Paul Velander Season 2004-05

Career Honors
►Nebraska Career Top 10 for 3-pointers made (9th, 128) and 3-point percentage (8th, 38.9)
►Nebraska Single-Season Class list (Seniors) with 60 3-pointers (6th)
►2009 Big 12 All-Bench Team (sports writers)
►Academic All-Big 12 First Team (2007, 2008, 2009)
►2008 National Association of Basketball Coaches Honors Court
►Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll (Fall, 2006, 2007, 2008; Spring, 2007, 2008)

2008-09 (SENIOR)
Paul Velander (pronounced VUH-land-er) was a key component for the Husker offense as Nebraska finished with at least 18 wins and a postseason appearance for the second straight season. His help on both ends of the court pushed Nebraska to an 8-8 league record, the first time the Huskers were at least .500 in Big 12 Conference play in a decade.

A three-time academic all-league selection (ninth in school history), Velander had a career year, averaging 7.1 points per game while being named to the Big 12 All-Bench Team by the league's sports writers following the season. He scored 221 points and played 717 minutes as a senior after entering the season with 247 points and 777 minutes played in his first three years combined.

Velander hit a career-best 40.0 percent from 3-point range, including leading the nation on Jan. 24 as he hit 48-of-96 from beyond the arc to open the year. He struggled at the end of league play but still managed to average 5.6 points per game vs. Big 12 teams, a career best. He also led the team with 27 charges taken, half of the team total (54) in 31 games.

A strong senior campaign helped Velander earn a spot in the Nebraska career top 10 in both 3-point percentage (38.9) and 3-pointers made (128). After starting just three of his 91 games played, Velander is the only player in Nebraska history to have at least 100 3-pointers while starting fewer than 25 career games.

2007-08 (JUNIOR)

Velander played an important role for the Huskers, as he was the team's top 3-point shooter off the bench. He finished his junior season averaging 4.2 points per game over 32 contests and posted 20 assists on the season.

Velander struggled from the floor early but his resurgence from beyond the arc came at a key time for the Huskers, as he hit 18-of-42 attempts (42.9 percent) in the final eight games of the year, helping Nebraska to the second round of the Big 12 Championship and the second round of the postseason National Invitation Tournament. During that stretch, he hit at least three treys in five contests.

The hot streak started as Velander went a perfect 3-for-3 from long range in the Huskers' upset of Oklahoma at home. Velander averaged 7.8 points in the final eight contests, with all of his attempts coming from behind the arc. He also hit 8-of-9 from the free throw line.

2006-07 (SOPHOMORE)

Velander had a strong first season under Coach Doc Sadler. Despite fighting through a number of lingering injuries (shoulder and ankle) for the second straight season, Velander finished his sophomore campaign third on the team in 3-pointers (32) while averaging 4.3 points per game.

Velander made his first career start against Oklahoma State in the regular-season finale when he hit 5-of-10 shots from the floor, including four 3-pointers, to finish with a career-high 20-point performance.The double-figure scoring effort was one of five on the season for Velander.

Providing some of the strongest long-range shooting on the squad, Velander posted at least one 3-pointer in 11 of his last 12 games overall, including each of the final eight contests. After a slow start to the Big 12 slate when he hit just 4-of-18 from beyond the arc, Velander became a dangerous outside threat for the Huskers as he knocked down 15 of his final 40 attempts from long range.

2005-06 (REDSHIRT FRESHMAN)

Velander suffered a preseason injury to his left ankle that required surgery and he was relegated to the bench for the majority of the campaign. He saw action in just two contests for a total of three minutes.

2004-05 (FRESHMAN)

Velander redshirted during his first season with the Huskers.

Before Nebraska

Velander was solid on both ends of the court as he averaged 16.8 points and 5.3 rebounds per game at Blacksburg High School as a senior. He added 3.0 assists and a solid 2.7 steals per contest. A threat from outside the arc, Velander hit 41 percent from 3-point range in 2004. He also led the team in free throw percentage four straight seasons, including 82 percent shooting at the line as a senior. Velander was also named the team's defensive player of the year.

A varsity starter all four years, Velander averaged more than 10 points per game all four seasons. He recorded more than 1,000 career points and hit better than 40 percent from 3-point range for his career. As a sophomore, Velander led Blacksburg to the state title game where it lost by three points.

During the club season, Velander played for the Richmond Squires AAU team, and was a member of the Southwest Virginians, which was the runner-up at the Youth Basketball of America national tournament.

Personal

The son of Bill and Paula Velander, Paul was born Sept. 14, 1985, and has two sisters, Lauren and Claire, and one brother, Chris. Paul is a biological sciences major at Nebraska.