Huskers Head to Northwestern

The Nebraska men's basketball team hits the road for the first time in nearly a month, traveling to Evanston, Ill., for a matchup with the Northwestern Wildcats. 

Tipoff from renovated Welsh-Ryan Arena is set for shortly after 3:30 p.m., and Saturday's matchup will be carried nationally on BTN with Jordan Bernfield and Stephen Bardo on the call. The game can also be streamed via the web, smartphones, tablets and connected devices through the Fox Sports app.
 

GAME 16: NEBRASKA AT NORTHWESTERN Date:     Saturday, Jan. 11 Time:     3:30 p.m.  Location:     Evanston, Ill. Arena:     Welsh-Ryan Arena NEBRASKA CORNHUSKERS 2019-20 Record: 7-8 (2-2 Big Ten) Head coach: Fred Hoiberg     Record at Nebraska: 7-8 (1st year)     Career NCAA Record: 122-64 (6th year) NORTHWESTERN WILDCATS 2019-20 Record: 5-9 (0-4 Big Ten) Head coach: Chris Collins     Record at Northwestern: 106-105 (7th year)     Career Record: Same BROADCAST INFO Television: BTN     Play-by-play: Jordan Bernfield      Analyst: Stephen Bardo     Online Broadcast: Fox Sports App Radio: Learfield IMG College Husker Sports Network, including 590 AM (Omaha), 1400 AM (Lincoln) and 880 AM (Lexington)     Play-by-play: Kent Pavelka     Analyst: Jake Muhleisen Online Radio: Available on Huskers.com, Huskers App, TuneIn.com/Huskers and TuneIn App.  SiriusXM (Internet): Ch.  971         XM: Ch. 381

Fans can follow all of the action across the state of Nebraska on the Learfield IMG College Husker Sports Network with Kent Pavelka and Jake Muhleisen on the call. The game will also be available on Huskers.com, the Huskers app and TuneIn radio. The pregame show begins one hour prior to tipoff.

Nebraska (7-8, 2-2 Big Ten) put together one of its best performances of the season in a 76-70 victory over Iowa on Tuesday. Thorir Thorbjarnarson's 17 points and nine rebounds led five Huskers in double figures, while Cam Mack had 15 points and 10 assists, as Nebraska shot nearly 50 percent from the floor. Defensively, the Huskers held Iowa's Luka Garza to 16 points - six below his season average - while forcing the Hawkeyes into 4-of-33 shooting from 3-point range. 

Thorbjarnarson has been a breakout performer for the Huskers, averaging 7.5 points per game after totaling just 58 points in his first two seasons. The 6-foot-6 junior guard is third in the Big Ten in 3-point percentage (.467) after shooting just 21.4 percent from the arc entering the year. Thorbjarnarson is averaging 10.6 points and 3.9 rebounds per game since moving into the starting lineup seven games ago while shooting 51 percent from the floor in that stretch. 

Northwestern (5-9, 0-4 Big Ten) comes off a tough 66-62 loss at Indiana on Wednesday night. The Wildcats built a 10-point lead with 12 minutes to go and led by five points with 3:20 left, only to see Indiana score 12 of the final 15 points to earn the win. Pat Spencer had 15 points and five assists to pace four Wildcats in double figures. Indiana, which was held to 37 percent shooting, went 23-of-30 from the line, compared to just 8-of-10 for Northwestern.  Northwestern has played three of its first four conference games on the road with the home game being against conference leader Michigan State.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT
Dachon Burke Jr. needs just four points on Saturday to reach 1,000 points in his career. Burke is averaging 12.2 points per game and is one of three Huskers to start all 15 contests this season. Burke would be the third Husker to reach the 1,000-point mark this season, joining Matej Kavas (Nov. 22) and Haanif Cheatham (Dec. 29).

NUMBERS TO KNOW
.467- Thorir Thorbjarnarson is third in the Big Ten in 3-point percentage entering Saturday's game. He is 21-of-45 from long range this season after going a combined 6-of-28 behind the 3-point stripe in his first two years.

+2.9 - Nebraska enters the weekend leading the Big Ten in turnover margin at +2.9 per game. NU has committed 12 or fewer turnovers in each of the last seven contests.

4 - Double-figure assist games for Cam Mack, which is the most by a Husker since Brian Carr had five in the 1985-86 season. Mack's four games with 10+ assists ranks fourth nationally. 

6.3 - Rebounds per game for freshman Yvan Ouedraogo, which is fourth among all Big Ten freshmen. His rebounds per game is on track to be the highest by a Husker freshman since Aleks Maric grabbed 6.3 rebounds per game in 2004-05.

8 - Nebraska has had eight of its nine eligible scholarship players reach double figures this season. The Huskers have three players currently averaging double figures.

12 -  Double figure scoring runs that Nebraska has had in 2019-20.

50 - Returning point total from last season, all by Thorir Thorbjarnarson. That is the lowest by any power conference team since the 2009-10 season.

SCOUTING NORTHWESTERN
Northwestern enters Saturday's game with a 5-9 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 13-19 for seventh-year coach Coach Chris Collins. The Wildcats have battled injuries, as junior guard Anthony Gaines (5.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg) is out for the season while freshman guard Boo Buie (10.8 ppg, 2.6 apg) is out indefinitely.

Northwestern has wins over Big East co-leader Providence (72-63) and Boston College (82-64), which is currently second in the ACC. In conference play, Northwestern lost by just five to Michigan State and played well at Minnesota and Indiana despite being limited in numbers. The Wildcats allow just 66.4 points per game and take advantage of their chances from the line, ranking second in the Big Ten at 76.3 percent from the charity stripe.

Currently, the Wildcats have a lineup that features two freshmen, two sophomores and a graduate transfer. Sophomore Miller Kopp leads the Wildcats in scoring at 12.6 ppg and is shooting 44 percent from 3-point range. Redshirt freshman Ryan Young is at 10.7 ppg and a team-high 7.1 rpg, while Pat Spencer, who was four-time All-American in lacrosse at Loyola (Md.), is averaging 10.6 ppg and a team-high 4.1 apg.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Nebraska and Northwestern meet for the 16th time on Saturday, as the Huskers hold an 9-6 lead in a series that dates back to 1933. The Huskers are 6-5 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 in 2018. This is NU's first trip to Welsh-Ryan Arena since it was renovated.

Last Meeting: Behind a big night from Isaiah Roby, the Huskers posted a 59-50 victory last February in Lincoln. Roby scored a game-high 19 points, pulled down a game- and career-high 16 rebounds, tied his season high with a game-high five blocks and added a pair of assists and two steals. With Nebraska's offense struggling early in the second half, Roby scored the Huskers' first 10 points of the period and finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds in the second half. James Palmer Jr. chipped in 13 points and dished out six assists while Glynn Watson Jr. added 12 points and six rebounds. Nebraska shot only 32.8 percent from the field, but the Husker defense had seven blocks and eight steals while forcing 15 Northwestern turnovers.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Cam Mack had his fourth double-double of the season, while Thorir Thorbjarnarson tied his career high with 17 points to lead Nebraska to a 76-70 victory over Iowa at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Mack poured in 15 points and dished out 10 assists for Nebraska, as the Huskers put five players in double figures in posting their fourth straight win over the Hawkeyes in Lincoln.

In addition to Mack and Thorbjarnarson, who grabbed a team-high nine rebounds, Haanif Cheatham added 14 while Dachon Burke Jr. and Kevin Cross also netted double figures with 13 points and 11 points, respectively.

Nebraska led by as many as 12 in the first half, only to see Iowa take a 51-50 lead with 12:41 remaining. The Hawkeyes' lead would last just 38 seconds, as Cross sparked a significant run with six points in an 8-2 spurt, as Nebraska took a 58-53 lead with 7:25 left. Iowa chipped away, pulling even at 59-all after a Joe Wieskamp basket with 5:20 remaining, but Thorbjarnarson's two 3-pointers keyed another 8-2 run to push the lead to back to 67-61, and the Huskers held on down the stretch.

Wieskamp finished with a game-high 21 points, while Luka Garza added 16 points and 18 rebounds, but Nebraska held the All-America candidate below his Big Ten leading scoring average. The Huskers also limited Iowa to just 4-of-33 from 3-point range, while hitting 10 3-pointers.
 
STORYLINES
• A win at Northwestern would match the Huskers' best five-game start since joining the Big Ten in 2011-12. The 2016-17 squad won three of its first five conference games.

• Head Coach Fred Hoiberg returns to Chicago after playing and coaching with the Chicago Bulls. Hoiberg played four seasons with the Chicago Bulls (1999-03) before returning to Chicago to coach the Bulls for three-plus seasons (2015-18), guiding the Bulls to the NBA Playoffs in 2017.

• Husker Assistant Coach Armon Gates spent five seasons (2013-18) on the Northwestern staff as an assistant coach, while Special Assistant to the Head Coach Bobby Lutz coached with the Windy City Bulls during the 2016-17 season.

• Thorir Thorbjarnarson is the only active Husker to face Northwestern, as he had two points, one rebound and one assist in NU's 59-50 win in Lincoln last season.

• Nebraska is in a stretch where it will play 16 of its final 18 regular-season games against teams currently ranked in the top 55 of the NET. In all, 12 of the 14 Big Ten teams are ranked in the top 55 of the NET as of Jan. 9.

• Nebraska comes into the Northwestern game averaging 73.8 points per game, which is on pace to be Nebraska's highest scoring average since the 1995-96 squad averaged 80.2 points per game.

• With three players averaging double figures, Nebraska has relied on its balance during the first half of the season. In its first 15 games, NU has put at least four players in double figures 11 times. The Huskers put five players in double figures three times, most recently against Iowa on Jan. 7.

• Sophomore Cam Mack has made an impact in his first season at Nebraska. He is 13th nationally with 6.7 assists per game, which is on pace to be the most by a Husker since the 1985-86 season, and ranks 40th nationally with his 2.46-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
 
Best Assist/Turnover Ratios (Since 1979)

No.	Ratio	Player	Asst.-TO's	Year
1	3.05	Brian Carr	201-66	1985-86
2	2.73	Jamar Johnson	123-45	1993-94
3	2.58	Brian Carr	237-92	1984-85
4	2.54	Jack Moore	109-43	1981-82
5	2.52	Charles Richardson Jr.	179-71	2006-07
-	2.46	Cam Mack	101-41	2018-19

minimum 3.0 assists/gm
 
•- Cam Mack is the only Husker in the last 30 years to have multiple points-assists double-doubles in the same season as he has four this season, including three in Big Ten play. From 1989-90 to the end of the 2018-19 season, it had happened just five times. Mack's consecutive points-assists double-doubles against Indiana and Purdue were the first since Brian Carr in December of 1985 (vs. UC-Irvine and Creighton).
 
Husker Points/Assists Double-Doubles (Last 30 years)

No.	Pts.	Asst.	Opponent
Cam Mack	15	10	vs. Iowa, 1/7/20
Cam Mack	11	12	vs. Purdue, 12/13/19
Cam Mack	15	10	at Indiana, 12/13/19
Cam Mack	13	11	vs. Southern Utah, 11/11/19
Glynn Watson Jr.	10	10	vs. Cal State Fullerton, 12/20/18
Lance Jeter	10	10	vs. Kansas, 2/5/11
Lance Jeter	12	12	at Kansas State, 2/7/10
Sek Henry	11	11	at TCU, 11/21/09
Tom Wald	11	11	vs. Appalachian State, 12/31/94

 
• Nebraska enters Saturday's game leading the Big Ten in turnover margin with +2.9 per game. The Huskers have forced an average of 14.5 turnovers per game to rank fourth in the Big Ten while averaging 11.6 turnovers per game to rank third in that category. During his tenure at Iowa State, Hoiberg's teams ranked in the top three in the Big 12 in fewest turnovers per game in four of his five seasons at the school.

• It is not surprising that Nebraska has relied on its 3-point shooting, as Hoiberg's Iowa State teams led the Big 12 in 3-pointers in four of his five seasons at the school. The Huskers, who are fourth in the Big Ten in 3-point shooting, are on pace to average 8.4 3-pointers per game, a total which would rank second in school history and be the most since the 2001-02 campaign.
 
Most 3-Pointers/Game in School History

No.	School	Games	3-Pointers/Game
1.	2001-02	28	9.54
-	2019-20	15	8.50
2.	2006-07	31	7.87
3.	2018-19	36	7.50

 
• One of the biggest points of emphasis for Hoiberg and his staff has been to shoot better from 3-point range, and that work has paid off. Over the last 12 games dating back to Nov. 22, NU is shooting 36 percent from 3-point range and averaging 9.1 3-pointers per game after shooting just 23 percent in the first three games of the season.
 
Huskers' 3-Point Improvement

Category	Before Nov. 22	Since Nov. 22
Games	3	12
3 Pt. Pct.	.231	.362
3-Pointers/Gm	6.0	9.1
Att./Gm	26.0	25.1

 
• Freshman Yvan Ouedraogo leads the Huskers in rebounding at 6.3 per game, which would be highest season average by a Husker freshman in 15 years (Aleks Maric, 6.3 rpg in 2004-05). Ouedraogo's 14 rebounds vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Dec. 29 were the most by a Husker freshman since 2004 (15, Maric vs. UAB) and tied for the third-highest total by a Husker freshman in the last 20 years.

• The Huskers have already played three overtime games in 2019-20, posting a 1-2 record. NU's single-season record is four, set five times, most recently in 2007-08. As of Jan. 6, Nebraska has played in three of the Big Ten's nine overtime games, while the Huskers' three overtime games is third nationally and leads all power conference teams.

• Nebraska's 14 first-year players on the roster matches TCU for the most in the nation in research done by the Utah SID John Vu. Only four teams (TCU-14, Nebraska-14, East Carolina-13 and Utah-12) have at least 12 newcomers on their 2019-20 rosters. Nebraska returns a national-low 1.9 percent of its scoring from last season and the 50 returning points is the lowest by any power conference team since 2009 according to noted statistician Ken Pomeroy.
 
Fewest Returning PPG from 2018-19

No.	School	Returning PPG	Pct. of Scoring
1	Nebraska	2.0 PPG	1.9%
2.	Tulane	10.8 PPG	12.2%
3.	South Dakota St.	15.8 PPG	16.9%
4.	Virginia Tech	13.3 PPG	18.1%
5.	Washington	13.9 PPG	19.8%

Courtesy: Virginia Tech SID office
 
SETTING A FAST PACE
Not only are the Huskers adjusting to a whole new roster, but playing at a significantly faster pace than in previous years. The Huskers are 13th nationally in offensive tempo, as their average possession is 15.2 seconds per possession as of Jan. 8.
• The only power conference school that plays at a faster pace is St. John's, which is sixth nationally.

• In his five seasons as a college coach, Hoiberg's teams have ranked in the top 20 in offensive tempo four times, including top-10 rankings in both 2014 and 2015.

• Hoiberg's first Iowa State team in 2010-11 jumped from 67th to 20th nationally in offensive pace and ranked in the top 40 nationally in adjusted tempo in four of his five seasons in Ames, including top-15 nationally in his last two campaigns.

• In the KenPom era (1997-present), only one Husker team has ranked among the top 100 nationally in adjusted tempo - the 1999-2000 Huskers under Danny Nee. The Huskers' quickest offensive tempo in the last decade was in 2017-18 when the Huskers were 140th in offensive tempo.
 
MACK DELIVERS AS HUSKERS' LEAD GUARD
Junior college transfer Cam Mack was the cornerstone of the Huskers' recruiting class, and has lived up to the billing during the first half of the year. Mack was the No. 3 JUCO recruit in the country last year at Salt Lake CC and has made an impact in his first season at Nebraska.

Mack, who was listed as the top JC point guard recruit in the country, enters the Northwestern contest averaging 12.8 points per game while leading the Huskers in assists (6.7), steals (1.4) and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.5-to-1).

• Mack is is tied for the national lead with four games with at least 10 points and 10 assists. In fact, only eight players in Division I have at least three points-assists double-doubles.

• He ranks 13th nationally in assists per game and is the highest Division I newcomer in the NCAA rankings. In fact, only two newcomers nationally average over 6.0 assists per game.

• Mack is the only player in the Big Ten ranked in the top five in both assists (third) and steals (third). Only three Big Ten players - Mack, Geo Baker (Rutgers) and Anthony Cowan (Maryland) - rank in the top 10 in both categories as of Jan. 8.

• His 6.7 assists per game is on pace to rank third in school history, trailing only Brian Carr, who averaged 7.9 assists per game in 1984-85.

• He recorded the first triple-double in program history against Purdue on Dec. 15 with 11 points, 10 rebounds and 12 assists, setting season bests in both rebounds and assists in NU's 70-54 win.

• He's reached double figures 13 times, including a season-high 24-point performance against South Dakota State on Nov. 15.

• Last season at Salt Lake CC, Mack averaged 19.1 points, 7.6 assists and 5.9 rebounds per game, ranking fifth nationally in assists per game. He totaled nine double-doubles and three triple-doubles as a freshman and dished out 10-or-more assists nine times.
 
CHEATHAM MAKES IMPACT ON BOTH ENDS
Fifth-year senior Haanif Cheatham has been one of the leaders for a young Husker team. The guard from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., is NU's most experienced player, as he played in 80 games between Marquette and Florida Gulf Coast before coming to Nebraska for his final year. After a slow start, Cheatham has been on a roll over the last six weeks. Over Nebraska's last 11 games, he's averaging 15.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game, while typically guarding the opponent's top scoring threat.

• Cheatham has reached double figures in 10 of the Huskers' last 11 games, including a 21-point, six-rebound performance at Indiana on Dec. 13. He had six straight double-figure efforts from Nov. 25-Dec. 13, the second-longest streak of his collegiate career.

• He went over 1,000 career points with a 17-point performance against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Dec. 29.

• Cheatham posted his first career double-double with 14 points and a career-high 11 rebounds at Georgia Tech on Dec. 4.

• He was in double figures all three games of the Cayman Islands Classic, averaging 19.0 ppg including a career-best 26-point effort against South Florida to garner all-tournament honors.

A former top-100 recruit out of high school, he was named Marquette's top defensive performer in each of his two full seasons at Marquette.
 
BURKE SHOWS SCORING TOUCH
The other returnee from the 2018-19 season, Dachon Burke Jr. waited in the wings after transferring from Robert Morris. A 6-foot-4 guard, Burke has quickly shown the skills to flourish in Fred Hoiberg's attack, averaging 12.2 points, 3.9 rebounds per game and 1.4 steals per game.

Burke has reached double figures nine times, including a 25-point effort against Indiana on Dec. 13 and a 21-point performance against South Florida on Nov. 27. Burke lead the Huskers in blocked shots (12) and steals (21) and is third in 3-pointers (20).
Two years ago, Burke was one of the best players in the Northeast Conference, averaging 17.6 points per game while adding 5.8 rebounds and a conference-best 2.1 steals per contest.
 
OUEDRAOGO ADDS NAME TO SHORT LIST OF TRUE FROSH
Freshman Yvan Ouedraogo became the first true freshman to start a season opener at Nebraska since 2013 and has been a mainstay of the Husker lineup.

• He is one of the youngest players in the country, as he won't turn 18 until after the 2020 Big Ten Tournament.

• Ouedraogo has started all 15 games for the Huskers, averaging 5.9 points and a team-high 6.3 rebounds per game in just under 21 minutes per game.

• He is on track to be the third freshman to lead NU in rebounding in a season, joining Aleks Maric (2005-06) and John Turek (2001-02).

• Ouedraogo has played some of his best basketball recently, averaging 7.3 points and 8.2 rebounds per game over the Huskers' last six contests dating back to Dec. 13.

• He picked up his first career double-double against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi on Dec. 29 with 11 points and 14 rebounds. His double-double was the first by a Husker freshman since Shavon Shields in 2013 and Ouedraogo became just the 10th NU freshman to record a double-double.

• His 10 rebounds against Indiana marked the second-highest rebounding total for a Husker freshman in his first conference game, trailing only Dave Hoppen in 1983.

• He enjoyed his offensive effort of the season with 11 points, including six in overtime, and four rebounds against Southern on Nov. 22. He snared a team-high 12 rebounds against South Dakota State on Nov. 15.

• He is just the 11th true freshman and 13th freshman overall to start a season opener in the last 25 years at Nebraska, joining a group which includes 1,000-point scorers Tai Webster, Ryan Anderson, Cookie Belcher and Tyronn Lue.
Ouedraogo played for the French U-18 squad at the 2019 European Championships in July, as France went 6-1 and finished fifth in the competition.
 
THOR EMERGES AS SCORING THREAT
Over the last six weeks, junior Thorir Thorbjarnarson emerged as a vital part of the Huskers' offensive attack. The 6-foot-6 guard is fifth on the team in scoring at 7.5 ppg, while shooting 50 percent from the field and 47 percent from 3-point range.

• He has been in double figures five times in seven games after not reaching double figures in his first 41 contests as a Husker.

• Thorbjarnarson is third in the Big Ten in 3-point percentage (.469) after shooting just 21.4 percent from 3-point range in his first two seasons.

• He nearly had a double-double in the win over Iowa, finishing with 17 points, including three 3-pointers, and a season-high nine rebounds.
 
CROSS LIFTS BENCH PRODUCTION
Freshman Kevin Cross has been a key contributor for the Huskers. The 6-foot-8 freshman from Little Rock, Ark., has been the first Husker off the bench in all 15 games and is averaging 7.1 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.

• Cross is seventh among Big Ten true freshmen in scoring and fourth in rebounding as of Jan. 8.

• He has improved his rebounding in recent weeks, averaging 5.7 rebounds per game over the Huskers' last six contests dating back to Dec. 13. He has grabbed five-or-more rebounds nine times this season.

• Cross has been in double figures five times off the bench, including a season-high 19 points against Southern Utah. He became the first freshman in 73 games to pace the Huskers in scoring, while his 19-point effort was the highest by a Husker rookie since Shavon Shields in 2013.

• Against Iowa, Cross had eight of his 11 points in the second half against Iowa and added five rebounds.

• He played a complete game in the win over Washington State, scoring 14 points, grabbing a season-high eight rebounds and blocking two shots in 27 minutes

• Cross played a big role in NU's comeback against Southern, scoring all eight of his points in the second half as the Huskers overcame an eight-point deficit.