Huskers Add High Scoring Guard Curtis

Samari Curtis Earned Ohio Mr. Basketball Honors in 2019

Lincoln - Nebraska Coach Fred Hoiberg added his second recruit of the day on Wednesday evening when Samari Curtis (Xenia, Ohio) signed to play basketball for the Huskers beginning this fall.

Curtis, a 6-foot-4, 190-pound guard, was Ohio Mr. Basketball in 2019, averaging 33.8 points and 5.2 assists per game for Coach Kent Anderson at Xenia High School. He shot 51 percent from the field as a senior, including 34 percent from 3-point range. His senior year was highlighted by a 52-point performance, his second career 50-point game. Curtis also finished eighth in state history with 224 free throws, as Xenia went 13-11 despite replacing four starters from the previous season.

He finished his career with a school-record 2,109 points, breaking the previous mark by nearly 500 points. He led the Greater Western Ohio Conference (GWOC) in scoring each of the past three seasons, averaging more than 30 points per game in each of his final two seasons at the school.

“Samari is an elite guard,” Nebraska Coach Fred Hoiberg said. “He gives us size and length at the guard position and his skillset blends well with the other guards currently on our roster.”

Curtis, who originally signed with Cincinnati last fall, is a four-star selection by ESPN.com, while he also ranks among the top-200 recruits nationally by 247Sports.

As a junior, he averaged 30.4 points, 5.2 assists and 5.1 rebounds per game while shooting nearly 50 percent from the field en route to third-team All-Ohio accolades by the Ohio Prep Sportswriters Association. A three-time All-GWOC selection and District 9 honoree, Curtis also garnered honorable-mention honors as a sophomore when he averaged 24.1 points per game.

Curtis joins Tennessee transfer Derrick Walker, who also signed with the Huskers earlier Wednesday.

Curtis becomes the 11th scholarship player to sign or re-affirm his commitment since Hoiberg took over the Husker basketball program on March 30. The Huskers lose four starters from a year ago while junior forward Isaiah Roby is testing the waters of the NBA process.   Curtis joins fellow freshmen Yvan Ouedraogo, Akol Arop and Kevin Cross while the rest of the class includes graduate transfers Matej Kavas and Haanif Cheatham, junior college transfers Jervay Green and Cam Mack and transfers Dalano Banton, Shamiel Stevenson and Derrick Walker.