Huskers Open Big Ten Play with Michigan

Nebraska Cornhuskers
vs. Michigan Wolverines Friday, December 28, 2018, 6 p.m. (CT)
Pinnacle Bank Arena - Lincoln, Nebraska
Television: BTN
Live Radio: Husker Sports Network (5:45 p.m.)
Matt Coatney (PBP), Jeff Griesch (Analyst)
Lincoln-B107.3 FM; Omaha-ESPN 590 AM
Huskers.com, Huskers App, TuneIn Live Stats

Huskers Open 18-Game Big Ten Schedule with Michigan Friday 
• The Nebraska women’s basketball team opens its 2018-19 Big Ten Conference season by playing host to Michigan on Friday evening in Lincoln.
• Tip off between Nebraska (5-6) and the Wolverines (9-3) is set for 6 p.m. (CT) at Pinnacle Bank Arena with tickets on sale now at Huskers.com. Live radio coverage (beginning at 5:45 p.m.) can be heard in Lincoln on B107.3 FM, in Omaha on ESPN 590 AM and across the state on Husker Sports Network stations. Free live audio can also be found at Huskers.com and on the Huskers App.
• Live television coverage will be provided by BTN with Chris Vosters and Brenda VanLengen on the call. It will be the first of eight BTN telecasts for the Huskers this season.
• Nebraska will try to extend its four-game home winning streak and stop Michigan’s two-game streak at Pinnacle Bank Arena. The Huskers have won four straight in Lincoln since a narrow 83-77 season-opening loss to Missouri Valley Conference power Drake on Nov. 7. The Wolverines have been victorious in their last two trips to Lincoln, including a 69-64 overtime win on Jan. 13, 2018.
• Friday’s game will feature two of the nation’s top centers in Nebraska sophomore Kate Cain (9.2 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 2.5 bpg) and Michigan senior Hallie Thome (12.2 ppg, 5.3 rpg). The 6-5 centers are both Lisa Leslie National Center of the Year Award candidates. Cain is averaging 10.8 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.8 blocks while shooting 62.8 percent from the field at home.
• In two meetings against Cain and the Huskers last season, Thome averaged 17.0 points and 6.5 rebounds while shooting 52 percent (13-25). Cain averaged 9.5 points, 5.5 rebounds and 5.0 blocks against Thome and the Wolverines while shooting 45 percent (9-20).
• The Big Ten opener also features several of the conference’s best freshmen, including Nebraska’s Sam Haiby, Ashtyn Veerbeek and Leigha Brown, along with Michigan’s Naz Hillmon and Amy Dilk.
• Haiby is NU’s leading scorer, averaging 11.0 points while coming off the bench in all 11 games. Hillmon, a two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week, is Michigan’s leading scorer and rebounder with 12.6 points and 6.7 rebounds per game while coming off the bench. Haiby and Hillmon are the only two players in the Big Ten who are leading their teams in scoring as non-starting freshmen.
• Hillmon (2nd, 12.6 ppg), Haiby (6th, 11.0 ppg), Veerbeek (8th, 8.8 ppg) and Brown (9th, 8.6 ppg) all rank among the top 10 freshmen in the Big Ten in scoring. Over the last four games, Veerbeek is averaging 12.3 points and 8.8 rebounds per game.
• Brown, a 6-1 wing from Auburn, Ind. (DeKalb High School), was a runner-up to Michigan’s Dilk (Carmel) for Indiana’s Miss Basketball award last season. Dilk has started all 12 games for the Wolverines and is averaging 6.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists.

Nebraska Cornhuskers (5-6, 0-0 Big Ten)
24 - Maddie Simon - 6-2 - Sr. - F - 8.2 ppg, 4.3 rpg
31 - Kate Cain - 6-5 - So. - C - 9.2 ppg, 7.0 rpg
3 - Hannah Whitish - 5-9 - Jr. - G - 8.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg
5 - Nicea Eliely - 6-1 - Jr. - G - 8.0 ppg, 4.6 rpg
33 - Taylor Kissinger - 6-1 - So. - G - 10.3 ppg, 4.5 rpg
Off the Bench
4 - Sam Haiby - 5-9 - Fr. - G - 11.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg
32 - Leigha Brown - 6-1 - Fr. - F - 8.6 ppg, 2.1 rpg
13 - Ashtyn Veerbeek - 6-2 - Fr. - F - 8.8 ppg, 6.6 rpg
44 - Kayla Mershon - 6-3 - Fr. - F - 2.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg
14 - Grace Mitchell - 6-2 - Jr. - F - 1.4 ppg, 1.5 rpg
11(out) - Kristian Hudson - 5-5 - Sr. - G - 2.4 ppg, 1.6 rpg
Head Coach: Amy Williams (Nebraska, 1998)
Third Season at Nebraska (33-39); 12th Season Overall (226-148)

Michigan Wolverines (9-3, 0-0 Big Ten)
15 - Hailey Brown - 6-1 - So. - F - 6.5 ppg, 4.6 rpg 
30 - Hallie Thome - 6-5 - Sr. - F/C - 12.2 ppg, 5.3 rpg
1 - Amy Dilk - 6-0 - Fr. - G - 6.5 ppg, 4.2 rpg 
10 - Nicole Munger - 5-11 - Sr. - G - 11.3 ppg, 3.8 rpg
20 - Deja Church - 5-10 - So. - G - 9.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg
Off the Bench
00 - Naz Hillmon - 6-2 - Fr. - F - 12.6 ppg, 6.7 rpg
5 - Kayla Robbins - 6-1 - Jr. - G/F - 6.8 ppg, 3.7 rpg
14 - Akienreh Johnson - 6-0 - Jr. - G - 4.7 ppg, 3.4 rpg
33 - Emily Kiser - 6-3 - Fr. - F - 3.2 ppg, 2.5 rpg
2 - Priscilla Smeenge - 6-0 - So. - G - 2.1 ppg, 0.9 rpg
12 - Ariel Young - 6-0 - Fr. - G - 1.4 ppg, 1.2 rpg
23 - Danielle Rauch - 5-8 - Fr. - G - 0.9 ppg, 0.6 rpg
21 - Samantha Trammel - 6-0 - Sr. - F - 0.8 ppg, 0.7 rpg
31 - Taylor Rooks - 6-0 - Sr. - F/G - 0.3 ppg, 1.1 rpg
Head Coach: Kim Barnes Arico (Montclair State, 1993)
Seventh Season at Michigan (143-76); 23rd Season Overall (413-281)
Scouting the Michigan Wolverines
• Michigan enters Big Ten play riding a four-game winning streak, while producing a 9-3 overall record. The Wolverines are receiving votes in the USA Today Coaches Top 25.
• Coach Kim Barnes Arico is in her seventh season at the helm in Ann Arbor and carries a 143-76 mark as Michigan’s head coach. She owns 413 career victories in 23 seasons as a collegiate head coach.
• The Wolverines finished 23-10 overall last year, including 10-6 in the Big Ten. Michigan finished sixth in the Big Ten standings before falling to Nebraska in the Big Ten quarterfinals. The Wolverines went on to advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
• Michigan features a good blend of experience and youth. The Wolverines feature preseason All-Big Ten center Hallie Thome. The 6-5 senior is averaging 12.2 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, while leading Michigan with 11 blocked shots. Last season, Thome averaged 17.4 points and 7.0 boards per game.
• Fellow senior Nicole Munger has led the Michigan starting backcourt with 11.3 points and 3.8 rebounds per game. The 5-11 guard has knocked down a team-best 30 threes, which is three more than the other 13 Wolverines combined (27). Munger is shooting 41.1 percent (30-73) from long range, while the rest of the Wolverines are just 27-of-121 (.223). Munger is also a perfect 13-for-13 from the free throw line.
• Sophomores Deja Church (9.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg, 2.8 apg) and Hailey Brown (6.5 ppg, 4.6 rpg) have joined Thome and Munger in the Michigan starting five for every game this season.
• Freshman guard Amy Dilk, the Indiana High School Player of the Year, has also started every game and is averaging 6.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists. Dilk (27.8 mpg) and Munger (27.6 mpg) lead Michigan in playing time. Dilk is shooting just 35.2 percent (31-88) from the field, including just 1-for-11 from three-point range.
• Freshman Naz Hillmon has been Michigan’s most explosive player early this season. The 6-2 forward leads Michigan in scoring (12.6 ppg) and rebounding (6.7 rpg) despite playing just 19.8 minutes per game. Hillmon, who also leads Michigan with 33 fouls, is shooting a superb 73.6 percent (64-87) from the field. She won back-to-back Big Ten Freshman-of-the-Week awards on Dec. 10 and Dec. 17.
• Junior Kayla Robbins also has been solid off the bench early for Michigan. The 6-1 wing is averaging 6.8 points and 3.7 rebounds in just under 17 minutes per game. Robbins is just 1-for-9 from three-point range and is shooting just 50 percent (14-28) from the free throw line.
• Junior Akienreh Johnson has pitched in 4.7 points and 3.4 rebounds as one of eight players averaging double-digit minutes in non-conference play.
• Seniors Samantha Trammel and Taylor Rooks, a graduate transfer from Harvard, have seen limited playing time, while freshmen Emily Kiser (3.2 ppg, 2.5 rpg), Danielle Rauch and Ariel Young have also contributed. Sophomore Priscilla Smeenge (2.1 ppg) rounds out the Michigan roster.
• As a team, Michigan is averaging 75.6 points per game, while allowing 55.8. The Wolverines have dominated the boards (44.7-30.8) and own a plus-2.5 team turnover margin. Michigan is shooting a solid 45.1 percent from the field, but just 29.4 percent (57-194) from three-point range. Michigan has also hit 68.1 percent of its free throws.

Nebraska vs. Michigan Series History
• Nebraska owns a 12-4 edge in the all-time series with Michigan, including a 61-54 victory over the Wolverines in the Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals on March 2, 2018, at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
• Then-No. 23 Michigan won the lone regular-season meeting with the Huskers last year with a 69-64 overtime victory at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Jan. 13, 2018. Deja Church provided the heroics for Michigan in that game by hitting three free throws with 0.7 seconds left to send the game to overtime tied at 62. Church then sealed the win in overtime with two more free throws after Hallie Thome scored Michigan’s first five points in the overtime.
• All-Big Ten guard Katelynn Flaherty led Michigan with 26 points, while Thome added 13 points. Hailey Brown pitched in 12 points while Church put four Wolverines in double figures with 10.
• Hannah Whitish led the Huskers with 16 points, while Kate Cain contributed 13 points and Nicea Eliely 10 for the Big Red.
• Whitish also led the Huskers with 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists against Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament, while Eliely contributed 12 points and six rebounds. Cain managed six points, seven rebounds and seven blocked shots.
• Thome (21) and Flaherty (17) combined for 38 points against the Huskers in the Big Ten Tournament, while the rest of the Wolverines totaled just 16. Munger scored just one point in 74 combined minutes in the two games last season.
• Nebraska is 5-3 all-time against Michigan in Lincoln, but the Wolverines have won in back-to-back trips to Pinnacle Bank Arena, including an 81-54 win on Jan. 22, 2017, when Munger erupted for a then-career-high 18 points in 20 minutes off the bench by knocking down 4-of-6 three-pointers.
• Nebraska will play the Wolverines at Michigan to complete the season series on Feb. 7 in another game that will be televised by BTN. Nebraska is 6-1 all-time in Ann Arbor.

Freshmen Contributing Early for Huskers
• Nebraska has received production early and often from its 2018-19 freshman class. The four-player class, which was ranked among the top 20 recruiting classes in the nation by ESPN last season, features Sam Haiby (1 1.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.9 apg), Leigha Brown (8.6 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 1.2 apg) Ashtyn Veerbeek (8.8 ppg, 6.6 rpg, 1.0 bpg), Leigha Brown (8.6 ppg, 2.1 rpg) and Kayla Mershon (2.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg).
• Haiby, a 5-9 guard from Moorhead, Minn., leads Nebraska with 11.0 points per game off the bench. She has led the Huskers in scoring in five games, including against nationally ranked Drake (13) and Miami (14), while also scoring a career-high 20 points at Washington State and adding 17 points at Creighton. She also had 16 points to lead the Huskers at Arkansas (Dec. 18). She owns six double-figure scoring efforts overall, including 12 points at No. 5 Louisville (Nov. 29).
• Haiby also ranks second among the Huskers in assists (2.9 apg).
• Ashtyn Veerbeek ranks third among the Husker freshmen in scoring with 8.8 points per game, while leading the group and ranking second on the team with 6.6 rebounds. Veerbeek produced her first career double-double with career highs of 14 points and 14 rebounds in a win over San Jose State (Dec. 8). She matched her career high with 14 points in just 14 minutes in the win over Denver (Dec. 15). She added 14 points for the third straight game at Arkansas (Dec. 18) for her fourth double-digit scoring effort in the last seven contests. She ranks second among the Huskers with 11 blocks.
• Leigha Brown ranks third among the freshmen in scoring with 8.6 points per game. She set a career high with 18 points in the win over San Jose State (Dec. 8), before adding 17 points and a career-high five assists in the win over Denver (Dec. 15). The 6-1 wing from Auburn, Indiana owns three double-figure scoring efforts and has led the Big Red in scoring twice this season. Brown has committed a total of just six turnovers over the past nine games.
• Kayla Mershon has pitched in 2.5 points and 2.2 rebounds per game for the Huskers, including a career-high seven rebounds in the win over Kansas (Dec. 5). The 6-3 forward from Chanhassen, Minn., also has dished out seven assists and has committed a team-best two turnovers through 11 games. She has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 7-to-2 while adding five steals and three blocks.
• The freshmen have combined for 39.8 percent (341-of-856) of Nebraska’s points in just 33.8 percent of the team’s total minutes (760-of-2,250) on the season. They also have accounted for just 28.2 percent (50-of-177) of Nebraska’s turnovers.
• Nebraska’s four freshmen are combining to average 31 points and 14.5 rebounds per game, while NU’s two sophomores (Kate Cain, Taylor Kissinger) have combined to average 19.5 points and 11.5 boards per contest. Nebraska’s six underclassmen have combined for 64.9 percent of NU’s scoring and 59.8 percent of the team’s rebounding through 11 games.

Husker Nuggets
• Nebraska’s bench outscored the opposition 149-53 over the final four non-conference games, including a season-high 45 points at Arkansas. NU’s bench posted a season-best bench scoring differential (+37) in its last home game by outscoring Denver, 40-3.
• The Husker bench has outscored opponents in each of NU’s 11 games this year, including double-digit advantages in eight games.
• Nebraska’s bench has scored 40 or more points four times, including 45 at Arkansas, 42 points against San Jose State, 41 points against Drake and 40 against Denver.
• Overall, Nebraska’s bench has outscored opposition benches 366-160 (33.3-14.5 ppg) for a plus-18.8 margin.
• Nebraska’s 34 points in the fourth quarter against San Jose State tied for the most in any quarter in school history. It joined 34 in the second quarter at Iowa and 34 in the fourth quarter against Florida Atlantic in games last season.
• NU’s 62 points in the second half against San Jose State tied for the fifth-most points scored in any half by the Huskers in school history.
• The Huskers followed with a school-record 31-point first quarter in the win over Denver, giving Nebraska 93 points in a three-quarter span.
• Freshman Sam Haiby led Nebraska with 13 points in a season-opening loss to Drake (Nov. 7). Haiby is the first Husker freshman to lead NU in scoring in an opener since Kelsey Griffin’s 18 in a loss to South Dakota State (Nov. 19, 2005).
• Haiby has been Nebraska’s scoring leader in five of 11 games this season.
• Nicea Eliely leads Nebraska’s active roster with 66 career starts as a Husker. Hannah Whitish (59) is the only other Husker with as many as 50 starts at Nebraska.

Nebraska Streaks
• Sophomore Kate Cain owns the longest streak of consecutive starts by a Husker with 42.
• Junior Nicea Eliely owns Nebraska’s second-longest streak of starts with 37, while senior Maddie Simon has started 35 consecutive games.
• Kate Cain has at least two rebounds in every game of her Nebraska career (43), and she has blocked at least one shot in 41 of 43 games (no blocks in 2018 NCAA Tournament vs. Arizona State and no blocks at Creighton, Dec. 2, 2018).
• Sophomore Taylor Kissinger is 14-for-14 at the free throw line to open the season and owns the longest active free throw streak by a Husker. Kissinger also hit eight consecutive three-pointers over a three-game stretch earlier this season.
• Kissinger has scored in double figures in four consecutive games - Nebraska’s longest streak of the season. Ashtyn Veerbeek has produced double figures in three straight games - NU’s second-longest streak of the year.
• The Huskers have knocked down at least one three in 323 straight games dating back to a loss at UTEP on Dec. 20, 2008. Nebraska has hit at least two three-pointers in 202 consecutive games.

Whitish Earns Preseason All-Big Ten Honors
• Nebraska’s Hannah Whitish was named to the 12-player All-Big Ten Team by the conference coaches when the annual preseason honors were announced on Oct. 22.
• The announcement of the preseason teams marked the tip-off of Big Ten Women’s Basketball Media Week (@B1GWBBall) on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
• Whitish, a 5-9 junior guard from Barneveld, Wis., led Nebraska in scoring (12.6 ppg) and assists (4.7 apg) as a sophomore in 2017-18. She owned a 2-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio as Nebraska’s point guard while also ranking among the Big Ten’s best three-point shooters. Whitish played a major role in lifting Nebraska to the nation’s top turnaround in the win column last season, as the Huskers recorded 14 more victories (21) in 2017-18 than in 2016-17 (7). She captured second-team All-Big Ten accolades at the end of last season while helping Nebraska to the NCAA Tournament.
• Whitish was the lone Husker honored by the league in preseason voting of the conference coaches.
• The Big Ten Conference does not rank its team’s No. 1 through No. 14 in preseason voting, instead the coaches and select media members each choose their projected top-three teams in the league. Maryland is the preseason pick of the coaches and the media to win the Big Ten, while Iowa was picked No. 2 by both the coaches and media. The league coaches chose Michigan in the No. 3 spot, while the conference media selected Minnesota. Iowa senior center Megan Gustafson, the reigning Big Ten Player of the Year, was chosen by the coaches to repeat that honor. Gustafson, Maryland’s Kaila Charles, Michigan’s Hallie Thome and Minnesota’s Kenisha Bell were all unanimous preseason all-conference selections by the coaches.

Nebraska’s History of Home Success
• Nebraska had its streak of 12 consecutive season-opening wins snapped with an 83-77 loss to current top-25 team and two-time defending Missouri Valley Conference champion Drake on Nov. 7. However, the Huskers still have an outstanding history of success at home, including a 4-1 record at Pinnacle Bank Arena to open 2018-19.
• The Huskers were 10-6 at home in 2017-18, winning five of their final six home games.
• The Huskers went 15-4 at Pinnacle Bank Arena in 2015-16 after going 12-3 (13-3 at home) in 2014-15. The Huskers are 64-25 (.719) all-time at Pinnacle Bank Arena since the building opened for the 2013-14 campaign. The Big Red went 16-2 at home in 2013-14, suffering their only Big Ten loss to Purdue, 77-75, on Jan. 19, 2014. NU’s 16 home wins in 2013-14 tied the school record for single-season home victories.
• The Huskers played the first regular-season game arena history against USA Today No. 25 UCLA (Nov. 8, 2013) and rolled to a 77-49 win over the Bruins. NU’s first win over an AP Top 25 team came with a 76-56 win over No. 24 Michigan State on Feb. 8, 2014. The Huskers added their first-ever win over an AP Top 10 team at the arena with a 94-74 victory over No. 8 Penn State on Feb. 24, 2014.
• NU won its first-ever Big Ten home game at Pinnacle Bank Arena with a 66-65 thriller over Northwestern Jan. 2, 2014, before an 88-85 win over Minnesota on Jan. 16, 2014, marked the first overtime game.
• NU suffered its first loss at the arena to Washington State (76-72) on Nov. 30, 2013. 
• The Huskers are 453-155 (.745) all-time at home. The Huskers have gone 189-59 (.762) over the last 16 seasons (including 2018-19), posting double-figure home victory totals 14 times.
• Nebraska played in the Devaney Center from 1976-77 through 2012-13, and added one appearance at Devaney against Utah on Nov. 23, 2014. The Huskers own a 389-130 record at the Devaney Center, including 146-88 (.624) mark in conference play.

Nebraska Ranks Near Top in Attendance
• Nebraska ranked No. 20 nationally with an average home attendance of 4,380 at Pinnacle Bank Arena in 2017-18. It marked the eighth consecutive year that the Huskers have ranked in the top 25 nationally in average home attendance.
• Nebraska has ranked among the top 20 nationally in average home attendance in each of its first five seasons inside Pinnacle Bank Arena.
• In 89 all-time home games at Pinnacle Bank Arena, the Huskers own a 64-25 record (.719 winning percentage) while averaging 5,256 fans per game (467,812 total fans/89 games).
• Nebraska attracted a Pinnacle Bank Arena non-conference record crowd of 9,750 to open its stay in the arena with a win over UCLA on Nov. 8, 2013.
• Nebraska set its all-time single-game record with a sellout crowd of 13,595 fans against Missouri at the Devaney Center on Feb. 27, 2010. NU drew 10 straight crowds of more than 10,000 fans at the Devaney Center in 2009-10.
• Nebraska produced its top attendance season in school history by ranking No. 7 nationally with a record 7,390 fans per game at the Bob Devaney Sports Center in 2009-10. The Huskers went 16-0 at the Devaney Center on their way to a perfect 29-0 record, a Big 12 title and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.