Huskers Shoot for Split with Hungry Hoosiers

Nebraska Cornhuskers (17-10, 8-8)
vs. Indiana Hoosiers (18-10, 10-6)

Wednesday, Feb. 24, 7 p.m. - Pinnacle Bank Arena (Lincoln, Neb.)
Tickets: Huskers.com    Doors Open: 5:30 p.m.
Radio: Husker Sports Network (Matt Coatney, Jeff Griesch)

Wednesday's Stations

• KBBK 107.3 FM, Lincoln
• KXSP 590 AM, Omaha
• KRVN 880 AM / 106.9 FM, Lexington
• KRGI 1430 AM, Grand Island
• KHUB 1340 AM, Fremont
• KSID 1340 AM, Sidney
• KHAQ 98.5 FM, North Platte
• KNEB 94.1 FM, Scottsbluff
• KBRB 1400 AM, Ainsworth
• KSWN 93.9 FM, McCook

Free Live Audio: Huskers.com
Live Premium Video: BTN Plus

Huskers Shoot for Split with Hungry Hoosiers
The Nebraska women’s basketball team continues its three-game home stand to close the regular season by taking on Indiana Wednesday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Tip-off between the Huskers (17-10, 8-8 Big Ten) and the hot Hoosiers (18-10, 10-6) is set for 7 p.m., with tickets available now at Huskers.com.

The live Husker Sports Network radio call of Matt Coatney and Jeff Griesch can be heard on B107.3 FM (Lincoln), ESPN 590 AM (Omaha), KRVN 880 AM (Lexington) and for free on Huskers.com. A live premium video stream also will be available to subscribers of BTN Plus.

Nebraska will try to rebound from one of its most disappointing games of the season, which came with a 68-50 loss to Purdue to open the home stand on Sunday. Not only did the Huskers suffer their eighth conference loss, they lost senior starter Kyndal Clark following Saturday’s practice. Clark who started 124 collegiate games in her five-year career, including Nebraska’s first 26 contests this season, could not outlast the extreme pain in her knees.

The Huskers also played without senior starter Rachel Theriot, who aggravated a recurring ankle injury. Theriot will be a game-time decision for Wednesday’s clash with the Hoosiers.

Indiana has won eight of its last 10 games to improve to 10-6 in the Big Ten. The Hoosiers, who are 13-0 at home this season including a 59-47 victory over the Huskers on Feb. 7, are hoping for a 2-0 week to close the regular season and secure their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2002. IU is coming off a 76-73 loss at Iowa Sunday.

Nebraska Cornhuskers (17-10, 8-8 Big Ten)
32 - Jessica Shepard - 6-4 - Fr. - F - 19.9 ppg, 8.7 rpg
22 - Allie Havers - 6-5 - Jr. - C - 7.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg
5 - Natalie Romeo - 5-7 - So. - G - 15.7 ppg, 2.4 rpg
33 - Rachel Theriot - 6-0 - Sr. - G - 10.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg
34 - Jasmine Cincore - 5-10 - So. - G - 3.7 ppg, 1.6 rpg
Off the Bench
4 - Kyndal Clark (OUT) - 5-7 - RSr. - G - 4.7 ppg, 2.7 rpg
43 - Rachel Blackburn - 6-3 - Fr. - F - 4.4 ppg, 5.3 rpg
24 - Maddie Simon - 6-2 - Fr. - G - 4.4 ppg, 0.8 rpg
31 - Anya Kalenta - 6-3 - Sr. - F - 4.1 ppg, 3.9 rpg
50 - Darrien Washington - 6-2 - RFr. - F - 2.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg
12 - Emily Wood - 5-5 - So. - G - 1.3 ppg, 0.6 rpg
11 - Esther Ramacieri - 5-8 - Jr. - G - 0.4 ppg, 1.0 rpg
Head Coach: Connie Yori (Creighton, 1986)
14th Season at Nebraska (279-163); 26th Season Overall (474-303)

Indiana Hoosiers (18-10 Overall, 10-6 Big Ten)
33 - Amanda Cahill - 6-2 - So. - F - 14.6 ppg, 8.5 rpg
43 - Jenn Anderson - 6-3 - Jr. - C - 8.0 ppg, 5.1 rpg
3 - Tyra Buss - 5-8 - So. - G - 19.0 ppg, 5.1 rpg
21 - Karlee McBride - 5-10 - Jr. - G - 7.3 ppg, 1.7 rpg
23 - Alexis Gassion - 5-11 - Jr. - G - 11.0 ppg, 5.0 rpg
Off the Bench
11 - Kim Royster - 6-2 - Fr. - F - 4.4 ppg, 3.2 rpg
2 - Jess Walter - 6-0 - So. - G - 3.1 ppg, 1.1 rpg
24 - Tyshee Towner - 5-9 - Jr. - G - 2.4 ppg, 1.6 rpg
40 - Lyndsay Leikem - 6-1 - Sr. - F - 2.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg
32 - Laken Wairau - 5-10 - Fr. - G - 0.7 ppg, 0.3 rpg
44 - Danielle Williams - 6-4 - Fr. - C - 0.4 ppg, 0.8 rpg
Head Coach: Teri Moren (Purdue, 1992)
Second Season at Indiana (33-26); 12th Season Overall (232-156)

Husker Nuggets
• Nebraska leads the all-time series with Indiana 4-3. The Huskers were 4-0 as Big Ten foes against the Hoosiers before Indiana’s 59-47 win over Nebraska in Bloomington on Feb. 7. Indiana’s only win in series history in Lincoln came at the Bob Devaney Sports Center with an 83-80 overtime victory over the Huskers on Nov. 26, 1994.

• Jessica Shepard earned her conference-record 10th Big Ten Freshman-of-the-Week award on Feb. 15. She swept the Big Ten Player and Freshman honors for the second time on Jan. 25, while adding espnW and College Sports Madness National Player-of-the-Week honors. Shepard has added two appearances on the NCAA.com “Starting Five” (Dec. 23, Jan. 27) and is a two-time USBWA National Freshman of the Week (Dec. 22, Jan. 26). She is one of two freshmen nationally on the Naismith Trophy Midseason Top 30.

• Shepard owns 16 20-point games on the season, including two Nebraska freshman record 35-point performances (at Michigan, Jan. 24; vs. Northern Arizona, Dec. 19). She has 11 20-point games against Big Ten opponents.

• Shepard is the first Husker freshman in history to reach 500 points. She enters the Purdue game with 536 and needs 76 points to produce one of the top 10 scoring seasons overall in school history.

• Natalie Romeo tied her own school record with eight threes against Wisconsin (Jan. 27). It marked the school-record seventh time in 51 career games that Romeo has hit six or more threes, including the fourth time this season. Romeo owns three 30-point performances this year, including two in Big Ten play.

• Romeo owns the Nebraska single-season record with 90 threes this season and her 141 threes are the most ever by a Husker through her freshman and sophomore seasons combined.

Nebraska Streaks, Stats and Milestones
• Natalie Romeo needs 10 three-pointers to become the first player in Nebraska history to hit 100 threes in a season. Only six players in Big Ten history have hit 100 or more threes in a season, with the top two numbers coming from Kelsey Mitchell (Ohio State, 127) and Melissa Dixon (Iowa, 124) last season. Entering the season, Minnesota’s Rachel Banham hit 93 threes in 2013-14 to produce the 10th best total in Big Ten history. Banham has hit 97 threes this season, while Mitchell has knocked down 96.

• Romeo set the school record with eight threes at Penn State (8-16) on Jan. 13, and tied that mark against Wisconsin (8-14) on Jan. 27 at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Romeo is averaging 3.33 threes per game to rank No. 6 nationally. In conference play, Romeo has hit 3.63 threes per game which would have ranked as the fourth-best mark in Big Ten history entering this season. However, Banham (4.06) and Mitchell (3.75) currently rank ahead of Romeo in Big Ten play in 2016. Mitchell set the Big Ten record with her 3.83 threes per game in conference play last season.

• In home Big Ten play, Romeo has hit 4.57 threes per game to average 19.0 points per game. She is shooting 50.8 percent (32-63) from long range at Pinnacle Bank Arena in conference play.

• Romeo has hit 15 consecutive free throws entering Wednesday’s game with Indiana.
• Romeo owns a pair of 30-point efforts in Big Ten play this season (32 at Penn State, Jan. 13; 30 vs. Wisconsin, Jan. 27), becoming just the eighth Husker in history with multiple 30-point games in conference play. The only two players in Nebraska history who have posted more than two 30-point games in league play in a season are Karen Jennings (5, 1992, Big Eight) and Maurtice Ivy (4, 1987, Big Eight). Jennings and Ivy own two of Nebraska’s three all-time retired jerseys.

• Jessica Shepard is the first freshman in Nebraska history to reach 500 points in a season. She owns 10 20-point efforts in the last 13 contests to push her season total to 536. The 6-4 forward from Fremont, Neb., has surpassed the previous Nebraska freshman record by 75 points (Debra Powell, 461, 1981-82). Shepard needs 76 points to post one of the top 10 overall seasons in point production in Nebraska history. Only 10 players (13 times) in Nebraska women’s basketball history have ever scored 600 points in a season.

• Shepard needs 42 rebounds to catch Kathy Hagerstrom (277, 1979-80) in the top spot on Nebraska’s freshman rebound list. Hagerstrom played 40 games (6.9 rpg) as a freshman, Shepard has played 27. Only seven players (11 times) in Nebraska history have ever grabbed 300 rebounds in a season.

• Shepard needs one double-double to set the Nebraska freshman record. She notched her school freshman-record ninth double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds at Indiana (Feb. 7). Four of her five Big Ten double-doubles have come on the road this season. Shepard’s next double-double would also tie her for ninth overall on Nebraska’s single-season list and make her just the eighth Husker in history to produce 10 or more double-doubles in a season. First-team All-Americans Kelsey Griffin (2006-07 & 2009-10), Jordan Hooper (2011-12 & 2013-14) and Karen Jennings (1990-91 & 1992-93) all did it twice, as did Emily Cady (2013-14 & 2014-15). The only other Huskers to accomplish the feat are Nafeesah Brown (1993-94), Maurtice Ivy (1985-86) and Carol Garey (1978-79).

• Shepard is the only Husker to start all 27 games this season.

• Rachel Theriot is just the third Husker in history to distribute 600 career assists. She owns 626 career assists, trailing only Lindsey Moore (699, 2010-13) and Meggan Yedsena (696, 1991-94) on the NU career list. Theriot owns a school-record 12 double-digit assist games, including three in her last five games.

• Theriot’s 182 assists this season rank as the eighth-highest total in Nebraska history. Lindsey Moore (7th, 183, 2010-11), Nicole Kubik (6th, 186, 1998-99), Jina Johansen (T4th, 191, 2004-05) and Kathy Hawkins (T4th, 191, 1975-76) all own season totals within striking distance of Theriot heading into the Purdue game. Theriot owns the Nebraska single-season record with 234 in 2013-14. No other Husker has ever produced 200 assists in a season.

• Theriot has made 17 consecutive free throws entering Wednesday’s game with Indiana. However, she has not attempted a free throw in the month of February. Her last free throw came against Wisconsin on Jan. 27, when she went 4-for-4. She is 25-of-26 overall in Big Ten play at the line.

• Allie Havers needs five blocked shots to crack the top five on Nebraska’s junior single-season list. The 6-5 center from Mattawan, Mich., owns 29 blocks on the year. Maurtice Ivy ranks fifth among Husker juniors with 34 blocks in 1986-87. Havers tied her career high with three blocks at Indiana (Feb. 7).

Fast Five: Husker Quick Hitters
#5, Natalie Romeo, 5-7, So., G, Martinez, Calif. (15.7 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.4 spg)
• A high-energy guard who brings intensity and toughness to both ends of the court, Natalie Romeo is one of the Big Ten’s most explosive players. She produced a career-high 32 points at Penn State (Jan. 13) when she hit a school-record eight threes. She tied her own three-point record two weeks later in a win over Wisconsin (Jan. 27), capping her third 30-point performance of the season. She added a career-high six rebounds to her 30 points. Romeo opened the year with 30 points by hitting 6-of-9 threes against Arkansas Pine Bluff on Nov. 14. She has added four other 20-point games this season, including 24 points and six more threes in her return home to the Bay Area in an overtime loss at No. 22 Cal on Dec. 12. She closed non-conference play with 20 points and eight assists in a win over Arkansas State.
• Romeo is one of only seven players in Nebraska history to score 30 or more points twice in the same conference season, joining Karen Jennings (5, 1992, Big Eight; 2, 1991, Big Eight), Maurtice Ivy (4, 1987, Big Eight), Amy Stephens (2, 1989, Big Eight), Nicole Kubik (2, 1999, Big 12), Kelsey Griffin (2, 2010, Big 12) and Jordan Hooper (2, 2014, Big Ten).
• Romeo ranks third in the Big Ten with 90 threes, trailing Minnesota’s Rachel Banham (97) and Ohio State’s Kelsey Mitchell (96). Romeo is tied for fifth nationally in that category and tied for sixth nationally with 3.33 made threes per game. Romeo is averaging 4.57 made threes per game in Big Ten home action. Romeo’s 141 threes in her first two seasons rank as the No. 1 total by a Husker in her freshman and sophomore seasons combined, seven more than career record holder Jordan Hooper’s 134.
• Romeo ranks eighth in Nebraska history with 141 career three-pointers and needs four triples to climb to No. 7 on the NU all-time list.
• Romeo led Nebraska by averaging 20.0 points in a pair of 2015 Big Ten Tournament games, including a season-high 26 points in a win over Illinois March 5. She tied a then-school record with seven threes against the Illini to set Nebraska’s all-time conference tournament record. She also tied the Nebraska NCAA Tournament record with five threes in a 72-69 loss to Syracuse on March 20, 2015.

#33, Rachel Theriot, 6-0, Sr., G, Middleburg Heights, Ohio (10.6 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 7.3 apg)
• Rachel Theriot leads the Big Ten and ranks fourth in NCAA Division I with 7.3 assists per game. She was a preseason Naismith Trophy, and Senior CLASS Award candidate and was a candidate for CoSIDA Academic All-America and the Allstate Good Works Team.
• A two-time preseason first-team All-Big Ten choice (2014, 2015), Theriot was an honorable-mention AP All-American as a sophomore in 2014, after leading the Big Red to their first Big Ten Tournament title as the MVP. She was a first-team All-Big Ten pick in 2014, and a Big Ten All-Freshman pick as a starter on Nebraska’s 2013 NCAA Sweet 16 team.
• Theriot set the Nebraska single-season record with 234 assists as a sophomore in 2013-14. Her 15 assists at California on Dec. 12 marked the second-best performance of her career and tied for the fourth-best single-game total in school history. She owns 626 in her career to rank third all-time at NU and 10th in Big Ten history. She had a career-high and Big Ten Tournament-record 18 assists against Minnesota on March 7, 2014. She is averaging 10.0 assists her last five games with an assist-to-turnover of 4.5-to-1.
• Theriot is averaging 10.6 ppg as a senior, and ranks No. 16 in career points at Nebraska with 1,288. She needs 60 points to catch Cory Montgomery (No. 15, 1,348, 2007-10) on NU’s all-time scoring list.
• Theriot produced her seventh career double-double and second of the season with 17 points and 15 assists at Cal on Dec. 12. She also had 20 points and 11 assists in NU’s win over NC State on Dec. 3. She owns 13 career 20-point efforts and 12 career double-digit assist games. She has eight career games with 12 or more assists, including three in her last five games.

#34, Jasmine Cincore, 5-10, So., G, Arlington, Tenn. (3.8 ppg, 1.6 rpg, 1.1 apg)
• A two-time Tennessee Class 2-AA Player of the Year (2013, 2014), Jasmine Cincore battled ankle and foot injuries to play in 20 games for the Huskers as a true freshman. She enjoyed a strong offseason and made her first career start in her 39th career game in Nebraska’s 93-81 win at Michigan Jan. 24. Cincore played a then-career-high 32 minutes against the Wolverines, recording eight points, three assists, a block and a steal. She replaced an injured Rachel Theriot in the starting lineup in Ann Arbor.
• Cincore made her second career start in place of Theriot again in Sunday’s loss to Purdue. She played a career-high 35 minutes and tied her career high with four steals against the Boilermakers, while managing two points, two rebounds and an assist.
• Cincore has spent most of her time on the court this season as a wing, and is averaging 4.9 points, 1.7 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.3 steals in 21.9 minutes per game over the last nine contests dating back to her start at Michigan on Jan. 24.
• Cincore tied her career high with nine points and a pair of threes at No. 5 Ohio State on Feb. 21. She set her career high with nine points at No. 8 Maryland on Jan. 7. She scored eight points at Michigan and against Southern (Nov. 23), where her father, Wesley, played college basketball.
• During Nebraska’s 2015 summer tour of Australia, Cincore was NU’s second-leading scorer with 10.0 points per game, while adding 4.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists in four games against Australian pro teams.

#32, Jessica Shepard, 6-4, Fr., F, Fremont, Neb. (19.9 ppg, 8.7 rpg, 1.9 apg)
• A 10-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week and two-time Big Ten Player of the Week (Dec. 21, Jan. 25), Jessica Shepard was the espnW and College Sports Madness National Player of the Week (Jan. 25). Her most recent national honors came after becoming the first player in Husker history to produce a 30-point, 20-rebound performance at Michigan Jan. 24. She tied her own NU freshman record with 35 points against the Wolverines, while adding a career-high 20 rebounds. She had 23 points and 15 boards in the second half against the Wolverines. Shepard was the USBWA National Freshman of the Week (Dec. 22, Jan. 26) after her NU freshman-record 35-point performances (Northern Arizona, Dec. 19; at Michigan, Jan. 24). Shepard owns 16 games with 20 points, including 11 in Big Ten play, 23 double-figure scoring performances and nine double-doubles.
• Shepard is averaging 20.1 points and 9.3 rebounds in Big Ten play, including 35 points and 20 rebounds at Michigan (Jan. 24) and 29 points and 19 rebounds in a win over Illinois (Jan. 10). She also had 29 points and 10 boards at Penn State Jan. 13. She had 28 points and eight rebounds against Iowa (Dec. 31) and 26 points, six rebounds in a win over No. 17 Michigan State (Feb. 14).
• Shepard, who owns the Nebraska freshman record with 536 points, reached the 100-point (5 games), 200-point (11 games), 300-point (16 games), 400-point (20 games) and 500-point (25 games) scoring marks faster than any Husker freshman in history. Shepard leads NU in scoring (19.9 ppg) and rebounding (8.7 ppg), and both season numbers would be Husker freshman records (Debra Powell, 15.4 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 1981-82).
• The top recruit in Nebraska history, Shepard was the No. 1 post and No. 3 overall recruit in the nation by ESPN last season. A first-team Parade All-American as a senior despite missing nearly all of her final year (ACL tear, Dec. 29, 2014), Shepard was the 2013 and 2014 Nebraska High School Player of the Year. She is one of only two freshmen nationally this season to earn a spot on the Naismith Trophy Midseason Top 30. Shepard joins California freshman Kristine Anigwe on the Naismith Trophy list.
• Shepard averaged 12.8 points and 3.8 rebounds while helping the USA Basketball U18 Team to a 5-0 record and a gold medal at the 2014 FIBA Americas Championship.

#22, Allie Havers, 6-5, Jr., C, Mattawan, Mich. (7.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 1.1 apg, 1.1 bpg)
• One of the tallest Nebraska women’s basketball players in history, Allie Havers is playing the best basketball of her career for the Huskers. Havers had 11 points and a career-high 14 rebounds in a win over Wisconsin (Jan. 27) for her second double-double of the season. She also had 15 points, eight rebounds and a career-high five assists at Michigan (Jan. 24) in her only return to her home state this season. She added 12 points Sunday against Purdue for her seventh double-figure effort of the season.
• Havers has started the last 18 games inside for the Huskers, replacing a then-ill/injured Rachel Blackburn in game 10 this season. Havers had 10 points, eight rebounds and four assists at Penn State (Jan. 13). She had 10 points, six rebounds and a career-high-tying three blocks at Indiana Feb. 7. Her 29 assists this season have surpassed her previous career total (21) entering 2015-16.
• Havers had a career-high 18 points at No. 22 Cal on Dec. 12. She played a career-high 39 minutes at Rutgers (Jan. 30). She produced her first career double-double with 14 points and a then-career-best 12 rebounds in a win over Evansville (Dec. 8).
• Havers owns single-season career-best totals of 174 rebounds, 29 assists and 29 blocks. She is tied for 14th in the Big Ten with 6.4 boards per game, and tied for 11th with 1.1 blocks per contest.
• Havers, who averaged 4.9 points and 3.0 rebounds in 14.8 minutes per game as NU’s top post off the bench in 2014-15, owns 12 double-figure scoring games in her career, including five this season and five as a sophomore last season. Two of her double-figure efforts have come in the Big Ten Tournament, including a career-high 17 points in a semifinal win over No. 19 Michigan State on March 8, 2014.

Scouting The Indiana Hoosiers
Coach Teri Moren has her Indiana team in the hunt for an NCAA Tournament bid in her second year at the helm of the Hoosiers. Indiana heads into Wednesday’s game against Nebraska with an 18-10 overall record, including a 10-6 Big Ten mark. The Hoosiers have won eight of their last 10 games with their only losses at a top-10 Maryland squad on Jan. 30, and a 76-73 loss at Iowa on Sunday. The Hoosiers defeated Nebraska, 59-47 in Bloomington on Feb. 7 in the second victory of a five-game winning streak that started with a 79-74 win over Iowa on Feb. 4 at Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers capped the streak with home wins over Wisconsin and Minnesota to improve to 13-0 at Assembly Hall this year.

After facing Nebraska on Wednesday, the Hoosiers will shoot for a perfect home season by closing the campaign against Penn State on Saturday in Bloomington. A pair of wins this week might secure the RPI No. 46 Hoosiers their first NCAA Tournament bid since 2002.

Sophomore guard Tyra Buss has provided the engine for the Hoosiers this season. Not only is she one of Big Ten’s top scorers at 19.0 points per game, the point guard also leads IU with 4.5 assists and 2.1 steals per game while ranking second on the squad with 5.1 rebounds per contest. Buss, who had 17 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and seven steals in the win over NU on Feb. 7, also leads the nation with 225 free throw attempts this season.

Amanda Cahill, a 6-2 sophomore forward is also extremely versatile for the Hoosiers. She had 16 points, 14 rebounds and five assists in the first meeting with Nebraska and is averaging 14.6 points and a team-best 8.5 rebounds per game. She is also the best post passer in the Big Ten with 2.4 assists per game, and she is hitting 37.6 percent (32-85) from three-point range.

Junior Alexis Gassion adds even more versatility. The 5-11 guard contributes 11.0 points and 5.0 rebounds, while ranking second on the squad with 3.0 assists. Gassion had 15 points in the win over NU. Those three Hoosiers have started all 28 games as the nucleus of an Indiana team on the rise.

Jenn Anderson, a 6-3 junior center, adds 8.0 points and 5.1 rebounds, while anchoring the back of Indiana’s defense. Anderson had six points and six rebounds in the first meeting with the Huskers.

A third junior, Karlee McBride has joined the starting lineup recently and is adding 7.3 points per game on the season. The 5-10 McBride can stretch defenses with her three-point success (36-104, .346) providing more room for Buss to attack the basket.

Freshman Kim Royster, a 6-2 forward, has added to IU’s frontcourt rotation with 4.4 points and 3.2 rebounds per game. Indiana’s lone senior, Lyndsay Leikem, a 6-1 forward, adds to IU’s post game with 2.0 points and 2.3 boards per contest, while 6-4 freshman center Danielle Williams has added depth.

Sophomore Jess Walter (3.1 ppg, 1.1 rpg), junior Tyshee Towner (2.4 ppg, 1.6 rpg) and Laken Wairau (0.7 ppg, 0.3 rpg) round out Indiana’s contributors.

As a team, Indiana is averaging 71.5 points per game on the season, while allowing 67.7 points. Indiana is shooting 43 percent from the field on the season, including 31.3 percent of their threes. The Hoosiers are also a solid 73.5 percent at the free throw line. IU owns a plus-0.4 rebound per game advantage and a plus-0.3 turnover margin.

Nebraska leads the all-time series with Indiana 4-3, including a 4-1 record as Big Ten foes. Indiana’s only win in Lincoln came in the first meeting in series history, when the Hoosiers defeated NU, 83-80 in overtime at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Nov. 26, 1994. Nebraska was a Big Eight Conference member in 1994-95.

Triple Threats: Three Things to Talk About
#4, Kyndal Clark, 5-7, Sr., G, Webb City, Mo. (4.7 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.2 spg)
• The 2014 Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year as a junior, Kyndal Clark was a two-time all-conference player at Drake (2013, 2014). She was also an MVC All-Defensive choice as a sophomore in 2013, after earning a spot on the Valley All-Freshman Team in 2012. She was a member of the 2015 WBCA Allstate Good Works Team. Clark suffered a season-ending knee injury in the first game of her senior season at Drake (vs. South Dakota, Nov. 14, 2014). She graduated from Drake in May of 2015, after majoring in information systems. She started Nebraska’s first 26 games before ending her season with extreme knee pain on Feb. 20.
• Clark scored a season-high 22 points in a win over Arkansas State Dec. 21. She had 17 points on 5-of-11 three-point shooting in a win over Evansville and added a Big Ten-best 15 points on five first-half threes at Michigan on Jan. 24.
• Clark owns 76 career double-figure scoring performances, including four as a Huskers. She has 25 20-point games and four career 30-point efforts with a career high of 41. She scored 1,418 points and hit 222 three-pointers in her Drake career. Clark averaged 19.3 points per game and set the Missouri Valley Conference single-season record with 116 threes in 2013-14.

#11, Esther Ramacieri, 5-8, Jr., G, Repentigny, Quebec, Canada (0.4 ppg, 1.0 rpg)
• Esther Ramacieri made her second career start and first of the season at Penn State Jan. 13, filling in for Rachel Theriot. Ramacieri notched career highs with four rebounds and three assists in a career-high 23 minutes in the win over the Lady Lions, helping the Huskers jump to a 33-13 lead. She earned a second straight start in the win over Rutgers Jan. 16. Ramacieri had two points and two rebounds in two minutes against Northern Arizona on Dec. 19, in her return after missing four games with a concussion. She hit her first field goal (37th career game) in the closing minute of NU’s win over North Carolina Central on Nov. 21. She added her first Big Ten field goal with a layup against No. 14 Northwestern on Jan. 3. She added an assist and two rebounds in 10 minutes at No. 8 Maryland Jan. 7. She had three rebounds and a career-high four assists against Purdue Sunday. Ramacieri appeared in 17 games in each of her first two seasons, with one career start (vs. Penn State, Jan. 15, 2015).
• Ramacieri missed much of the summer and preseason with a knee injury, but was cleared to play for the start of the 2015-16 regular season. She missed NU’s games with NC State, Creighton, Evansville and No. 22 Cal after suffering a concussion outside of competition/practice. She missed the Big Ten opener against Iowa (Dec. 31) with an Achilles strain. She missed five games from Jan. 20 to Feb. 7 with illness, before returning to action at Minnesota (Feb. 11).
• Ramacieri is the fourth Canadian to play for the Huskers under Coach Yori, including Chelsea Aubry (2004-07), Kaitlyn Burke (2008-12) and Harleen Sidhu (2009-12).

#12, Emily Wood, 5-5, So., G, Salina, Kan. (1.3 ppg, 0.6 rpg)
• Emily Wood is making solid, consistent and reliable contributions as a sophomore, producing 24 points, 12 rebounds, eight assists and three steals in 91 minutes off the bench. She enjoyed a career night with six points on the first two three-pointers of her career while adding two rebounds, an assist and a steal in Nebraska’s win over North Florida on Nov. 16. She added a three while notching career highs of five assists, three rebounds and 23 minutes played against Evansville on Dec. 8.
• Wood played in 10 games as a freshman after walking on to the Nebraska program. She claimed Nebraska’s Teammate Award for her commitment to the Husker program in 2014-15. Wood had two points and five rebounds in 29 minutes as a freshman. In the summer of 2015, Wood started for NU on its four-game Australian Tour, averaging 4.8 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 26 minutes per game.
• Wood was a first-team Kansas Class 5A all-state selection as a senior at Salina Central High School in 2014. Wood averaged 16.0 points per game as a senior, while hitting a school-record 91 threes. She hit 42.1 percent of her threes and 86.2 percent of her free throws as a senior.

#24, Maddie Simon, 6-2, Fr., G, Lincoln, Neb. (4.4 ppg, 0.8 rpg, 0.9 apg)
• Maddie Simon was growing her game quickly as a key contributor in the Husker lineup before suffering a broken arm in a fall outside of basketball activities on Dec. 7. Her recovery went well and she returned to action at No. 8 Maryland on Jan. 7. After missing six games, Simon scored nine points off the bench as one of Nebraska’s leading scorers against the Terps. Simon produced two double-figure efforts before the injury, including 11 points and three assists in a win over Southern (Nov. 23) and 10 points and three assists against NC State (Dec. 3). She had seven points on her 19th birthday at Indiana (Feb. 7), before scoring eight points and hitting a pair of threes at Minnesota (Feb. 11). Simon made her second career start in place of Kyndal Clark against Purdue (Feb. 21).
• Simon averaged 6.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.0 assist during Nebraska’s four-game summer tour of Australia in August of 2015. The 2015 Nebraska High School Player of the Year, Maddie Simon was a two-time first-team Super-State selection while leading Lincoln Pius X to the 2015 Class B state championship. She was the No. 149 player in the nation according to Blue Star and the No. 22 guard by ESPN in 2015.
• A tremendous all-around athlete, Simon won the Class A 100- and 300-meter hurdles championships at the 2015 Nebraska State Track & Field Championships. Her mother, Nicole Ali Simon, was the first female CoSIDA Academic All-American in the history of Nebraska athletics, competing for Coach Gary Pepin’s national champion Huskers in 1983 and 1984.

#31, Anya Kalenta, 6-3, Sr., F, Minsk, Belarus (4.1 ppg, 3.9 rpg)
• Anya Kalenta had the best game of her career, tying her career high with 14 points while adding 11 rebounds for her first double-double in Nebraska’s win over Penn State (Feb. 2). She is coming off her fourth double-figure scoring effort of the season with 13 points in 16 minutes off the bench against Purdue (Feb. 21). Kalenta produced several strong games in non-conference play this season, including seven points and a career-high 14 rebounds in a win over Northern Arizona (Dec. 19). She also had three blocks and 26 minutes. She had 11 points and six rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench in NU’s win over NC State (Dec. 3). She had 10 points and eight rebounds in just 13 minutes in a win over North Florida (Nov. 16). She had eight points, eight rebounds, two assists and her first career steal against Evansville (Dec. 8).
• Over the last six games, Kalenta is averaging 6.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game. She owns more points (111/38), rebounds (105/17), assists (11/1), blocks (16/3) and steals (4/0) than she had last season. She appeared in 12 games at Nebraska in 2014-15, competing in five of NU’s first six games before missing NU’s next nine games with a stress fracture in her foot. She also suffered a broken nose in preseason practice (Oct. 29, 2014), and battled anemia throughout the year. She established career highs with 14 points and eight rebounds in a season-opening win over Pepperdine Nov. 15, 2014.
• Kalenta earned third-team NJCAA All-America honors in 2013-14 at Vincennes University in Indiana. She transferred to Vincennes after spending her freshman season at Broward College in Florida in 2012-13. She ranked in the NJCAA’s top 25 in scoring (20.8 ppg, 13th), rebounding (10.7 rpg, 22nd) and blocked shots (2.1 bpg, 20th) in her only season with the Trailblazers at Vincennes in 2013-14.

#43, Rachel Blackburn, 6-3, Fr., F, Leavenworth, Kan. (4.4 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 1.1 apg)
• A fiery workhorse as a freshman, Rachel Blackburn was a leader for the Big Red on the glass and on the defensive end before missing three straight games with illness. She returned to the court in a reserve role at No. 14 Northwestern, scoring four points and grabbing a pair of rebounds in 15 minutes. She played 14 minutes off the bench at No. 8 Maryland (Jan. 7). Blackburn was sidelined by illness against Northern Arizona (Dec. 19) and Arkansas State (Dec. 21), before missing the Big Ten opener against Iowa (Dec. 31) with both illness and a strained knee. She played a major role in Nebraska’s win at Purdue, producing five points, a career-high three blocks and a game-high eight rebounds in just 15 minutes. She added six points, five rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal in NU’s win at Michigan Jan. 24. She played limited minutes before aggravating an existing injury against Wisconsin (Jan. 27), and she did not play at Rutgers (Jan. 30), against Penn State (Feb. 2) or at Indiana (Feb. 7), before returning to the court in a reserve role at Minnesota (Feb. 11). She had four points, three rebounds, an assist and a steal in 10 minutes against the Gophers, before adding three points, two rebounds and two steals, including two of the game’s biggest plays in the final minute of an upset of No. 17 Michigan State (Feb. 14).
• The No. 63 player in the nation by Blue Star and No. 69 by Prospects Nation, Blackburn was ranked as the No. 17 post in the country by ESPN coming out of high school last year. She became the first Husker to take four charges in a game (vs. NC State, Dec. 3) since All-American Kelsey Griffin did it at Baylor on Jan. 17, 2010. She was directly responsible for 10 first-half defensive stops to fuel a 20-0 second-quarter run in NU’s win over NC State Dec. 3. Blackburn erupted for a career-high 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting against Evansville on Dec. 8. She added six rebounds and three assists in just 23 minutes against the Purple Aces.
• Blackburn averaged 7.5 points and 6.8 rebounds in 23.5 minutes per game in Nebraska’s four-game tour of Australia in August of 2015. She led the Huskers by shooting 65 percent from the field. She led Leavenworth High School to back-to-back Kansas Class 5A state titles in 2014 and 2015. She set the Leavenworth High School record with a career 67.5 field goal percentage.

#50, Darrien Washington, 6-2, RFr., F, Oakland, Calif. (2.2 ppg, 2.0 rpg)
• Darrien Washington had the best Big Ten effort of her career with five points, one rebound and her first career block in six minutes off the bench in Nebraska’s win over Penn State (Feb. 2). She produced six points, five rebounds and an assist in eight minutes off the bench in her career debut against Arkansas Pine Bluff after enjoying a strong redshirt season in 2014-15. She added three points, five rebounds and her first career steal in six productive minutes against North Florida on Nov. 16. She did not play in seven consecutive games (coach’s decision) before returning to action for one first-half minute against Northern Arizona on Dec. 19.
• Washington has totaled 20 points and 18 rebounds in just 37 minutes of action this season, including three points and two rebounds in five minutes in her Big Ten debut at No. 8 Maryland on Jan. 7, and two points and two rebounds in two minutes at No. 5 Ohio State on Feb. 18.
• A first-team All-Oakland performer at Skyline High School, Washington averaged 16.5 points, 11.5 rebounds and 4.1 blocks per game as a senior. She scored 1,181 career points and came up just short of 1,000 career rebounds in high school. She played on the Cal Stars Elite with current Husker sophomore guard Natalie Romeo.