Huskers Host Rams in Sunday Matinee

GAME 11: RHODE ISLAND Date: Sunday, Dec. 13 Time: 1:02 p.m. Location: Pinnacle Bank Arena Tickets: Huskers.com/Tickets NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS 2015-16 Record: 6-4 Head coach: Tim Miles Record at Nebraska: 53-53 (4th year) Career Record: 336-273 (21st year) RHODE ISLAND RAMS 2015-16 Record: 6-3 Head coach: Danny Hurley Record at URI: 51-52 (4th year) Career Record: 88-75 (6th year) BROADCAST INFO Television: None Online: ESPN3.com/WatchESPN Play-by-play: Jordan Bernfield Expert Analysis: Kevin Lehman Radio: IMG Husker Sports Radio Network, including KLIN (1400 AM) in Lincoln, KXSP (590 AM) in Omaha and KRVN (880 AM) in Lexington. Play-by-play: Kent Pavelka Expert Analysis: Matt Davison Also available online at Huskers.com, on the Huskers App and TuneIn Radio

The Husker men’s basketball team returns to Pinnacle Bank Arena Sunday afternoon, as Nebraska welcomes Rhode Island into town. Sunday’s game between the Huskers and Rams marks the first of three home games sandwiched around final exams, as NU hits the homestretch of their non-conference schedule.

Tipoff is scheduled for 1:02 p.m. (central) and a limited number of returned tickets are available at Huskers.com/Tickets, by calling the NU Athletics Ticket Office at 800-8-BIGRED or at the Pinnacle Bank Arena box office beginning at 11:30 a.m.

The matchup will be available online on ESPN3 and available on the WatchESPN app.
Sunday’s game will air across the state on the Husker Sports Network with Kent Pavelka and Matt Davison, including KLIN 1400 AM in Lincoln, KXSP 590 AM in Omaha and KRVN 880 in Lexington and is also available on Huskers.com and the Huskers App.
Nebraska (6-4) looks to bounce back following an 83-67 loss at Creighton Wednesday night in Omaha. In that game, the Bluejays used a 16-2 spurt to take control after the Huskers cut a 14-point deficit to 36-32 in the opening minutes of the second half. Creighton shot 52 percent from the field, marking just the second time in 54 games that an opponent shot over 50 percent against the Huskers, while Nebraska was held to 40 percent shooting, including 4-of-21 from 3-point range.

The loss overshadowed the performance by junior guard Andrew White III, who led all players with 28 points and 10 rebounds for his first career double-double. White is now fifth in the Big Ten in scoring at 17.5 ppg.

Rhode Island (6-3), which was picked second in the Atlantic-10 preseason poll, comes off a 67-57 win over Houston on Tuesday night. The Rams, who have five players averaging double figures, nearly toppled nationally-ranked Providence before losing, 74-72, in the final seconds last Saturday.

Sunday’s game is the second half of a home-and-home series which saw URI top Nebraska, 66-62, in overtime in Kingston last season.

NUMBERS TO KNOW

29.5 - Junior guard Andrew White III is averaging 29.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game over NU’s last two contests.

.909 - Over the last 10 years, Nebraska is 80-8 in non-conference home games, including 17-3 since moving into Pinnacle Bank Arena in 2013.

2 - Creighton became the second team in the last 54 games to shoot over 50 percent against Nebraska (Ohio State, 2015). In that time, NU has held 25 teams under 40 percent and three teams to below 30 percent shooting.

7.8 - Nebraska’s steals per game, which is second in the Big Ten. The Huskers feature four players who average more than a steal per game.

14.6 - Scoring average for Tai Webster over the last five games. Prior to the stretch, Webster has not scored more than 14 points in his first 68 games at Nebraska.

1,276- Shavon Shields’ career point total. He is now just 24 points away from being the 13th player in school history with 1,300 points.

 

SCOUTING RHODE ISLAND
Rhode Island makes its first road trip of the season, as the Rams travel to Lincoln this afternoon. Under fourth-year Head Coach Danny Hurley, the Rams are 6-3 on the season following a 67-57 victory over Houston Tuesday evening. In that game, URI held Houston to 30 percent shooting, including 1-of-11 from 3-point range. Senior Hassan Marin had 14 points to lead five Rams in double figures. URI has been tested early as two of its three losses have come to nationally ranked Maryland and Providence. Rhode Island, which was picked second in the Atlantic-10, lost its top returnee, as E.C. Matthews suffered a knee injury in the opener. Matthews averaged 16.9 ppg as a sophomore including a 26-point, 10-rebound effort in last year’s win over Nebraska. The Rams’ strength is its balance, as all five Ram starters average in double figures. Martin is one of the top players in the A-10, as he averages 11.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game.

Series History: The two teams have split its two previous meetings. Nebraska won 83-63 at the Devaney Center in 2011-12, while the Rams evened the ledger with a 66-62 overtime win in Kingston last season. In that game, Jared Terrell hit a pair of 3-pointers on the first two overtime possessions as the Rams outscored NU 13-9 in the extra session. Shavon Shields led NU with 25 points and nine rebounds, while Terran Petteway had 15 points in a losing effort. The Huskers are 9-11 all-time against the current members of the Atlantic-10 Conference.

LAST TIME OUT
Despite a game-high 28 points from Andrew White, the Huskers fell at Creighton, 83-67, Wednesday at CenturyLink Center Omaha.

Nebraska whittled a 14-point first half deficit to 36-32 after an Andrew White III basket in the opening minute of the second half, but the Bluejays went on a 16-2 run as Geoffrey Groselle scored six of his 15 points in the spurt.

White carried the Husker offense in the loss with 28 points and a career-high 10 rebounds, while Tai Webster added 15 for the Huskers..

Creighton shot 52 percent on the night, the high for a Husker opponent in 2015-16, while Nebraska shot just 40 percent, including 4-of-21 from 3-point range.

ANNUAL TOYS FOR TOTS DRIVE IS SUNDAY
The U.S. Marines will be collecting toys for children at Sunday’s game against Rhode Island at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Husker fans are encouraged to bring new, unwrapped toys to the game, and cash donations for the cause will also be accepted. The Marines will be stationed near the main entrances at Pinnacle Bank Arena to accept donations that will brighten the holiday season for needy children. 

IMPROVED OFFENSE
With the departure of three starters who are playing professionally, including two in the NBA D-League (Terran Petteway and Walter Pitchford), the biggest question entering the season was who could fill the scoring void for the Huskers. Nebraska’s newcomers have shown the ability to provide offense in the early going, as Nebraska’s 74.9 points per game is nearly six points per game higher at this stage of in 2014-15.

• Ten different Huskers have reached double figures at least once, a total which ties for second nationally, while three players (Shields, Webster and White) have also recorded 20-point efforts
• Nebraska has two 90-point games, the first two times in Miles’ four seasons that Nebraska has scored at least 90 points in a game and has averaged 77.3 points per game over the last three contests.
• In KenPom, NU’s adjusted offense efficiency has climbed from 285th (96.3 ppg per 100 possessions) to 168th (101.9 ppg per 100 possessions) this season.
• The biggest improvement has come from the 3-point line, as the Huskers were 340th in that category last season (.284) and are 127th (.354) entering Sunday’s game with Rhode Island.
• Three of Nebraska’s top-five scorers are in their first year of competition as a Husker, as newcomers have accounted for 53.7 percent of NU’s total offense in the first nine games.
• Five of NU’s newcomers have already posted double-digit efforts, including eight by Andrew White III and four by Glynn Watson Jr.

YOUTH MOVEMENT
With only five returning players who saw time for the Huskers last year, Nebraska is one of the youngest teams in the country in 2015-16. Nebraska’s 10 newcomers, which includes Andrew White III, who did not play last year, ties for third most nationally. The Huskers also have seven freshmen, which ties for fourth nationally. Of the nine programs with seven or more freshmen in 2015-16, three (Nebraska, Ohio State and Wisconsin) are in the Big Ten.
 
ANDREW IS WHITE HOT
Junior Andrew White has become one of the Big Ten’s top newcomers in 2015-16. The 6-foot-7 wing is fifth in the Big Ten in scoring at 17.5 points per game, which leads all conference newcomers. He is also 11th in steals (1.4 spg) and 20th in rebounding (5.4 rpg).

• White is one of the Big Ten’s top 3-point shooters, ranking fifth in 3-pointers per game (2.6) while shooting 42 percent from long range.
• He is one of eight players from power conferences and two in the Big Ten - averaging 17.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg and 1.0 spg. Some of the others on the list include Ben Simmons (LSU), Buddy Hield (Oklahoma), Grayson Allen (Duke) and Caris LeVert (Michigan).
• White has been in double figures in eight of NU’s 10 games, including a trio of 20-point efforts.
• White recorded his first career 30-point effort against Abilene Christian on Dec. 5, finishing with 30 points, including 14-of-16 from the foul line, seven rebounds and four steals.
• His first double-double came at Creighton on Dec. 9, finishing with game highs in points (28) and rebounds (10).
• He made an impressive debut against Mississippi Valley State on Nov. 14, totaling 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting in just 16 minutes. It was the most points by a Husker making his debut since Andre Almeida’s 20 point effort in his debut in 2010-11.
• White looks to continue a trend of high-impact transfers under Miles who have gone on to first-team all-conference honors, including Terran Petteway (2014) at NU and Andy Ogide (2011) and Wes Eikmeier (2012) during Miles’ tenure at Colorado State. White was ranked as one of 20 Impact Transfers by Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports prior to the start of the season.

SHIELDS IS JACK OF ALL TRADES
For the first time since 2007, Nebraska returns a 1,000-point scorer to the lineup, as Shavon Shields now has 1,276 points to rank 14th on NU’s career scoring list. Shields has climbed from 24th to 14th during the first month of the 2015-16 season.

On the season, the 6-foot-7 senior is averaging 14.9 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Shields ranks 17th in the conference in scoring and is either first or second on the Huskers in scoring, rebounding and assists. Shields is shooting a career-best 48.2 percent while also playing seven minutes less per game than last season.

• He has reached double figures in eight of NU’s 19 games, including a season-high 28-point, five-rebound effort against No. 21 Miami on Dec. 1.
• Shields also totaled 21 points and seven assists against Delaware State on Nov. 19 and had 21 points against Abilene Christian on Dec. 5.
• Shields has 63 career games in double figures, including 17 career 20-point performances and a pair of 30-point efforts. He scored a career-high 35 against Omaha (11/25/14) and had 33 points against Illinois (2/14/14). Shields is one of just 14 players in school history with multiple 30-point games
• Shields is just the second player in school history to be a three-year captain and is a returning first-team Academic All-American. In 2014, he was also one of 16 national finalists across all of Division I athletics for the 2014 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar Award.

As a junior, he may have been one of the most underrated players in the Big Ten, as the 6-foot-7 wing averaged 15.4 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. He led NU in rebounding for the second straight year and was second on the team in both scoring and assists. He ranked among the Big Ten leaders in scoring (ninth), rebounding (14th) and free throw percentage (.827, fifth).

• Shields was one of only three players from a power conference to average 15.0 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game in 2014-15, joining National Player of the Year Frank Kaminsky (Wisconsin) and Tyrone Wallace (Cal).
• Shavon is also a nominee for the Senior Class Award and the NABC Good Works Team and is active in the community. That should be no surprise as his father, Will, is a former NFL Man of the Year for his efforts in the Kansas City Community. The elder Shields was enshrined into the NFL Hall of Fame last August and was already a member of the College Football Hall of Fame.

TAI’S TAKING CHARGE
Junior Tai Webster enters the weekend playing some of the best basketball of his career. The 6-foot-4 guard has averaged 12.9 points and 4.9 rebounds per game over the last seven games, after averaging just 3.0 points in NU’s first three games. Throughout the year, Webster has been exceptional defensively averaging 1.2 steals per game and limiting opposing guards with his combination of size and speed.

• He had 15 points and three assists in Wednesday’s loss at Creighton.
• Webster scored all 10 of his points in the second half against Abilene Christian on Dec. 1 while adding five boards and a pair of blocked shots.
• Webster earned all-tournament honors at the Barclays Center Classic in November, averaging 19.5 points on 56 percent shooting and 5.0 rebounds per game against No. 24 Cincinnati and Tennessee.
• He enjoyed his breakout performance in the loss to No. 24 Cincinnati on Nov. 27, posting career highs in points (21) and rebounds (eight) while battling a stomach virus that kept him out of shootaround earlier that day. One day later against Tennessee, he added 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting against Tennessee