Huskers Host Hoosiers in Big Ten Opener

Game #13 vs. Indiana
Date: Wed., Dec. 31
Time: 4:36 p.m. (CT)
Arena: Pinnacle Bank Arena
Capacity: 15,000

Nebraska Cornhuskers
2014-15 Record: 8-4, 0-0 Big Ten
Head coach: Tim Miles
Record at Nebraska: 42-35 (Third year)
Career Record: 325-255 (20th year)

Indiana Hoosiers
2014-15 Record: 10-3, 0-0 Big Ten
Head coach: Tom Crean
Record at Indiana: 111-100 (Seventh year)
Career Record: 301-196 (16th year)

Broadcast Information
Television: BTN
Announcers: Kevin Kugler and Shon Morris

Online: BTN2Go

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 (92), XM (195)

Live Stats: Huskers.com

Huskers Host Hoosiers in Big Ten Opener on Wednesday
The Nebraska men’s basketball team returns home for the first time since Dec. 13, as the Huskers welcome Indiana to Pinnacle Bank Arena in the Big Ten Conference opener for both teams Wednesday afternoon.

Tipoff for the New Year’s Eve matchup is set for 4:30 p.m. and the game will be nationally televised on BTN with Kevin Kugler and Shon Morris on the call. Wednesday’s matchup will also be available on BTN2GO.

A very limited number of $30 tickets are available on Huskers.com or at the Pinnacle Bank Arena Ticket Office beginning at 3 p.m. Wednesday afternoon, as a sellout crowd of over 15,000 is expected.

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 on SiriusXM Satellite Radio.

The Huskers are 8-4 on the season after wrapping up a 2-1 showing in Hawaii last week with a 71-58 win over Ohio on Christmas Day. Against Ohio, the Huskers got 22 points apiece from Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields, while holding the Bobcats to 38 percent shooting. Nebraska never trailed and enjoyed a 39-28 advantage on the boards, including a career-high 13 rebounds by David Rivers, which matched the Huskers’ best individual rebounding effort in five years.

Nebraska has defended at a high level since the loss to Incarnate Word on Dec. 10, holding its last four opponents to a combined 34 percent shooting and 55.2 points per game. The improvement has coincided with a string of strong performances from junior forward Walter Pitchford, who is averaging 9.5 points and 8.3 rebounds per game in that stretch.

The Huskers will need to continue that strong defense against an Indiana team which leads the Big Ten and ranks fourth nationally in scoring offense at 83.4 points per game. The Hoosiers are second in the Big Ten in field goal percentage (.499) and fourth in 3-point percentage (.417).

Wednesday’s game features two of the top scoring duos in the Big Ten as Shields and Petteway combine for 36.5 points per game for the Huskers, while the Hoosiers’ duo of James Blackmon Jr. and Yogi Ferrell account for 35.1 points per game.

Probable Starters

Nebraska						2014-15 stats
No.	Name	Pos	Yr.	Ht.	Wt.	G/GS	PPG	RPG	Other
3	Benny Parker	G	Jr.	5-9	172	12/9	6.8	2.2	2.3 apg
5	Terran Petteway	G	Jr.	6-6	215	12/12	19.3	5.6	2.7 apg
31	Shavon Shields	G/F	Jr.	6-7	221	12/12	17.2	6.9	2.0 apg
2	David Rivers	F	Sr.	6-7	200	12/12	5.4	6.0	0.8 apg
35	Walter Pitchford	F	Jr.	6-10	237	12/12	7.4	4.7	0.8 bpg
Indiana						2014-15 stats
No.	Name	Pos	Yr.	Ht.	Wt.	G/GS	PPG	RPG	Other
11	Kevin Yogi Ferrell	G	6-0	178	Jr.	13/13	17.2	3.7	4.8 apg
4	Robert Johnson	G	6-3	195	Fr.	13/13	9.5	3.9	3.0 apg.
1	James Blackmon Jr.	G	6-4	190	Fr.	13/13	17.9	5.2	44 3pt. pct.
5	Troy Williams	F	6-7	206	So.	11/8	13.6	6.0	59 FG pct
12	Hanner Mosquera-Perea	F	6-9	225	Jr.	13/13	7.8	5.2	1.8 bpg

Numbers 2 Know

.722 -  Nebraska is 13-5 over the last three seasons in games decided by five points or less.

3  -  Number of overtime games that Nebraska has played this season, posting a 2-1 record. Prior to this year, NU not had not played an overtime game since the 2011-12 season. 

7 -  Nebraska has held seven of its first 12 opponents under 40 percent shooting, including each of the last four foes.

8 -  Nebraska has won eight straight conference home games at Pinnacle Bank Arena, which is the longest streak since 1965-66.

13 - Rebounds by David Rivers against Ohio, which matched the highest by a Husker total since Ryan Anderson grabbed 14 rebounds against Oregon State on Dec. 12, 2009.

Scouting Indiana
Indiana enters Wednesday’s game with a 10-3 record following a 91-87 overtime loss to Georgetown on Saturday. The Hoosiers are playing their first road game of the season on Wednesday. The Hoosiers posted wins over SMU, Pittsburgh and Butler in non-conference action while the other losses came to Louisville and Eastern Washington.

Under seventh-year head coach Tom Crean, the Hoosiers are one of the most explosive offensive teams in the country, averaging 86.4 points per game while shooting 50 percent from the field and 42 percent from 3-point range. Indiana out-rebounds teams by more than four rebounds per game and commits just 12 turnovers a game.

Junior point guard Yogi Ferrell is one of the Big Ten’s top performers, as he averages 17.2 points along with 4.8 assists per game to rank in the top 10 in the Big Ten in both categories. Ferrell also shoots 48 percent from 3-point range for the Hoosiers. Freshman James Blackmon Jr. has been an impact newcomer, as he leads the Hoosiers in scoing at 17.9 points per game while shooting 44 percent from long range. Sophomore Troy Williams is the third Hoosier who averages double figures, as he is at 13.6 points and a team-high 6.0 rebounds per game.

Nebraska-Indiana Series History
Nebraska and Indiana meet for the 14th time Wednesday afternoon, and fifth since the Huskers joined the Big Ten. Indiana leads the all-time series, 9-4, but Nebraska has won three of the four meetings since joining the conference, including both matchups in Lincoln. Nebraska, which plays the Hoosiers only once this year, picked up their first-ever win in Bloomington last March, a 70-60 win.

Last Year's Meetings
Nebraska 60, Indiana 55 (Jan. 30): Nebraska erased a 16-point first-half deficit by shooting 52 percent in the second half and out-scoring Indiana, 41-23 over the final 20 minutes. Terran Petteway had 13 of his 18 points in the second half. Walter Pitchford added 11 points while Ray Gallegos chipped in 10 points for the winners.

Nebraska 70, Indiana 60 (March 5): Shavon Shields and Walter Pitchford combined for 35 points and 17 rebounds as Nebraska completed the season sweep with NU’s first-ever win in Bloomington. Shield scored 11 of his 18 points in the second half, while Pitchford delivered the big shot, a 3-pointer with 1:55 left after Indiana cut the lead to 59-58.

Last Time Out
Behind 22 points each from Shavon Shields and Terran Petteway, the Nebraska men’s basketball team picked up its second-straight win with a 71-58 victory over Ohio in the fifth-place game of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic Thursday.

Petteway picked up his second double-double of the year with 22 points and 10 rebounds, while Shields added 22 points, including 13 in the second half, but it was the Huskers’ role players who made big contributions for Nebraska, which ended non-conference play with an 8-4 record.

Senior David Rivers grabbed a career-high 13 boards – the most by a Husker in five seasons – and adding eight points, while Walter Pitchford and Tarin Smith combined for 16 points, including 13 in the second half, to help the Huskers pull away down the stretch.
The Huskers continued to play strong defense, holding Ohio to 38 percent shooting and out-rebounding the Bobcats, 39-28.

Notes from the Ohio Game
*-Terran Petteway reached double figures for the 23rd straight game with 22 points. It was his sixth 20-point game of the year and 18th of his career.
*-Terran Petteway recorded his second double-double of the year with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
*-The 22 points by both Shields and Petteway marked NU’s the third time this season NU had two players scoring at least 20 points.
*-Shavon Shields had his fourth 20-point game of the year and ninth of his career.
*-David Rivers grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds tonight, topping his previous best of nine against Ohio State in the 2014 Big Ten Tournament. Rivers has grabbed six or more rebounds in seven of the last eight contests.
*-David Rivers’ 13 rebounds matches the high for any Husker in Tim Miles’ three seasons.
*-Nebraska held Ohio to 58 points, and the Huskers improved to 27-4 when holding opponents to under 60 points.

Worth Noting
*-Six of Nebraska's 1,000-point scorers hail from the state of Indiana (Carl McPipe-Hammond; Tom Baack-Fort Wayne; Jack Moore--Muncie; Brian Carr-Muncie; Brian Banks-Hammond; Herschell Turner-Indianapolis).
*-This is the fifth matchup between Crean and Nebraska Coach Tim Miles. In addition to the three meetings since Miles was hired at Nebraska before the 2012-13 season, Miles’ North Dakota State team upset eighth-ranked Marquette, 64-60, in the championship game of the 2006 Blue and Gold Classic in Milwaukee.
*-Wednesday’s game against the Hoosiers marks the first time Nebraska has opened Big Ten play at home since 2011. The Huskers have an eight-game conference win streak coming into Wednesday’s game with Indiana.
*-Nebraska is 8-4 on the season with an overtime loss at Rhode Island and a one-point loss to Incarnate Word. The Huskers’ strength has been on the defensive end, as Nebraska has held opponents to 38 percent shooting, including 29 percent from 3-point range.
*-Nebraska has had seven double-figure runs during the season, including a 10-0 spurt in overtime against Loyola Marymount on Dec. 22.

Petteway and Shields Carry Husker Attack
NU features two of the Big Ten’s most dynamic wing players in juniors Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields. The pair has been a prolific scoring duo, combining for 36.5 points per game and ranking among the Big Ten’s top seven scorers entering Big Ten play. 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 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 got off to a strong start, holding their first six opponents to 38 percent shooting from the floor, but Creighton and Incarnate Word have combined to shoot 47 percent over a two-game stretch. Nebraska regrouped since the loss to Incarnate Word, holding its last four opponents to a combined 34 percent shooting and just 55 points per game. NU is now up to 17th nationally in defensive efficiency according to KenPom.

*-Nebraska is 27-8 over the past three seasons when holding opponents to under 40 percent shooting.
*-Nebraska is 8-2 this season when holding opponents to under a point per possession and 0-2 when an opponent is above the mark.
*-Nebraska held Loyola Marymount to 42 points on 28 percent shooting in the overtime win on Dec. 23. It was the lowest points and field goal defense under Miles at NU and the best by a Husker defense since 2010-11.
*-Nebraska has been stout at home over the last two seasons, as only five teams have shot over 45 percent against the Huskers, while 12 of 23 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 a 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.Petteway has improved his numbers across the board heading into Big Ten play this season, averaging 19.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. He is second in the Big Ten in scoring and among the league leaders in both steals (1.4, 12th) blocked shots (1.4, 14th) per game. 

• Petteway is one of only five players in the country averaging at least 19 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game in 2014-15.
• He has six 20-point games in 2014-15, including a season-high 25 points against both Northern Kentucky and at Florida State, and now has 18 career games at NU with 20 or more points.
• Petteway has been in double figures in 23 consecutive games dating back to last year and 42 of 44 career games at Nebraska. That streak is the longest streak for a Husker since Venson Hamilton had 24 straight games in double figures during the 1998-99 season.
• He leads the Huskers with two double-doubles (20 points, 12 rebounds vs. Omaha; 22 points, 10 rebounds vs. Ohio) and has four double-doubles in his NU career.
• With 810 points over the last two years at Nebraska, his career scoring average of 18.4 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. He is also a candidate for the Naismith Trophy and on the Oscar Robertson and Lute Olson Player of the Year watch lists.
• Petteway had 18 points along with a career-best eight assists against Tennessee-Martin, which was the most by a Husker since the 2011-12 season.
• He is bidding to become the first Husker to earn All-America honors since 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 conference last year. 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 17.2 points on 49 percent shooting and 6.9 rebounds per game heading into Wednesday’s Big Ten opener. Shields is sixth in the conference in scoring, seventh in rebounding as well as fifth in free throw percentage (.875)

Shields has scored 20 or more points four times this season, including a career-high 35 points against Omaha on Nov. 22. He also had 25 points and nine rebounds at Rhode Island, 21 points and eight boards at Florida State and 22 points against Ohio. Shields has been in double figures in 10 of the Huskers’ first 12 contests.

• He is one of three players in the top 10 in both scoring and rebounding in the Big Ten.
• His 35-point effort against Omaha on Nov. 22 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 dishing out 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 nine players in the country who is averaging at least 17 points, seven rebounds and two assists per game heading into this weekend’s games.

Pitchford Poses Problems for Opponents
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, who was averaging just 3.5 points per game on 21 percent shooting in his first four games, has been playing basketball over the last month, averaging 9.4 points and 5.4 rebounds per game over the last eight contests. The junior set personal bests in both points (19) and 3-pointers (six) against Tennessee-Martin on Nov. 28, and has improved his rebounding in Moses Abraham’s absence over the last five game. He have played his most complete game of the year against Cincinnati on Dec. 13 with nine points and a season-high 10 rebounds while playing 48 minutes and followed up with his first double-double of the year with 10 points and 10 boards against Hawaii.

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 5.4 points per game on 58 percent shooting and 6.0 rebounds per game, posting career best in rebounding and field goal percentage.

Rivers has grabbed at least six rebounds in seven of the last eight games, including a career-best 13 caroms aganist Ohio on Dec. 25. In that game, it matched the most rebounds by a Husker in five seasons. Rivers scored a season-high 12 points on 5-of-5 shooting in the season opener against Northern Kentucky on Nov. 16 and had nine points in the loss to Creighton on Dec. 7

Point Guard by Committee
The Huskers have looked to find the right combination at lead guard early in 2015, as Tai Webster, Benny Parker and Tarin Smith have shared the spot. Currently, Parker and Smith handle most of the work, while Webster has become a scoring combo guard off the bench.

Parker, who has started NU’s last nine games is averaging 6.7 points, 2.3 assists, 2.2 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game on the season, topping the Huskers in steals and ranking second in assists. Parker, who averaged just 2.6 points over his first two years, has scored six or more points in nine of the last 11 games. He established a career high with 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting against Hawaii on Dec. 22. Parker also hd nine points versus Tennessee-Martin on Nov. 28 and had eight points and three assists against Creighton on Dec. 7. The 5-foo-9 guard provided the heroics against Cincinnati on Dec. 14, as he had had six points, including the game-winner with 1:14 left, a career high five rebounds and two steals.

Smith comes in off the bench and is averaging 3.9 points per game, including 6.0 points per game at the Diamond Head Invitational. He had a career-high eight points in the opener against Hawaii on Dec. 22 and added seven points and two steals in the win over Ohio. Smith made two big plays in the final two minutes at Florida State on Dec. 1, 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. He dished out a season-high three assists at Rhode Island on Nov. 22. 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.

Webster, who is the first guard off the bench, has seen his scoring average jump from 3.9 points to 4.9 points per game, while chipping in 2.2 rebounds and 1.3 assists. He has been in double figures twice this season, including a season-high 13 points and four steals against Central Arkansas on Nov. 18, and 10 points against Omaha on Nov. 25. Webster played one of his best games against Cincinnati with nine points and three rebounds, scoring all nine points in the final 10 minutes of regulation and the two overtime periods.

Huskers Look for Healthy Post Players
The Huskers have battled the injury bug at the post positions, as Leslee Smith suffered a knee injury over the summer and is expected to be out until Big Ten play in January, while Moses Abraham is out with a broken metacarpal suffered in practice on Dec. 9.

• Abraham, who played in NU’s first seven contests, was the Huskers first post player off the bench. He was averaging 5.4 rebounds and 2.9 points per game, while playing just 15.3 minutes per game. Abraham has grabbed five or more rebounds in seven of NU’s first eight games. His best effort of the season came against Tennessee-Martin on Nov. 28, when he had seven points and five rebounds. 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.
  
  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, who suffered a torn ACL in July, was NU’s first forward off the bench last season, averaging 5.4 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. He led NU with three double-doubles as a junior and had five games with at least 10 rebounds. Smith finished second among all Big Ten reserves in rebounding in 2013-14.

In the wake of the injuries, true freshman Jake Hammond and redshirt freshman Nick Fuller are seeing more action.

• Hammond 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 six games, including at Florida State on Dec. 1 when the Huskers were in foul trouble.
• Fuller saw the most extensive action in his career against Incarnate Word on Dec. 10, totaling six points, two rebounds and two assists in 13 minutes of work. Prior to that the redshirt freshman had seen spot duty in NU’s first seven contests. During his prep career, he totaled 1,940 points at Sun Prairie High School and was a finalist for Mr. Basketball in Wisconsin as a senior. He averaged 25.0 points and 11.2 rebounds per game as a senior and was a two-time Madison State Journal Area Player of the Year.