Huskers Host Wildcats on Legends Weekend

GAME 26: VS. NORTHWESTERN Date: Sat., Feb. 16 Time: 7:45 p.m. Arena: Pinnacle Bank Arena Tickets: Huskers.com/Tickets NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS 2018-19 Record: 14-11, 4-10 Big Ten Head coach: Tim Miles   Record at Nebraska: 111-108 (7th year)   Career Record: 394-328 (24th year) NORTHWESTERN WILDCATS 2018-19 Record: 12-12, 3-10 Big Ten Head coach: Chris Collins   Record at Northwestern: 100-89 (6th year)   Career Record: Same BROADCAST INFO Television: BTN   Play-by-play: Kevin Kugler   Analysis: Stephen Bardo Internet: FOX Sports App and BTN2Go 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. Satellite Radio: Sirius: 81 XM: 81 Internet: 81

The Husker men's basketball team continues its two-game homestand on Saturday, as Nebraska hosts Northwestern on Legends Weekend. Nearly 50 former players will return to campus for this weekend's activities.

Tipoff at Pinnacle Bank Arena is set for 7:45 p.m. and a limited number of returned tickets are available on Huskers.com/Tickets or at the Pinnacle Bank Arena Ticket Office beginning at 6 p.m. on Saturday.

The matchup of the Huskers and Wildcats will be televised nationally on BTN with Kevin Kugler and Stephen Bardo on the call. The matchup will also be available on the Fox Sports App and BTN2Go with cable authentication.

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 both Sirius and XM 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 (14-11, 4-10 Big Ten) broke their seven-game losing streak in dramatic fashion, as James Palmer Jr. hit a pair of free throws with 1.1 seconds left to give the Huskers a 62-61 victory over Minnesota on Wednesday evening. Palmer finished with a game-high 24 points on 7-of-10 shooting from the floor and 8-of-10 shooting from the foul line for his 12th 20-point game of the season. Glynn Watson Jr. broke out of a scoring slump with 19 points - his second highest total of the year - including 11 in the second half, as Nebraska overcame an early 11-point first-half deficit.  As a team, the Huskers shot 50 percent from the floor in their best shooting performance since early December. NU also averaged more than one point per possession for the second straight contest. 

Northwestern (12-12, 3-10) comes to Lincoln looking to break a five-game losing streak following a 59-56 loss to Rutgers on Wednesday in Evanston. Vic Law led the Wildcats with 17 points and four assists, while A.J. Turner came off the bench for 11 points and four assists. Northwestern's last two losses have come by a total of four points, as Iowa hit a game-winning shot with 0.6 seconds left in the Hawkeyes' 80-79 win last Sunday.

OPENING NUMBER 5 - Wednesday's win over Minnesota was the fifth one-point win for Nebraska in Tim Miles' seven seasons. NU has two one-point wins in the last two seasons and both have come with game-winning plays from James Palmer Jr.

NUMBERS TO KNOW -1.6 - Nebraska has only been out-rebounded by 1.6 rebounds per game in its last five Big Ten games, a stretch which includes three of the top five Big Ten teams in rebounding margin. Prior to that, NU was out-rebounded by 6.1 per game in its first nine Big Ten contests.

.921 - Nebraska is 35-3 under Tim Miles when shooting over 50 percent, including 13 straight wins dating back to the 2016-17 season. 

2 - Number of opponents who have shot over 50 percent against the Huskers in the last 50 games dating back to last season. NU is holding opponents to .402 shooting in 2018-19. 

+3.6 - Nebraska is second the Big Ten in turnover margin, as NU is third in both turnovers per game and forcing turnovers. 

19 - Number of 20-point games for Husker players in 2018-19. James Palmer Jr. has 12 while Isaac Copeland Jr. (three), Isaiah Roby (three) and Glynn Watson Jr. (one) also enjoyed 20-point games this season.

SCOUTING NORTHWESTERN Northwestern enters Saturday's game with a 12-12 record and looking to snap a five-game losing streak. The Wildcats returned just two starters and six letterwinners from last year's team that went 15-17 for Coach Chris Collins.

Northwestern was 9-4 through their first 13 games, as both of their December Big Ten losses (at Indiana, vs. Michigan) were by two points. The Wildcats then went 3-3 in a six-game stretch including a win at Rutgers and a victory over Northwestern before dropping the last five games. Northwestern had chances in each of its last two losses, as Iowa rallied from a 15-point deficit in the final 4:14 to pull out an 80-79 win last Sunday. On Wednesday, Northwestern had two chances in the final 13 seconds to take the lead or tie before falling to Rutgers, 59-56.

Fifth-year senior Vic Law has been a go-to player for the Wildcats this year, as he is first or second on the team in scoring (15.5, first), rebounding (6.7, second), assists (2.9, second), steals (1.1, first) and blocked shots (0.9, second). Law has five 20-point games this season and is averaging 20.1 ppg and 6.5 rpg in his last two games. Senior center Dererk Pardon averages 13.7 ppg on 59 percent shooting while topping the squad in rebounding (7.6 spg) and blocked shots (1.0 bpg). A pair of transfers have been valuable to the Wildcats' attack as Ryan Taylor averages 11.5 ppg and has hit a team-high 55 3-pointers, while A.J. Turner averages 8.4 points per game and leads the team in assists (3.1 apg).

SERIES HISTORY Nebraska and Northwestern meet for the 15th time on Saturday, as the Huskers hold an 8-6 lead in a series that dates back to 1933. The Huskers are 5-5 against the Wildcats since joining the Big Ten, as both teams have had four-game win streaks. Northwestern had won four straight before the Huskers' 70-55 win in Rosemont last season. Saturday's meeting is the only one between the schools in the regular season.

LAST MEETING VS. NORTHWESTERN Glynn Watson Jr. had 19 points to lead three Huskers in double figures, as Nebraska rallied for a 70-55 win over Northwestern on Jan. 2, 2018.  Watson led the NU attack with 19 points and added six assists and six boards, as Nebraska shot 59 percent in the second half and overcame a seven-point second-half deficit. 

James Palmer Jr. added 18 points and five rebounds while Isaac Copeland chipped in 13 points and eight rebounds, as Nebraska overcame a rough offensive half with a strong defensive performance. Nebraska held the Wildcats to 29.2 percent shooting – the lowest by a Husker conference foe in nearly three years – and blocked 14 shots. The 14 blocked shots were the most Nebraska ever blocked in a conference game.  Nebraska took the lead for good early in the second half, using a 16-4 run to erase a seven-point deficit and build a 41-36 lead. Northwestern pulled to within 43-42 but Anton Gill’s four-point play started an 11-3 spurt, as the Huskers took a nine-point lead they would not relinquish. 

LAST TIME OUT James Palmer Jr. knocked down a pair of free throws with 1.1 seconds remaining to lift the Nebraska men’s basketball team to a 62-61 win over Minnesota Wednesday night.

In a game that featured nine ties and 12 lead changes, Nebraska led for much of the second half before Minnesota used a 6-0 run to take a 61-59 lead with less than a minute to play. The Gophers led by one with under 30 seconds on the clock when Isaiah Roby made the defensive play of the game, drawing a charge from Minnesota’s Jordan Murphy to give the ball back to Nebraska with 18 seconds remaining. On Nebraska’s first chance to win the game, Thomas Allen had his shot blocked, but Dupree McBrayer was out of bounds when catching the block. On the ensuing inbound, Palmer caught the ball on the baseline, pumped fake, and drew a foul on Amir Coffey to set up his game-winning free throws.

Palmer, who scored 10 of his game-high 24 points in the second half, was 8-of-10 at the line on the night, including 3-of-4 in the final minute. In addition to Palmer’s big night, Glynn Watson Jr. erupted for 19 points, just one shy of his season high. While Palmer and Watson combined for 43 of the Huskers’ 62 points, Allen added seven points and a career-high nine rebounds in his return to the starting lineup, while Roby had six points, four rebounds, three assists and a pair of blocks.

The win snapped a seven-game losing streak for Nebraska, which improved to 14-11 on the season and moved to 4-10 in Big Ten Conference play. Nebraska shot 50 percent from the field, its first time hitting more than 40 percent of its shot in six games. Minnesota (16-9, 6-8 Big Ten) got a double-double from Murphy with 19 points and 13 rebounds, while Daniel Oturu added 16 points and Coffey – who had a career-high 32 points in the first meeting with Nebraska – chipped in 11 points.

LEGENDS WEEKEND SET FOR THIS WEEKEND  The seventh-annual Legends Weekend takes place throughout the weekend as nearly 50 players will return to campus for this weekend’s events. The weekend is highlighted by a reception Friday night in downtown Lincoln as well as a chance to see practice on Friday and interact with the current Husker team. The Huskers will also unveil a new throwback jersey for Saturday's game.

• Players from seven decades (1950s, 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, 1990s, 2000s and 2010s) are scheduled to attend.
• The list includes two former NBA Huskers (Dave Hoppen and Tony Farmer) as well as 2012 Olympian Ade Dagunduro.

The following is a list of players who were scheduled to attend at least one of this weekend’s events as of Thursday afternoon.  Don Weber (1952-54); Charles McAfee (1955-57); Wilson Fitzpatrick (1957-58); Albert Maxey (1958-60); Daryl Petsch (1961-64); Larry Bornschlegl (1962-64); Grant Simmons (1963-66); Willie Campbell (1964-67); Dale Von Seggern (1966-70); Alan Nissen (1969-72); Calvin R Christline (1970-73); Terry Novak (1974-78); Jerry Shoecraft (1978-82); Ivan Gilreath (1980-81); Eric Van Williams (1980-84); John Matzke (1981-86); Dave Hoppen (1982-86); Joel Sealer (1984-87); Henry T. Buchanan (1986-88); Derrick Vick (1986-88); Matt Svehla (1987-89); Beau Reid (1987-91); Keith Moody (1989-91); Tony Farmer (1990-91); Matt Mar (1991-1992); Tom Wald (1994-1996); Chad Ideus (1995-1996); Andy Markowski (1995-99); Craig Wortmann (1998-01); Cary Cochran (1998-02); Ryan Thomas (1999-01); Kedrick Ford (2000-02); Brennon Clemmons (2001-03); Jake Muhleisen (2001-05); John Turek (2001-05); Bronsen Schliep (2002-06); Tony Wilbrand (2002-06); Charles Richardson (2003-07); Paul Velander (2004-09); Jim Ledsome (2005-07); Ade Dagunduro (2007-09); Steve Harley (2007-09); Drake Beranek (2009-11); Mike Fox (2009-12); Brandon Ubel (2009-13) and Trevor Menke (2010-15).

NOTING WEDNESDAY'S COMEBACK Wednesday's win over Minnesota marked the Huskers' largest comeback of the year, as Nebraska overcame a pair of 11-point deficits in the first half. Prior to Wednesday, the largest deficit the Huskers overcame this season was seven against Oklahoma State in Sioux Falls on Dec. 16. 

• The 11-point deficit marked the largest home deficit NU has overcome since Nov. 25, 2014, against Omaha. NU's last three double-figure comebacks before Wednesday had been on the road.
• Nebraska has had at least one double-digit comeback in each of Tim Miles' seven seasons and in 11 straight seasons dating back to the 2008-09 campaign. 

PALMER ECLIPSES 1,000 POINTS AT NEBRASKA James Palmer Jr. joined an exclusive club at Nebraska on Feb. 6, as he became the Huskers' 30th 1,000-point scorer. The 6-foot-6 senior guard has averaged 18.0 points per game in his two seasons and has been in double figures in 55 of his 58 career games since arriving on campus two seasons ago.

• Nebraska's 30 1,000-point scorers hail from 15 states, as well as Australia and New Zealand. Palmer is the Huskers' first 1,000-point scorer from Maryland.
• Palmer reached the 1,000-point mark in 56 career games, the second-fastest player to reach that milestone. He is just the third player to reach 1,000 points in his first two seasons at NU, joining Terran Petteway and Dave Hoppen. 
• He is the fifth Husker under Head Coach Tim Miles to reach the milestone, joining Terran Petteway, Shavon Shields, Tai Webster and Glynn Watson Jr.

WORTH NOTING

• Husker assistant coach Armon Gates will be facing his former team for the first time on Saturday. Gates spent the last five seasons as an assistant coach for the Wildcats. 
• Glynn Watson Jr. and Northwestern guard Jordan Ash were teammates at Westchester St. Joseph High School, winning the Illinois Class 3A title in 2015. St. Joseph High School has also produced three of NU's 30 1,000-point scorers (Watson, Clifford Scales and Carl Hayes).
• Watson (Bellwood) is one of three Illinois natives on the Husker roster, joining Nana Akenten (Bolingbrook) and Isaiah Roby (Dixon). 
• According to KenPom, Nebraska's strength of schedule is 12th nationally, as seven of the 12 toughest schedules are by Big Ten teams as of Feb. 13.
• Eight of Nebraska's 11 losses have been to teams who have been ranked in the top-15 at some point in the season (Texas Tech, Maryland-2x, Iowa, Michigan State, Ohio State and Wisconsin). 
• As of the Feb. 14 NET, Nebraska has played 18 of its 24 Division I games against teams in the top two quadrants. Currently, every Big Ten team is in the top-125 of the NET, including nine of the top 50 teams.
• Palmer has 12 20-point games this season, more than doubling his career total in 105 games entering this year. That total ranks among the highest 20-point games in a season under Tim Miles.
• With 1,045 career points entering Saturday's game, James Palmer Jr. is 14 points shy of Herschell Turner (1,059) for 29th place on NU's scoring list. Turner was NU's first 1,000-point scorer between 1957 and-1960. 
• Palmer has reached double figures in 21 consecutive games dating back to Nov. 20.  Over the last two decades, the only Huskers with longer double-figure streaks are Tyronn Lue (36, 1996-97 and 1997-98), Tai Webster (30, 2016-17), Terran Petteway (30, 2013-14 and 2014-15) and Venson Hamilton (24, 1998-99).  Palmer's eight-point effort in a win over Missouri State is the only game in the last 39 games he didn't reach double figures dating back to last season. 
• With his eight free throws against Minnesota, Palmer is now in sixth place on NU's single-season chart with 149. He is nine behind Dave Hoppen (158, 1984) for fifth place. 
• Glynn Watson Jr. is one of six players currently on NU's top-10 list in both assists and steals, joining Brian Carr (1984-87), Cookie Belcher (1997-2001), Tyronn Lue (1996-98), Erick Strickland (1993-96) and Clifford Scales (1998-91). Watson is currently in 10th place on NU's assist list (348) and will break a tie with Ryan Anderson (166) for fifth place on NU's steals list with his next steal. 
• Former walk-on Tanner Borchardt has stepped into a crucial role for the Huskers following Isaac Copeland's injury. Borchardt is averaging 7.2 rebounds per game over the Huskers' last six contests and is averaging 27.3 minutes per game. Prior to Copeland's injury, Borchardt averaged just 2.9 rebounds per game in 12.3 minutes per contest. 
• Balance has been key for the Husker attack this season. When NU has at least three double-figure scorers, the Huskers are 12-7, but just 2-4 when less than three NU players are in double figures.
• Nebraska ranks ninth nationally in average attendance at 15,617 per game as of Feb. 14. Of the eight schools ahead of the Huskers, all eight play in facilities of at least 16,300 seats. NU's attendance is 104 percent of PBA's 15,000-seat capacity. 

HUSKERS LIMIT TURNOVERS Nebraska has done an exceptional job of limiting turnovers this season. The Huskers are on pace to shatter the school record for fewest turnovers per game.  Nebraska is seventh nationally in that category with an average of 10 per game. 

• Nebraska has committed 10 or fewer turnovers in four of the last five games, including a season low of five against No. 24 Maryland on Feb. 6.
• Four of the five lowest turnover per game totals have come in Tim Miles' seven seasons at Nebraska.
• Three of the top seven teams in terms of turnovers per game are in the Big Ten, as NU is joined by Wisconsin (second) and Michigan (seventh).

Lowest Turnovers/Game

Rk	Year	TO/Gm
-	2018-19	10.00
1.	2012-13	10.67
2.	1981-82	10.79
3.	2013-14	10.91
4.	2017-18	10.97

 

TANNER TALLIES REBOUNDS Senior Tanner Borchardt put together the finest effort of his career against Illinois on Feb. 2. The former walk-on from Gothenberg, Neb., posted personal bests in points (12), rebounds (18) and minutes (32) in just the third start of his career. Borchardt's 18-rebound effort was not only a career high, but matched the highest total by any Husker in more than a decade. 

• Borchardt's 18 rebounds tied for the fifth-best rebound day in the last 25 years of Husker basketball, and was the most since Aleks Maric snared 19 rebounds against Missouri on Feb. 24, 2007. 
• His 18-rebound effort tied for the third-highest total by a Big Ten player this season. Only Jordan Murphy, who had 21 rebounds against Penn State on Jan. 19, and Bruno Fernando, who had 19 against the Huskers on Feb. 6, have grabbed more rebounds in a Big Ten game than Borchardt this season.
• Borchardt's 11 offensive rebounds marked only the fourth time in the last nine seasons that a Big Ten player totaled at least 11 offensive rebounds in a game. Borchardt joins Jared Sullinger (2-29-12 vs. Northwestern), Gabriel Olaseni (1-24-15 vs. Purdue) and Dererk Pardon (1-2-18 vs. Nebraska) as the only Big Ten players to accomplish the feat.
• Borchardt has grabbed seven or more rebounds four times this season after grabbing 36 in his collegiate career entering this season. 

HUSKER OFFENSIVE NOTES Despite the offensive struggles in recent games, Nebraska enters the Northwestern game averaging 72.4 points per game, which is higher than last season's average.  NU has scored at least 70 points 14 times, including seven games of at least 80 points.

• Nebraska is 44th nationally in offensive efficiency according to KenPom through Feb. 13. In the KenPom era, only the 2003-04 team (25th) ranked in the top-50 nationally in offensive efficiency.
• Nebraska is 14-4 when averaging at least one point per possession, but is winless in seven games when held under one point per possession. 
• The Huskers have shown signs of breaking out of an offensive slump. In a six-game stretch from Jan. 17-Feb. 6, NU shot just 33 percent and averaged 58.8 points per game. NU also failed to score one point per possession in each of those contests. In the last two games, NU is shooting 44 percent from the field and averaging over one point per possession.
• The Huskers scored 106 points against Mississippi Valley State, the Huskers' highest total since the 2005-06 campaign. 
• Nebraska opened the season with four straight games scoring at least 80 points, marking the first time NU has accomplished that since the 1996 NIT.
• Nebraska scored 94 points in the win over Creighton, its third-highest total in 52 meetings in the series.
• The solid offensive effort is not surprising based on what the Huskers brought back from last year's team that went 22-11, as Nebraska brought back its top four scorers for the first time in 15 years, including three players who averaged double figures. 
• Nebraska returned 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). 
• Nebraska returned 73 percent of its scoring and 72 percent of its assists from last season. It marked the third time in the last 15 seasons that Nebraska returns at least 70 percent of its scoring from the previous year.

DOING IT WITH DEFENSE For Nebraska, the biggest thing over the last two seasons has been improvements on the defensive end.  Last season, NU went from 13th to sixth in the Big Ten in field goal percentage defense and from 14th to second in 3-point percentage defense.  That has continued during the 2018-19 season as we hit the homestretch. 

• NU ranks in the top-40 nationally in scoring defense (63.4 ppg, 18th), field goal defense (.402, 24th) and 3-point defense (.310, 34th) as of Feb. 14. The Huskers are also third in the Big Ten in steals (7.4 spg).
• Nebraska's opponents are shooting .402 from the field, which ranks among the best numbers since the 3-point line was established in 1987-88. 
• Only two opponents have shot over 50 percent against Nebraska in the last 50 games dating back to last season. In 2018-19, NU has held 23 of its 25 opponents under 50 percent shooting, as only Minnesota (Dec. 5) and Purdue (Feb. 6) have shot over 50 percent.
• NU has limited 10 opponents to under 0.85 points per possession. Mississippi Valley State and Southeastern Louisiana were held to 0.47 points per possession, the lowest number in Tim Miles' seven years at NU. On the season, the Huskers are 35th in Kenpom's adjusted defense through Feb. 9.
• The Huskers have held six opponents to their lowest offensive total of the season.
• In the loss to No. 6 Michigan State on Jan. 17, the Huskers held the Spartans to their second-lowest point total (70) and field goal percentage (.436) of the season at the time. 
• Under Miles, the Huskers are 50-5 (.909) when holding opponents under 60 points, including 16-0 the past three seasons.
• Under Miles, the Huskers are 58-18 (.763) when holding opponents under 40 percent shooting, including 21-4 (.840) the past three seasons.

NEW GAME, SAME NUMBER 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. Earlier this season, he was named to the midseason watch list for both the Wooden and Lute Olson awards, and is currently averaging 19.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

• He is among the Big Ten leaders in scoring (third), steals (ninth), free throw percentage (.788, 10th), 3-pointers per game (1.9, 14th) and assists (17th).
• Palmer is challenging to be the first Husker to average 20.0 ppg since Tyronn Lue averaged 21.2 ppg in 1997-98. Only six Husker players have ever averaged 20.0 ppg in a season.
• He is on pace to post one of the highest scoring averages in Nebraska history. Only two other players - Terran Petteway and Dave Hoppen - have averaged 18.0 ppg as a Husker during their career.
• His Husker career scoring average of 17.9 points per game is third among Big Ten players and 10th among all power conference players spanning the last two seasons. The Big Ten features three of the top 10 with Purdue's Carsen Edwards and Wisconsin's Ethan Happ. 
• Palmer has shown the ability to get to the free throw line, as he ranks in the top-10 nationally in both free throws (149, ninth) and attempts (189, fifth), while shooting a career best 78.8 percent from the foul line. Entering this year, Palmer was a career 72 percent shooter.
• Palmer has reached double figures in 55 of 58 career games at Nebraska, including 20 20-point efforts and a pair of 30-point performances. 
• He had most recent 20-point effort against Minnesota when he had a game-high 24 points on 7-of-10 shooting and went 8-of-10 from the line, including a pair of free throws with 1.1 seconds left to give Nebraska a 62-61 win.
• Palmer had 24 points, including 11-of-11 from the foul line, and a team-high eight caroms against No. 6 Michigan State.
• He put together one of his best all-around games at No. 25 Indiana with 11 points along with a career-high nine rebounds and season-high seven assists.
• Palmer led NU with 26 points at Maryland while adding seven rebounds, four assists and a career-high five steals. 
• Palmer enjoyed one of the best performances of his career with a 30-point game against Creighton. The effort included a career-high six 3-pointers. 
• He turned in a strong performance in the Huskers' win at Clemson, scoring 14 of his 20 points in the second half and also snaring a career-high nine rebounds. 
• Finished with 29 points against Seton Hall, the third-highest scoring night in his career, as he scored 18 of his points in the second half. 

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.  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.

WATSON KEYS HUSKER ATTACK Glynn Watson Jr. is in his fourth year as Nebraska's starting point guard and is currently averaging 12.1 ppg, while posting career highs in assists (3.2 apg) and rebounds (3.9 rpg).

• His on-ball defense has been instrumental in Nebraska ranking among the national leaders in field goal and scoring defense.
• Watson has been in double figures 17 times this season, including his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 assists in the win over Cal State Fullerton.
• Watson put together a strong effort against Minnesota, finishing with 19 points, while limiting Amir Coffey to 11 points on 4-of-10 shooting.
• He put together an 18-point performance against Ohio State, which included a season-best 7-of-7 performance from the foul line.
• He turned in a strong effort at No. 25 Indiana, scoring 12 of his 15 points in the second half, while adding five rebounds and two steals.
• Watson led NU to a win over Penn State with 19 points and three assists. He scored eight straight Husker points late in the second half to extend a one-point lead. 
• He guided the Husker attack in the win over Creighton with 13 points, five assists and a season-high three steals, while holding Creighton's Ty-Shon Alexander to just 2-of-10 shooting.
• Watson led NU with a season-high 20 points and a career-high nine boards against Western Illinois.
• He showed his playmaking ability by dishing out eight assists and totaling 14 points in the win over Seton Hall. 
• His 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. 

ROBY FILLS STAT SHEET Isaiah Roby compliments the Husker attack with a unique skill set. The 6-foot-8 junior averages 10.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.7 blocks and 1.3 steals per game.  He leads the Huskers in blocked shots and rebounding and is the only Big Ten player ranked in the top 10 in the conference in both blocked shots and steals as of Feb. 14.

• He is one of only seven players nationally and three in power conferences averaging 1.3 blocks and 1.3 steals per game as of Feb. 14.
• Roby has played his best against NU's toughest foes, averaging 13.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game in NU's six games against nationally ranked opponents. 
• Roby had 10 points at No. 15 Purdue, but led NU in assists (four), steals (two) and blocked shots (one).
• He collected his second double-double against No. 24 Maryland on Feb. 6 with 20 points, a career-high 14 rebounds and a season-high five blocked shots. 
• Roby put together a strong effort against No. 24 Wisconsin on Jan. 29 with 18 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocked shots. 
• He keyed NU's 70-64 win over Penn State with 22 points on 8-of-9 shooting, along with 11 rebounds and four blocked shots.
• He enjoyed a solid performance against Iowa, finishing with 17 points on 8-of-10 shooting and a nine rebounds.
• His dunk against Seton Hall on Nov. 14 marked the fourth time he's had a top-10 play on SportsCenter at NU, including highlight dunks vs. Rutgers (2018) and at Indiana (2016). 

ALLEN ANSWERS THE BELL Sophomore Thomas Allen has emerged during his sophomore campaign, averaging 8.9 points per game on 45 percent shooting, including 39 percent from 3-point range, while chipping in 2.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He has been in double figures nine times after reaching double figures twice as a freshman. Allen is fourth in the Big Ten in steals per game and is second in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.04-to-1).

• He has been in double figures in eight of NU's last 16 games after reaching double figures once in the Huskers' first nine contests.
• Since the injury to Isaac Copeland Jr., Allen has averaged 10.6 points per game.  In Wednesday's win over Minnesota, Allen led the Huskers in rebounding (nine) and assists (three) while chipping in seven points.
• Allen had a career night at No. 15 Purdue when he came off the bench to tie his career high with 18 points, including 5-of-6 from 3-point range. 
• Allen also had 18 points, five assists and four rebounds against Creighton and had 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting against Oklahoma State after missing most of the week with an illness. 

BENCH LOOKS TO CREATE A SPARK With the loss of Isaac Copeland Jr., the Husker bench will be counted on to make a significant impact. NU's bench features sophomores Thorir Thorbjarnarson and Nana Akenten and freshmen Amir Harris and Brady Heiman. 

• Thorbjarnarson has played in 15 games, averaging 1.4 points and 2.4 rebounds per game. He has reached double figures in minutes in four of the last five games, a stretch where he averaged 4.2 rebounds per game. Against No. 24 Wisconsin, he had 10 rebounds and in 17 minutes. He added six boards and three assists in 17 minutes against Illinois 
• Akenten has started twice and is averaging 4.2 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. He is fifth on the team with 22 3-pointers and has a pair of double-figure efforts. He had a career-high 18 points off the bench against Mississippi Valley State, including five 3-pointers, in just 13 minutes. He also had 11 points in the win over Missouri State and nine points in a start against Cal State Fullerton. He did not play against Minnesota because of a virus.
• Heiman has played in 21 games, averaging 2.3 points and 2.2 rebounds per game in just under 10 minutes per contest. He had 10 points against Southeastern Louisiana and nine points at Minnesota. He grabbed 13 rebounds in NU's opener against MVSU.
• Harris has played in 17 games, averaging 1.1 points and 1.9 rebounds per game. He missed nearly a month of action with mono and has played in eight of the Huskers' last nine games. He had season bests in points (six) and rebounds (five) against Mississippi Valley State in the opener. 

COPELAND'S STRONG SENIOR CAMPAIGN DERAILED BY INJURY Senior forward Isaac Copeland Jr. was putting together a strong senior year before suffering a torn left ACL on Jan. 26 against Ohio State. Copeland had surgery on his knee on Friday, Feb. 1.  After earning honorable-mention All-Big Ten honors as a junior, Copeland raised many of his numbers in 2018-19, averaging 14.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.1 steals and 0.9 blocks per contest. 

• Including his two-plus seasons at Georgetown, Copeland finished his collegiate career with over 1,300 points, 600 rebounds and nearly 100 blocked shots. 
• Copeland reached double figures 16 times this season, including a trio of 20-point efforts (vs. Missouri State, vs. Texas Tech and at Iowa). He had a season-high 24-point effort at No. 25 Iowa on Jan. 6
• He had 11 career 20-point games (7 at Nebraska, 4 at Georgetown), including a pair of 30-point games. Copeland had 30 points against North Dakota in 2017 and a career-high 32-point night against Marquette while at Georgetown.
• Copeland earned his undergraduate degree in sociology last May and is currently working on his Master's Degree.

FILLING UP PINNACLE BANK ARENA Pinnacle Bank Arena will be full every game in 2018-19, as the NU Athletic Ticket Office announced on September 25 that general public season tickets were sold out for the 2018-19 season. In all, nearly 15,000 season tickets have been sold for the 2018-19 season, including the Red Zone student section.  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 the fall of 2013.  NU has posted a 69-28 (.711) all-time record in Pinnacle Bank Arena.

• Over the last two seasons, the Huskers are 26-5 (.839) with four of the losses coming to ranked teams. 
• NU tied a school record with 20 straight home wins from Dec. 20, 2017 to Jan. 10, 2019. It tied the school record which was originally set during the 1965-66 and 1966-67 seasons.
• Nebraska went a perfect 9-0 at home in Big Ten play in 2017-18, the first time NU went unbeaten in conference play at home since the 1965-66 season.