluejays won five straight to open the season, including a win over No. 18 Oklahoma on Nov. 19, before dropping two of their last three contests.

Numbers 2 Know
7.0 Benny Parker has averaged 7.0 points per game over his last three starts. He is also averaging 2.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game in that stretch.

1998 The last time a Husker averaged at least 20 points per game (Tyronn Lue). Only six Husker players have averaged at least 20 ppg in a season.

18-2 NU’s record in home non-conference games under Tim Miles, including 11 straight wins.

12 The Huskers have won 12 consecutive home games dating back to last January and are 19-1 at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

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

Scouting Creighton
The Bluejays are 6-2 on the season and wrapping up a two-game road trip, as Creighton lost at Tulsa on Wednesday evening. The Bluejays, who reached the third round of the NCAA Tournament, are replacing four starters, including Doug McDermott this season, but Creighton has an experienced roster with five seniors among their top eight players. Austin Chatman is in his third year as a starter at point guard and leads Creighton in assists (4.6 apg) and is second in scoring at 11.3 points per game. The Bluejays, who have eight players averaging at least five points per game, are led by sophomore Isaiah Zierden, who comes off the bench and averages 12.5 points per game while shooting 45 percent from 3-point range.

Greg McDermott is in his fifth year at CU after coaching at Iowa State, Northern Iowa, North Dakota State and Wayne State. McDermott and Miles have squared off several times before during their days at the Division II level and have met three times while leading Division I programs, a 67-54 Iowa State win over North Dakota State in 2006-07 and victories in the last two matchups between the two schools.

Series History vs. Creighton
Nebraska and Creighton are meeting for the 48th time in series history on Sunday, with the Cornhuskers holding a 25-22 advantage that dates back to the 1922-23 season. It is the longest non-conference series on the Huskers’ schedule. The home team has won eight of the last nine years with the only exception being a Creighton win in the Devaney Center in 2012-13. Nebraska is now 32-36 against the current members of the Big East Conference. NU’s last win in the series came during the 2010-11 campaign.

Last Time vs. Creighton
All-American Doug McDermott scored a game-high 33 points to lead three Creighton players in double figures, as the Bluejays posted an 82-67 victory over Nebraska Sunday night. McDermott hit 12-of-23 shots from the floor and grabbed eight rebounds, as the Bluejays led from start to finish in snapping Nebraska’s three-game win streak. Ethan Wragge and Jahennes Manigat added 16 and 10 points, as the Bluejays raced out to an 18-2 lead and never looked back.

Sophomore Shavon Shields and Terran Petteway led Nebraska with 22 and 21 points, respectively in a losing effort, as Nebraska (6-3) was unable to get untracked offensively in the opening 20 minutes. Creighton hit 13 of its first 20 shots from the floor, including 6-of-10 from 3-point range while Nebraska missed 17 of its first 20 shots.

Last Time Out
Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields combined for 46 points, but it was Nebraska’s role players who made the key plays down the stretch in a 70-65 victory over Florida State Monday evening.

Florida State had trimmed an 18-point deficit to 62-61 before a pair of key plays by Tarin Smith and David Rivers allowed Nebraska (5-1) to hold on. After a scramble after a missed shot, Benny Parker got the ball to Smith at the top of the key, and the freshman drove and found Rivers for a layup to give the Huskers a three-point lead with 1:57 left.
On the Huskers’ next possession, Shields found Smith in the corner and the freshman hit his second 3-pointer of the season, staking the Huskers with a six-point lead with 1:07 left. The Huskers forced a turnover, and Shields salted the game with two free throws to push the lead to seven, and Nebraska held on for a big road win.

Petteway led all scorers with 25 points and five rebounds, while Shields added 21 points and eight rebounds for the victors.

Nebraska played its best first half of the season, overcoming foul trouble and holding Florida State to 28 percent shooting from the floor in posting a 37-21 halftime lead. Nebraska used an 18-1 surge, as Shields scored nine of his 15 first-half points in the run to build a 16-point lead.

Notes from Monday's win

• Nebraska improves to 3-0 in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge under Tim Miles, including 2-0 on the road, as the Huskers won at Wake Forest in 2013. More impressively, the Huskers are 6-2 in conference challenge games dating back to the Big 12.
• Terran Petteway matched his season high with 25 points, as he also had 25 in the season opener against Northern Kentucky. It marked his fourth 20-point effort of the season and 16th of his two-year Husker career.
• Shavon Shields had 21 points - his third 20-point game of the season and eighth of his career. Shields has scored 20 or more in three of the Huskers’ last four outings.
• Nebraska had a 13-0 first-half run against the Seminoles, the fourth time this season the Huskers have scored 10 or more consecutive points.
• Benny Parker has four steals, which matched his career high set two other times, most recently against Illinois on Feb. 15.
• Nebraska held FSU to 40.7 percent shooting and has outshot all six opponents this season.
• Nebraska’s win on Monday helped the Big Ten keep the Commissioner’s Cup for the sixth straight season. The Big Ten won the ACC/Big Ten Challenge by a score of 8-6 and has won it each of the four years Nebraska has participated.

20-20 Vision
For the seventh time in the last three seasons, Nebraska had multiple 20-point scorers in a game on Monday at Florida State. Terran Petteway led NU with 25 points, while Shavon Shields added 21. NU is 5-2 under Miles when having two players score at least 20 points per game. Prior to the 2012-13 season, the feat had not happened at Nebraska since 2007.

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 six games into the season, the pair has been a prolific scoring duo, combining for 41 points per game and ranking among the Big Ten’s top three scorers. In fact, Nebraska and Georgia State are the only schools in Division I with multiple 20-point scorers entering this weekend’s action. In Nebraska’s 119-year history, only five duos have combined to average more than 36 points per game.

Digging Out of big Deficits
Nebraska showed its ability to come back against Omaha on Nov. 25. The Huskers trailed 23-7 in the first five minutes before regrouping in the 80-67 win.

• The 16-point deficit Nebraska overcame was the third double-digit comeback for the Huskers under Tim Miles and the first since also overcoming a 16-point deficit to Indiana last season.
• The largest comeback under Miles came during the 2012-13 season when the Huskers trailed by 19 against Iowa before rallying for a 64-60 victory.

Defense Keys Husker Turnaround

Nebraska’s turnaround last year was keyed by an emphasis on the defensive end of the court and that has continued during the early portion of the 2014-15 season.
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 season, 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 six opponents to a combined 38 percent shooting and 63.2 points per game.

• 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 Sunday’s game vs. Creighton.
• Nebraska has held each of its first six opponents this season to under a point per possession.
• 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 20 opponents have been held to under 40 percent shooting.

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 is a candidate for every major award and was chosen as 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 second in the Big Ten in scoring at 21.0 points per game, while also adding 5.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game. In addition to scoring, he is sixth in the Big Ten in 3-pointers per game and 13th in both blocked shots and steals.

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 had 18 points and dished out a career-high eight assists against Tennessee-Martin before scoring a game-high 25 points at Florida State in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge.

• Petteway has been in double figures in 17 consecutive games dating back to last year and 36 of 38 career games at Nebraska. The 17 straight games matches the longest streak for a Husker in a decade, as he accomplished the feat last year and Aleks Maric did it during the 2006-07 and 2007-08 seasons.
• He has four 20-point games in 2014-15, including a season-high 25 points against Northern Kentucky and at Florida State, and has 16 career games at NU with 20 or more points.
• With 705 points over the last two years at Nebraska, his career scoring average of 18.6 points per game is second only to Dave Hoppen (19.5 ppg)
• 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 was one of the best players in the Big Ten last season, 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 20.0 points on 61 percent shooting and 7.3 rebounds per game heading into Sunday’s game against Creighton. He is third in the Big Ten in scoring, eighth in both field goal percentage and rebounding entering Sunday’s game against Creighton. Shields has scored 20 or more in each of the Huskers’ last three contests, including 25 points and nine rebounds at Rhode Island, a career-high 35 points against Omaha and 21 points and eight boards at Florida State on Monday night.

• Over his last 11 games dating back to last year, Shields is averaging 18.9 points per game on 55 percent shooting along with 6.8 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 his second career 30-point game, as Shields had 33 against Illinois in 2013-14.
• With his 35-point game against UNO, he became one of only 14 players in school history - including Petteway - with multiple 30-point games in school history.
• 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 57 consecutive games dating back to his freshman year.

Pitchford Poses Problems for Opponents
Junior forward Walter Pitchford became one of the focal points to the Huskers’ attack in Big Ten play last season. The 6-foot-10, 237-pounder is one of the toughest matchups in college basketball, as he is a skilled shooter who hit 41 percent from 3-point range. Last season, Pitchford averaged 9.3 points and 4.7 rebounds per game while starting 31 games.

An outstanding athlete with a 42-inch vertical leap, Pitchford played some of his best basketball of the season over the Huskers’ second-half surge, averaging 11.0 points per game on 53 percent shooting over the last 14 games. Pitchford reached double figures 11 times in that stretch including a career-high 18-point effort along with five rebounds and a pair of steals in a win at No. 9 Michigan State on Feb. 16. Pitchford sparked NU’s win at Indiana with 17 points and nine rebounds, as he scored the Huskers’ first nine points and then delivered a 3-pointer with 1:55 left to give Nebraska a four-point cushion.
Pitchford, who was averaging just 3.5 points per game on 21 percent shooting in his first four games, broke out against Tennessee-Martin. The junior set personal bests in both points (19) and 3-pointers (six) in the Huskers’ 11-point win. He battled foul trouble against Florida State, but had six points, including a pair of 3-pointers, in 17 minutes. Despite his offensive struggles early, Pitchford found other ways to make an impact. Against Northern Kentucky, he had four rebounds and matched his career high with three blocked shots in 26 minutes of work and had four rebounds in 20 minutes vs. Central Arkansas.

Old Man Rivers
Senior forward David Rivers has been through a lot during his Nebraska career. The 6-foot-7 forward signed when Nebraska was still a member of the Big 12 Conference back in the fall of 2010, and has quietly developed during the last three seasons under Tim Miles. This season, Rivers is averaging 6.2 points per game while 61 percent from the field and 4.7 rebounds per game, posting career best in all three categories. He scored a season-high 12 points in the season opener against Northern Kentucky on Nov. 16 and led NU with six rebounds vs. UT-Martin. Rivers had five points and six boards in Monday’s win at Florida State. Rivers, who averaged 3.0 points per game as a junior, has also raised his shooting percentage during each of his last three seasons.

Point Guard by Committee
The Huskers have relied on a three-man rotation at the point guard spot early in 2014-15. The trio of Tai Webster, Benny Parker and Tarin Smith have combined for 17.3 points, 5.5 assists and 5.0 rebounds per game. Webster, who has started the first three games, has seen his scoring average jump from 3.9 points to 6.8 points per game, while averaging 1.2 steals per game.

Parker, who averaged just 2.6 points over his first two years, is at 6.7 points per game while leading NU in steals (2.0 per game) and ranking second in assists. Parker has moved into the starting role the last two games and is averaging 7.0 points and 2.3 assists per game in that span and matched his career high with nine points against UT-Martin on Friday. He had seven points and tied his career high with four steals in Monday’s win at Florida State.

Smith is chipping in 3.8 points and 1.3 assists per game posting a 4-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. Smith made two big plays in the final two minutes at Florida State, finding David Rivers for a layup after the Seminoles cut the deficit to one and then draining a 3-pointer - just the second of the season - on the following possession to make it a six-point game.

New Faces in Huskers’ Rotation
Despite having five returning starters and seven of the top eight players back from a year ago (counting Leslee Smith, who looks to return from knee surgery during Big Ten play), a pair of newcomers - senior Moses Abraham and freshman Tarin Smith - have found their way into the Huskers’ rotation.

• Abraham is a graduate transfer who spent the past four years at Georgetown. He provided physicality in the wake of Leslee Smith’s injury and is the first post player off the bench. He is averaging 5.5 rebounds and 2.7 points per game, while playing just 15.3 minutes per game. He provided a spark off the bench against UT Martin with seven points and five rebounds. Abraham has had at least five rebounds in five of NU’s first six games. Against Omaha, he had seven rebounds and a pair of blocked shots in 17 minutes. He also grabbed seven rebounds and blocked a shot in 15 minutes at Rhode Island and had six rebounds in just 10 minutes of work against Central Arkansas. Last year, Abraham averaged 1.9 points and 2.8 rebounds per game while ranking second on the team with 23 blocked shots. The 6-foot-9, 252-pound forward earned his degree from Georgetown in May and has one year of eligibility remaining. He is the first graduate transfer the Huskers have added since the rule went into effect.
• Smith has become one of the Huskers’ first guards off the bench during the preseason and averages 3.8 points and 1.3 assists per game. His best game came against Northern Kentucky when he had six points and an assist in 16 minutes of work and he had three points and three assists in the loss at Rhode Island. Smith was a two-year starter at St. Anthony (N.J.) High School, one of the premier high school basketball programs in the country playing for Hall of Fame Coach Bob Hurley. As a senior, he was a first-team all-state pick by the AP and a third-team honoree by the Newark Star-Ledger, as he averaged 15 points, four rebounds and four assists per game, as St. Anthony finished with a 25-5 record and a state runner-up finish.

Another freshman who could see more action as the year progresses is post player Jake Hammond. He is a 6-foot-10, 230-pound forward who averaged 26.2 points, 14.8 rebounds, 5.7 blocks and 3.1 steals per game as a senior at Comanche (Okla.) High School. He was rated as the No. 2 prospect in the state of Oklahoma by both ESPN.com and 247Sports as a senior, and was considered one of the top 150 seniors in the country by Hoop Scoop. Hammond has played in four games, including at Florida State on Monday when the Huskers were in foul trouble.

In addition, two other Husker newcomers will not suit up this season, as freshman B.J. Day will not play after suffering a torn ACL in practice in October, while Andrew White is sitting out the season after transferring from Kansas. White, who was a top-50 recruit coming out of high school, played two seasons at Kansas, playing behind NBA lottery picks Andrew Wiggins (2014) and Ben McLemore (2013). White was the state player of the year in Virginia in 2012, averaging 22.9 points and 10 rebounds per game as a senior. He will have two years of eligibility remaining.