Huskers Host Leathernecks on Saturday

GAME 6 vs. WESTERN ILLINOIS Date: Saturday, Nov. 24 Time: 1 p.m.  Location: Pinnacle Bank Arena  Tickets: Available 90 prior to tip or at Huskers.com/Tickets No. -/24 NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS 2018-19 Record: 4-1, 0-0 Big Ten Head coach: Tim Miles   Record at Nebraska: 101-98 (7th year)   Career Record: 384-318 (24th year) WESTERN ILLINOIS LEATHERNECKS 2018-19 Record: 2-3, 0-0 Summit League Head coach: Billy Wright   Record at Western Illinois: 40-75 (5th year)   Career Record: Same BROADCAST INFO Television: None Internet Video: BTN Plus & FloHoops.com (subscription required)    Announcers: Zach Penrice    and Grace Harmon Radio: Husker Sports Network, including 590 AM (Omaha), 1400 AM (Lincoln) and 880 AM (Lexington)   Play-by-play: Kent Pavelka   Analysis: Jake Muhleisen Online Radio: Available online at Huskers.com, on the Huskers App and on TuneIn Radio and the TuneIn Radio App.

The Nebraska men’s basketball team looks to bounce back from their first loss of the season Saturday afternoon, as the Huskers welcome Western Illinois to Pinnacle Bank Arena. 

Tipoff for the afternoon matinee is set for 1 p.m. and a limited number of tickets are now available by visting Huskers.com/Tickets or at the Pinnacle Bank Arena box office beginning at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday. 

Saturday's game will be available online on BTN Plus and on Flohoops.com with Zach Penrice and Grace Harmon on the call. A subscription is required for either service. 

Fans can follow all of the action across the state of Nebraska on the IMG Husker Sports Network with Kent Pavelka and Jake Muhleisen on the call. The game will also be available on Huskers.com, on the Huskers app, on TuneIn Radio and the TuneIn Radio app and on SiriusXM radio. The pregame show begins one hour prior to tipoff on many of the Husker Sports Network affiliates (affiliate list on page 7 of the game notes). 

The Huskers, who are 4-1 and ranked 24th in the most recent USA Today coaches poll released on Nov. 19, were unable to get untracked offensively in a 70-52 loss to Texas Tech in the championship game of the Hall of Fame Classic in Kansas City. NU shot just 35 percent and committed 14 turnovers in the loss. In its first four games, Nebraska was averaging close to 90 points per contest.

Senior Isaac Copeland Jr. was the bright spot for the Big Red, finishing with team highs in points (20) and rebounds (eight). The 6-foot-9 forward garnered a spot on the all-tournament team, as he averaged 21.5 points and 7.5 rebounds per game during the two games in Kansas City. Copeland leads a trio of Husker seniors who are all averaging at least 14 points per game. James Palmer Jr. tops the Big Red at 16.8 points per game and had 13 against Texas Tech on Wednesday. Glynn Watson Jr. is third on the team with 14.2 ppg and saw his streak of double-figure efforts end, as he was held to six points in Wednesday’s loss to the Red Raiders. 

Western Illinois is 2-3 on the season following a 92-90 loss at Tennessee-Martin on Wednesday. Delfincko Bogan hit two free throws with 0.8 seconds remaining, capping a comeback which saw the hosts erase a six-point deficit in the final 1:07.  Coby Webster led five WIU players in double figures with 21 points on 9-of-15 shooting. WIU's last two losses are by two points apiece, as the Leathernecks lost 68-66 to Eastern Illinois in overtime last Saturday.

OPENING NUMBER
31.0 - Illinois products Isaiah Roby, Glynn Watson Jr. and Nana Akenten account for 31.0 points per game for the Huskers this season.

NUMBERS TO KNOW .918 - With Monday's win over Missouri State, Nebraska is now 34-3 under Tim Miles when scoring 80-or-more points, including 19-1 in the past two-plus seasons. 

2.0 - Blocks per game by Isaiah Roby this season, as Nebraska is averaging 6.2 blocks per game this season. Roby has had three blocks in each of the past two games.

9 - The Huskers have had nine runs of at least 10-0 in 2018-19, including a 22-0 run against Southeastern Louisiana. The Huskers have allowed one double-figure run this season. 

14 - Turnovers in Wednesday's loss to Texas Tech, marking the first time this year NU had more turnovers than its opponent. 

106 - Nebraska's point total in the opener against Mississippi Valley State. It was the Huskers' highest total since scoring 107 against North Carolina A&T on Dec. 19, 2005.

1992 - The last time Nebraska opened the year with four games of 80 or more points before this season. The Huskers were held to a season-low 52 points against Texas Tech.

SCOUTING WESTERN ILLINOIS Western Illinois comes to Lincoln with a 2-3 record after dropping a 92-90 setback at UT-Martin on Wednesday. In that game, WIU shot 55 percent and had five players in double figures, but could not hold on to a 82-72 lead with 4:11 remaining.  Western Illinois returned four starters and nine letterwinners for fifth-year Head Coach Billy Wright. The Leathernecks brought back their leading scorer (Kobe Webster, 15.9 ppg), rebounder (Brandon Gilbeck, 7.1 rpg) and shot blocker (Gilbeck, 2.6 bpg). Gilbeck, the 2018 Summit League Defensive Player of the Year, has been an imposing force inside, averaging 4.2 blocks and 8.6 rebounds per game. He blocked nine shots in their overtime loss to Eastern Illinois on Nov. 17. Sophomores Kobe Webster (19.0 ppg) and Isaac Johnson (14.6 ppg) have paced WIU in scoring during the early portion of the season. 

Wright played for NU assistant Jim Molinari at Bradley and helped the Braves win the Missouri Valley Conference in 1996. A three-time all-defensive team selection, Wright joined the Western Illinois staff in 2008 and was promoted to Associate Head Coach in 2010. He spent the 2013-14 season at Ball State before taking over the Leathernecks when Molinari was hired at Nebraska. 

Nebraska leads the all-time series, 5-0, but the teams have not met since a 62-47 Husker win on Nov. 12, 2013. In that game, Walter Pitchford had 14 points to lead four Huskers in double figures. Terran Petteway added 13 points and nine rebounds, while Shavon Shields (13) and Leslee Smith (10) joined Pitchford in double figures. Nebraska held the Leathernecks to 38 percent shooting, including just 4-of-19 from 3-point range. The Huskers are 63-8 all-time against the current members of the Summit League.

LAST TIME OUT Isaac Copland Jr. had 20 points and eight rebounds, but the Huskers could not overcome a poor shooting night in a 70-52 loss to Texas Tech in the Hall of Fame Classic Powered by ShotTracker Tuesday night. 

Copeland’s second straight 20-point effort went for naught, as Nebraska (4-1) was held to 35 percent shooting and was out-rebounded 38-29 against the Red Raiders. Copeland, who averaged 21.5 points and 7.5 rebounds in two games in Kansas City, was selected to the Hall of Fame Classic All-Tournament team.

Jarrett Culver scored 20 of his 26 points in the second half, as the Red Raiders pulled away in the second half to improve to 5-0. Culver had 20 of Texas Tech’s 38 second-half points, including 3-of-3 from 3-point range, en route to tournament MVP honors.  

James Palmer Jr. added 13 points for NU, but struggled with foul trouble for most of the evening before fouling out. 

Nebraska trailed 34-26 after a Culver basket before the Huskers came back with a run. Copeland’s 3-pointer started an 8-2 spurt that saw the Big Red get within 36-34 after a Glynn Watson Jr. 3-pointer with 16:56 left. Nebraska was within 42-38 after a Nana Akenten jumper with 12:26 left, but two straight Culver 3-pointers stretched the margin back to 10 with 11:00 remaining. 

The Huskers, who came into the contest averaging nearly 90 points per game, pulled to within 48-41 after a pair of Copeland free throws with 10:13 left, but could get no closer, as the Red Raiders used a 9-1 spurt to stretch their lead to 15, at 57-42, and Nebraska was unable to slice the lead back to single-figures. 

WORTH NOTING

• Senior Glynn Watson Jr. comes into the Western Illinois game with 1,112 points to rank 27th in school history, but could make a big leap on the scoring chart beginning Saturday.  Not only is he five points away from moving past Tai Webster (1,116, 26th), but Watson could also move past Ryan Anderson (1,125, 25th) with 14 points on Saturday. Watson is also 26 points away from matching Clifford Scales and Carl Hayes, who both have 1,138 points. Both Scales and Hayes went to Westchester St. Joseph, the same high school that Watson graduated from.
• Watson is also three steals away from eighth place on NU's steals list (Brandon Richardson, 145).
• Isaiah Roby needs only two blocked shots to become the 10th Husker with 100 career blocked shots. The 6-foot-8 junior had six blocks in the two games in Kansas City and is averaging 2.0 blocks per game this season.
• A win on Saturday would be Nebraska’s 15th straight home victory dating back to last December, the longest win streak in the Big Ten and the sixth-longest nationally. It would be the longest home win streak since a 16-game home win streak which spanned the 1981-82 and 1982-83 seasons. 
• Current Husker assistant coach Jim Molinari spent six seasons as the head coach at Western Illinois before joining the Husker staff in April of 2014.
• With a win Saturday, Tim Miles will pass Doc Sadler for fourth on Nebraska's career victories list with 102 wins. 

DOING IT WITH DEFENSE Nebraska’s biggest improvements came on the defensive end in 2017-18, going from 13th to 6th in the Big Ten in field goal percentage defense and from 14th to second in 3-point percentage defense. NU ranked in the top-75 nationally in both field goal defense (74th) and 3-point percentage defense (32nd) last season. That has continued in the early stages of the 2018-19 season. 

• Although it is early in the season, Nebraska is sixth nationally in scoring defense (52.2 ppg) and in field goal defense (.268), fifth in 3-point defense (.202) and 20th in blocked shots per game (6.2 bpg).
• Nebraska has not allowed an opponent to shoot over 50 percent in 31 straight games dating back to last season, including 14 straight foes held to under 50 percent shooting. 
• NU has limited four of its five opponents to under 0.85 points per possession. Mississippi Valley State and Southeastern Louisiana both were held to 0.47 points per possession, the lowest number in Tim Miles' seven years.
• Under Miles, the Huskers are 46-5 (.902) when holding opponents under 60 points.  

WHAT'S BACK FOR THE BIG RED The Huskers welcomed back three starters and nine letterwinners from a team that went 22-11 and finished tied for fourth in the Big Ten with a 13-5 mark. The group includes All-Big Ten performers James Palmer Jr. and Isaac Copeland and three-year starter Glynn Watson Jr., all of whom averaged double figures in 2017-18. NU also returns junior forward Isaiah Roby, who started 13 of NU’s final 14 games - all but Senior Night -  and led NU in both rebounding (6.3 rpg) and blocked shots (2.0 bpg). 

• It is only the third time in the last 15 seasons that Nebraska returns at least 70 percent of its scoring from the previous season.
• Nebraska's 3,432 returning points ranks 13th nationally entering the 2018-19 season. Among Big Ten programs, only Iowa, which has 4,246 returning points, has more points returning than the Big Red. 
• Entering the season, Nebraska's returnees have combined for 160 career starts for the Big Red and 214 games at the Division I level. Copeland (49 starts at Georgetown) and Palmer (five starts at Miami) both cracked the starting lineups at their previous schools before coming to Nebraska. 

HUSKER OFFENSE GETS INTO HIGH GEAR Nebraska comes into Saturday's game against Western Illinois averaging 82.0 points per game following Tuesday's loss to Texas Tech. Despite being held to 52 points by the Red Raiders, NU's offense is still operating at a high rate.

• Nebraska opened the season with four straight games of scoring at least 80 points, marking the first time NU has accomplished that since the 1996 NIT.
• The Huskers rank in the top 50 nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.48, 39th) and assists per game (17.2, 46th).
• Nebraska scored 106 points in the opener against Mississippi Valley State. It was the Huskers' highest total since scoring 107 against North Carolina A&T on Dec. 19, 2005.
• Nebraska has already had seven players score in double figures in the first five games, including six against Southeastern Louisiana on Nov. 11.

NEW NUMBER, SAME GAME FOR PALMER While senior guard James Palmer Jr. switched from No. 24 to No. 0 in the offseason, the All-American candidate continues to produce at a high level. The 6-foot-6 guard is averaging 16.8 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game. 

• He is first or second on the Huskers in scoring (first) and assists (second) while also averaging 1.0 block per game. 
• Palmer has scored his points in bunches with three halves of at least 15 points in Nebraska's first three games. He had 15 points by halftime of each of the first two games while he had 18 second-half points against Seton Hall. 
• His 29-point performance against Seton Hall was the second-highest scoring night in his career. 
• Palmer has shown the ability to get to the free throw line often, as he ranks in the top-35 nationally in both free throws (26, 31st) and attempts (39, 26th). Both rank second in the Big Ten through Thursday's games. 
• Palmer has reached double figures in 35 of 38 career games at Nebraska, as he saw his streak of 17 straight games in double figures snapped against Missouri State on Nov. 19. 

Last season, Palmer averaged 17.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game in leading the Huskers to a 22-11 record and an NIT berth.   Last year, Palmer reached double figures in 31 of 33 games in his first season at Nebraska, including eight 20-point efforts. Palmer’s junior year was highlighted by a career-high 34-point effort at Ohio State. Palmer joins Purdue's Carsen Edwards as returning first-team All-Big Ten selections by the conference coaches. 

• Palmer averaged 18.8 points per game in Big Ten play last year, which is the highest average in conference play since Aleks Maric averaged 18.9 ppg in 2006-07. It is also the most by a returning Big Ten player since Tim Frazier in 2012-13.
• Palmer is one of only five returning power conference players who averaged 17.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg and 3.0 apg last season. 

WATSON KEYS HUSKER ATTACK For Coach Tim Miles, senior Glynn Watson Jr. is a luxury, as he begins his fourth year as Nebraska's starting guard. Watson moved into the role midway through his freshman year and has made his mark in the Husker program.  Watson comes Saturday's game averaging 14.2 points per game on 51 percent shooting, including 15-of-30 from 3-point range. He also is averaging 4.2 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game. 

• Watson turned in a strong effort against Missouri State with 16 points and four assist in the win over Missouri State before he was limited to a season-low six points against Texas Tech.
• He shined in NU's win over Seton Hall with 14 points and a season-high eight assists. 
• Watson's return marks the 10th time in program history that the Huskers had a returning 1,000-point scorer and the first since Shavon Shields in the 2015-16 campaign. 
• With 1,112 points, Watson is one of two Huskers with 1,000 career points, as Isaac Copeland has 1,135 career points between his time at Georgetown and Nebraska. James Palmer Jr. is 90 points away from reaching 1,000 for his career.
• Watson has a career 2.12-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio and has more steals (142) than turnovers (137) in his career. 
• Watson's older brother Demetri McCamey was an All-Big Ten guard at Illinois during the 2009-10 season.
• Watson is one of three alumni of St. Joseph to reach 1,000 points at Nebraska, joining Carl Hayes (1,136, 1990-92) and Clifford Scales (1,136, 1988-91). All three played for legendary high school coach Gene Pingatore, who is in his 50th year as coach at St. Joseph and has won over 1,000 games at the school. 

ISAAC MAKES IT TOUGH FOR OPPONENTS TO COPE Isaac Copeland Jr. is back to make the most of his senior year. The 6-foot-9 forward joined the program in January of 2017, but then was unable to practice because of a herniated disc that eventually required surgery. Despite not being able to practice until school started, Copeland finished second on the team scoring (12.9 ppg), rebounding (6.1 rpg) and blocked shots (1.0 bpg), setting personal bests in all three areas and earning honorable-mention All-Big Ten honors in his first season at Nebraska. 

Copeland has improved his numbers across the board in 2018-19, as he averages 16.4 points and a team-high 6.4 rebounds per game while shooting 59 percent from the field. 

• Copeland is the only Husker who has been in double figures all five games, including a pair of 20-point efforts.
• He earned a spot on the Hall of Fame Classic All-Tournament Team, averaging 21.5 points per game on 61 percent shooting, 7.5 blocks and 3.0 assists per game. He was in double figures in both contests, including a season-high 23 points against Missouri State and 20 points and eight boards against Texas Tech. 
• Copeland collected his fifth career double-double in Nebraska's win over Seton Hall with 18 points and 10 rebounds. He had one during his redshirt year at Georgetown (2016-17) and three in 2017-18. 
• He has 11 career 20-point games (7 at Nebraska, 4 at Georgetown), including a pair of 30-point games. Copeland had 30 points on 12-of-14 shooting against North Dakota last year and a career-high 32-point night against Marquette during his sophomore year at Georgetown. 
• A top-20 recruit coming out of high school, his 2014 Brewster Academy team also featured Donovan Mitchell (Utah), Devonte' Graham (Charlotte) and Jonah Bolden (Philadephia).
• Copeland earned his undergraduate degree in sociology last May and is working on his Master's Degree. He comes from a basketball family, as his father (Ike) played collegiately at East Carolina. As a senior, he helped East Carolina make the NCAA Tournament. 

ROBY'S 50-50 CLUB Junior forward Isaiah Roby is one of only two returning power conference players to total 50 blocks and 50 assists last season, joining Missouri’s Jontay Porter, who will miss the 2018-19 season with a torn ACL. Last year, Roby led the Huskers in blocked shots and was fourth in assists despite starting just 13 contests. He moved into the starting lineup during the second half of the season, as the Huskers won 10 of their last 12 Big Ten contests.

Roby is also one of four Huskers to ever have 50 blocks and 50 assists in a season, joining Aleks Maric, Venson Hamilton and Rich King. Roby's 63 blocked shots last season ranked 10th in school history and was the most by a Husker since Kimani Ffriend in 2000-01.

Roby has been efficient offensively, averaging 8.4 points per game on 54 percent shooting. He leads the Huskers in blocked shots (2.0 bpg), is second on the team in steals (1.6 spg) and rebounding and third in assists (2.2 apg)

• Roby had his best game of the year in the win over Missouri State with 13 points, seven rebounds, four assists and three blocked shots in 29 minutes.
• His dunk against Seton Hall on Nov. 14 marked the fourth time he's had a top-10 play on SportsCenter during his career, including highlight dunks vs. Rutgers (2018 and at Indiana (2016). 
• Nebraska is 16-5 since moving Roby into the starting lineup midway through Big Ten play last season. Roby has all four of his career double-doubles in that stretch.

IT (DOUBLE) FIGURES Nebraska returns three double-figure scorers (James Palmer Jr., 17.2, Isaac Copeland Jr., 12.9 and Glynn Watson Jr. 10.5) for the first time since the 1992-93 season (Eric Piatkowski, 14.3; Derrick Chandler, 12.3; Jamar Johnson, 11.2). Prior to last Tuesday, that was also the last season that Nebraska scored 100 or more points in an opener.  During the 1992-93 season, the Huskers won 20 games and finished tied for second in the Big Eight Conference.

• In Tim Miles' first six seasons, the Huskers returned a total of six double-figure scorers.  
• With the return of junior Isaiah Roby, Nebraska brings back its top-four scorers for the first time since 2003-04. 

FILLING UP PINNACLE BANK ARENA Pinnacle Bank Arena will be full once again in 2018-19, as the NU Athletic Ticket Office announced on September 25 that general public season tickets are sold out for the upcoming season. It is the fourth time in the past six seasons that the Huskers have sold out their entire season allotment of tickets at Pinnacle Bank Arena. In all, nearly 15,000 season tickets have been sold for the 2018-19 season, including the Red Zone student section. Most of the available single-game tickets for the entire season have been sold as well.  

Since moving into PBA in 2013-14, the Huskers have ranked in the top-15 in attendance nationally all five years, and are one of only nine schools in the country to average 15,000+ fans per contest in that span.  

PROTECTING THE VAULT
The Huskers have been strong at protecting its home court at Pinnacle Bank Arena since it opened in 2013-14. 

• NU has won its last 14 games at home following the 80-67 win over Seton Hall on Nov. 14. The 14-game win streak is the longest among power conference schools and sixth-longest home win streak nationally. It is NU's longest home win streak since winning 14 straight to open the 2010-11 campaign.
• NU has posted a 62-24 (.721) record in Pinnacle Bank Arena since it opened in 2013. Against non-conference foes, NU is 34-7 in PBA (.829).
• Nebraska went 16-1 at Pinnacle Bank Arena in 2017-18 with the only loss coming in a one-point setback against then-No. 13 Kansas on Dec. 16.  NU's .941 home winning percentage was the best since the 1982-83 campaign, while the 16 home wins was one shy of the school record. 
• Nebraska went a perfect 9-0 at home in Big Ten play in 2017-18 and won its two Big Ten home games against ranked teams by an average of 15.0 points per game. NU's 9-0 mark - the only unbeaten mark in the Big Ten - marked the first time the Huskers went unbeaten in conference play at home since the 1965-66 season.