Huskers Back Home for Big Game with Illini

Nebraska Cornhuskers (14-9, 6-6 Big Ten)

vs. Illinois Fighting Illini (18-6, 8-5 Big Ten)

Thursday, February 9, 2023, 7 p.m. (CT)

Pinnacle Bank Arena – Lincoln, Nebraska

Tickets: Huskers.com / 1-800-8-BIG-RED
Live Video: B1G+ 
Live Radio: Huskers Radio Network (6:45 p.m.)
Matt Coatney (PBP), Jeff Griesch (Analyst)
Lincoln (107.3 FM/1400 AM), Omaha (590 AM), Huskers.com, Huskers App
Special Event: Black History Celebration/DEI Rising Coaches

Huskers Back Home for Big Game With Illini

The Nebraska women’s basketball team returns to Pinnacle Bank Arena on Thursday night to open an important two-game series with Illinois.

Tip-off between the Huskers (14-9, 6-6 Big Ten) and the Fighting Illini (18-6, 8-5 Big Ten) is set for 7 p.m. (CT) with tickets on sale now at Huskers.com. A live video stream will be provided to subscribers of B1G+. 

The game also can be heard across the Huskers Radio Network with Matt Coatney and Jeff Griesch on 107.3 FM and 1400 AM in Lincoln along with 590 AM in Omaha, Huskers.com and the Huskers App.

Nebraska and Illinois are both battling for position in the heart of the Big Ten standings. The Huskers are coming off their second straight win, a 78-66 victory at Northwestern on Monday night in Evanston. Nebraska led from start to finish, building as much as a 22-point lead before securing the double-digit road victory.

Illinois comes to Lincoln as one of the nation’s most improved teams under first-year Head Coach Shauna Green.  The Fighting Illini own an 11-game improvement in the win column from a year ago (7-20) and have already secured just their second winning season since Nebraska joined the Big Ten in 2011-12 (Illinois – 19-14, 2012-13). The Illini sit just ahead of the Huskers in the NCAA NET Rankings as well, coming in at No. 35 in front of No. 39 Nebraska.

Isabelle Bourne, a 6-2 junior from Canberra, Australia, led Nebraska at Northwestern with 18 points and eight rebounds. Bourne has averaged 19.0 points and 8.5 rebounds in Nebraska’s last two wins to increase her season averages to 11.5 points and 6.5 boards. Bourne, a two-time honorable-mention All-Big Ten choice, has averaged 19.0 points and 6.7 rebounds in her last three games against Illinois.

Sam Haiby is also surging for the Big Red while contrinuing to increase her quickness, explosiveness and endurance after missing 10 of Nebraska’s first 11 games with an injury. The 5-9 graduate guard from Moorhead, Minn., is coming off a season-high 17 points at Northwestern. Her effort in Evanston followed her first double-double of the season with 11 points and 10 rebounds in the win over Michigan State in Lincoln last Thursday. Since returning to the starting lineup against Michigan (Dec. 28), Haiby is averaging 11.6 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 2.1 steals. Over the last six games, those numbers have increased to 14.5 points, 6.7 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.2 steals.

Alexis Markowski notched her 11th double-double with 11 points and and 10 rebounds in the win at Northwestern. The 6-3 sophomore who ranks second in the Big Ten with 9.6 rebounds per game, trailing only Kendall Bostic from Illinois. Markowski was named to the Lisa Leslie Award Top 10 on Friday, Feb. 3. Markowski was the 2022 Big Ten Freshman of the Year and ranks second among the Huskers with 12.1 points per game while leading the Big Red with 1.0 block per contest. She owns three straight double-doubles and five in her last seven games. Her 11 double-doubles on the year are tied for 22nd nationally and ninth on the individual season charts at Nebraska (Emily Cady, 2014-15). Markowski’s next double-double will her 18th, which will move her into the top 10 on NU’s career double-double list with two-time WNBA All-Star Anna DeForge (1995-98).

Jaz Shelley continues to be a leader for the Huskers. The 5-9 guard from Moe, Australia (pronounced MO-ee), is averaging team bests with 12.5 points, 6.5 assists and 1.6 steals. Shelley finished with 12 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and a career-high-tying four blocked shots in the win at Northwestern. She crossed the 1,000-point scoring mark in her career in the closing minutes against the Wildcats (706-Nebraska; 296-Oregon).

Maddie Krull (Omaha, Neb.) rounds out Nebraska’s starting five with 5.6 points, 1.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists on the season. Krull has scored in double figures in four of the last eight games. 

Nebraska Cornhuskers (14-9, 6-6 Big Ten)

34 – Isabelle Bourne – 6-2 – Jr. – F – 11.6 ppg, 6.5 rpg

40 – Alexis Markowski – 6-3 – So. – C/F – 12.1 ppg, 9.6 rpg

1 – Jaz Shelley – 5-9 – Jr. – G – 12.5 ppg, 4.4 rpg

4 – Sam Haiby – 5-9 – Gr. – G – 10.2 ppg, 5.4 rpg

42 – Maddie Krull – 5-9 – So. – G – 5.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg

Off the Bench

21 – Annika Stewart – 6-3 – So. – F – 6.1 ppg, 3.2 rpg

14 – Callin Hake – 5-9 – Fr. – G – 5.2 ppg, 1.4 rpg

15 – Kendall Moriarty – 6-1 – So. – G – 3.6 ppg, 1.8 rpg

44 – Maggie Mendelson – 6-5 – Fr. – F/C – 3.0 ppg, 2.3 rpg

32 – Kendall Coley – 6-2 – So. – F/G – 1.9 ppg, 1.6 rpg

2 – Trinity Brady – 5-11 – Jr. – G – 2.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg

3 – Allison Weidner (Out) – 5-10 – So. – G – 10.2 ppg, 6.2 rpg

Head Coach: Amy Williams (Nebraska, 1998)

Seventh Season at Nebraska (110-93); 16th Season Overall (303-202)

Illinois Fighting Illini (18-6, 8-5 Big Ten)

23 – Brynn Shoup-Hill – 6-3 – So. – F – 6.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg

44 – Kendall Bostic – 6-2 – Jr. – F – 10.5 ppg, 10.1 rpg

1 – Genesis Bryant – 5-6 – Jr. – G – 15.3 ppg, 3.3 rpg

3 – Makira Cook – 5-6 – Jr. – G – 17.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg

24 – Adalia McKenzie – 5-10 – So. – G – 14.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg

Off the Bench

11 – Jada Peebles – 5-10 – Sr. – G – 6.1 ppg, 1.5 rpg

12 – Jayla Oden – 5-9 – So. – G – 4.3 ppg, 1.5 rpg

14 – Geovana Lopes – 6-3 – Gr. – F/C – 1.2 ppg, 2.1 rpg

21 – Aicha Ndour – 6-6 – Jr. – C – 1.7 ppg, 2.0 rpg

4 – Kam’Ren Rhodes – 5-6 – Fr. – G – 2.1 ppg, 0.6 rpg

33 – Samantha Dewey – 6-2 – Fr. – F – 1.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg

0 – Camille Jackson – 5-11 – Fr. – G – 1.0 ppg, 0.6 rpg

13 – Liisa Taponen – 6-5 – Fr. – C – 0.3 ppg, 0.4 rpg

Head Coach: Shauna Green (Canisius, 2002)

First Season at Illinois (18-6); Ninth Season Overall (174-81)

Scouting The Illinois Fighting Illini

Coach Shauna Green brings her first Illinois team to Lincoln with an 18-6 overall record and an 8-5 Big Ten mark, including handing No. 5 Iowa its only Big Ten loss of the season (Jan. 1). The Fighting Illini also have two losses to current No. 2 Indiana and losses at current No. 12 Michigan and No. 13 Ohio State along with a home Big Ten loss to Purdue (62-52, Jan. 26). The setback to Purdue joins a non-conference loss to Delaware (Nov. 26) as the Illini’s only losses this season to unranked opponents.

Illinois is coming off a 69-62 home win over Minnesota on Sunday to complete a season series sweep of the Golden Gophers.

Illinois was ranked briefly in both the AP and WBCA Top 25 polls a few weeks ago and the Fighting Illini are currently the No. 2 team receiving votes outside both polls (27th).

A win for Illinois against the Huskers would give the Illini their most wins in a season since 2012-13 when they went 19-14 under then-first-year head coach Matt Bollant. Since then, Illinois has not had a winning season and recorded no more than 15 wins in any campaign. Illinois has not had a 20-win campaign since Jolette Law’s first season leading the Illini in 2007-08 (20-15).

Illinois ended 2021-22 with a 92-74 loss to Nebraska in the Big Ten Tournament second round at Indianapolis in the final game of Coach Nancy Fahey’s five years with the Illini. Fahey finished with a 42-99 overall record, including a 7-77 Big Ten mark.

Green and the Illini have changed the trajectory of their program by finding ways to maximize the strengths of several key players from a year ago while adding three impact transfers, including two who followed Green from her previous coaching stop at Dayton.

Makira Cook, a 5-6 junior who spent two seasons at Dayton, leads the Illini with 17.8 points per game. Cook was a second-team All-Atlantic 10 selection last season and a member of the A-10 All-Tournament team. She averaged 14.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.9 assists as a sophomore at Dayton.

Fellow Dayton transfer Brynn Shoup-Hill has joined the Illinois starting five. The 6-3 sophomore forward is averaging 6.5 points and 5.5 rebounds. Shoup is hitting better than 40 percent (29-72) of her three-point attempts on the season.

A third transfer, junior guard Genesis Bryant from NC State, has made a major impact by averaging 15.3 points and a team-leading 3.9 assists. She also ranks second among the Illini with 1.2 steals. The 5-6 Bryant is a knock-down shooter who has connected on 43.8 percent (57-130) of her three-point attempts.

While the new faces in the Illinois program have made impacts, returning players Kendall Bostic, Adalia McKenzie, Jada Peebles, Jayla Oden and Geovana Lopes have played major roles in the Illini’s success. Bostic, a 6-2 junior forward, is averaging a double-double with 10.5 points and a Big Ten-best 10.1 rebounds per game. She also leads the Illini with 41 blocks on the year.

Sophomore guard Adalia McKenzie has grown into one of the league’s most explosive wing players averaging 14.3 points and 6.4 rebounds while leading the Illini with 1.5 steals per game.

Senior Jada Peebles leads the Illini off the bench with 6.1 points while hitting a team-best 47.4 percent (37-78) from three-point range. Sophomore guard Jayla Oden has added 4.3 points as a part-time starter in the Illinois backcourt, while graduate forward Geovana Lopes gives the Illini a solid and experienced eight-player rotation.

As a team, Illinois is hitting 46 percent of its shots from the field, including a sizzling 37.7 percent from three-point range. The Illini also have hit 76.4 percent of their free throws. They own a plus-7.1 rebound margin and a plus-1.2 turnover margin. Illinois is averaging 77.3 while allowing 64.1 points per game on the season.

In Big Ten play only, the scoring margin for Illinois has narrowed to 73.0-70.8, while the rebound gap as shrunk to 36.5-34.2, but the Illini have expanded their turnover margin to plus-1.6. They have hit 43.3 percent from the field, including 32.8 percent from long range and 77.3 percent at the line.

Nebraska vs. Illinois Series History

Nebraska leads the all-time series with Illinois 18-5, including eight consecutive victories. 

Jaz Shelley led Nebraska with a career-high-tying 32 points and a school-record nine three-pointers in Nebraska’s 92-74 win over Illinois in the second round of the 2022 Big Ten Tournament in Indianapolis (March 3). Shelley added seven assists in a spectacular effort, hitting 11-of-16 shots from the field overall. Alexis Markowski added 22 points and nine rebounds in Coach Nancy Fahey’s last game leading the Illini. Isabelle Bourne (15) and Sam Haiby (10) both contributed double figures for the Big Red. Adalia McKenzie led Illinois with 18 points, and Jayla Oden contributed 14 off the bench.

Shelley also scored 21 points on five three-pointers in an 82-63 win in Champaign (Feb. 12, 2022). Isabelle Bourne added 17 points and seven rebounds. Sam Haiby was also outstanding with 10 points, eight rebounds, five assists, two steals and a block.

Nebraska is 15-3 against Illinois as Big Ten Conference foes, including 13-2 in Big Ten regular-season conference games. The last win in the series for Illinois came with a 79-70 decision over the Huskers at the Big Ten Tournament (March 1, 2017).

Nebraska owns four straight wins over the Illini in Champaign and six straight over Illinois at Pinnacle Bank Arena. NU is 8-1 against the Illini in Lincoln. The only Illinois win came with a 62-52 victory over the Huskers on Jan. 17, 2013.

The series dates back to an 89-86 Nebraska win over the Illini on March 3, 1982 at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

Husker Numbers to Watch

Sam Haiby is one assist away from No. 7 on the NU career list (444, Amy Stephens, 1985-89).

Isabelle Bourne (576) needs four rebounds to catch Catheryn Redmon at No. 21 on Nebraska’s career rebound list (580, 2008-11).

Sam Haiby is 28 points away (1,513) from matching Angie Miller for No. 12 on Nebraska’s all-time scoring list (1,541 points, 1984-87).

Isabelle Bourne is 11 points away from catching Kate Cain at No. 29 on NU’s scoring list (1,085, 2018-21) and 15 points from Nafeesah Brown at No. 28 (1,089, 1992-94). Issie’s older sister, Callie, recently reached the 1,000-point mark in her fifth season at Idaho State, achieving the milestone at San Diego (Nov. 25) in career game No. 118.

Sam Haiby needs nine rebounds to match Pyra Aarden (611, 1993-96) in 19th on Nebraska’s career rebound list. Haiby is 15 rebounds away from Carol Garey at No. 18 (617, 1979-80). 

Alexis Markowski is one point away from 700 and 14 rebounds away from 500 in her career.

Maddie Krull is four points away from 600 in her college career.

Injuries Altering Nebraska’s Season

While Nebraska is squarely in the hunt for a second straight NCAA Tournament bid (NET No. 39), the Huskers have had their journey through the season challenged with several injuries to key players.

Despite Nebraska returning five starters (Isabelle Bourne, Alexis Markowski, Jaz Shelley, Allison Weidner, Sam Haiby) from last year’s team that went 24-9 overall and 11-7 in the Big Ten, Haiby missed 10 of the first 11 games this season with a leg injury suffered in practice (Sept. 12).

Trinity Brady, a fourth-year guard, started the first eight games in place of Haiby, before Brady suffered a concussion in the first half of a loss at No. 9 Virginia Tech (Dec. 1). Brady has missed the last 15 games.

Despite the loss of Brady and the absence of Haiby, Nebraska notched an impressive 90-67 road win at No. 20 Maryland (Dec. 4) in the first start by Maddie Krull as a Husker.

However, prior to Nebraska’s next game with Wisconsin (Dec. 7), the Huskers lost Isabelle Bourne to an upper body injury suffered in practice. Bourne missed three games, as Annika Stewart made the first three starts of her career. Nebraska went 3-0 with wins over Wisconsin, Samford and Wyoming.

Bourne returned to the starting lineup for a 3OT win over Kansas (Dec. 21), but Allison Weidner suffered a season-ending leg injury early in the fourth quarter of the victory over the Jayhawks. Weidner has missed Nebraska’s last 10 games and underwent season-ending surgery (Jan. 10).

Weidner’s injury hastened the return of Sam Haiby to the starting lineup for Nebraska’s Big Ten loss to No. 14 Michigan (Dec. 28).

Nebraska was forced to make another adjustment to its starting five in a win at Purdue (Jan. 18), when Maddie Krull missed a start because of illness. Freshman Callin Hake made her first career start and played well with eight points and three rebounds. Krull also played huge off the bench, overcoming illness for one of her best performances of the season, finishing with 15 points in the victory over the Boilermakers.

The only two Huskers to start all 23 contests this season are Jaz Shelley and Alexis Markowski, despite Markowski battling multiple nagging injuries from preseason to the present. Shelley ranks second in the Big Ten with 35.2 minutes played per game.

Huskers Face Historic Strength of Schedule

Nebraska’s game with No. 10 Iowa (Jan. 28) was its ninth this season against an AP Top 25 team at game time, and the Huskers are scheduled to face at least two more current top-25 foes. If those numbers hold, it would give NU a school-record-tying 11 games against AP Top 25 teams. No other Nebraska team has ever faced more than 11 AP Top 25 opponents (2000-01). 

Since entering the Big Ten (2011-12), the Huskers had never played more than eight games in a season against AP Top 25 foes prior to this season.

Nebraska’s game with Iowa was its fourth against an AP Top 10 team this season. The Huskers have never faced more than five AP Top 10 teams in the same season, and the Huskers will meet current AP No. 6 Iowa again on Feb. 18 in Lincoln, after playing current No. 18 Michigan in Ann Arbor (Feb. 12).

Nebraska Notables

Isabelle Bourne recently became the 36th 1,000-point scorer in Nebraska history, achieving the milestone in the fourth quarter of NU’s win over Penn State (Jan. 11). She is just the 22nd player in NU history to achieve the combined career milestones of 1,000 points (1,074) and 500 rebounds (576) joining teammate Sam Haiby (1,513 points, 602 rebounds) in that prestigious group.

Sam Haiby is one of just four players in Nebraska history to rank among the school’s top 20 in points (13th, 1,513), rebounds (20th, 602) and assists (8th, 443). Haiby joins Maurtice Ivy, Anna DeForge and Emily Cady as the only other Huskers on that elite list.

Preseason All-Big Ten center and 2022 Big Ten Freshman of the Year Alexis Markowski (Lincoln, Neb.) is one of the Big Ten’s top rebounders, averaging 9.6 boards to go along with her 12.1 points per contest. The 6-3 center owns 11 double-doubles on the season and leads the Huskers with 23 blocks.

Jaz Shelley opened Big Ten play with 29 points in a road upset at No. 20 Maryland (Dec. 4), before pumping in 31 points in a win over Wisconsin (Dec. 7). She also had 21 points and five assists in a loss to No. 14 Michigan (Dec. 28). She just missed a triple-double with 10 points, 10 assists and eight rebounds in a win over Penn State (Jan. 11).

Nebraska has knocked down 10 or more threes on 10 occasions this season and is 10-0 when hitting double-digit threes. Nebraska’s most recent double-digit three-point effort came on 10-of-21 shooting at Northwestern (Feb. 6). The Huskers’ most recent double-digit effort inside Pinnacle Bank Arena came on 13-of-28 shooting against Penn State (Jan. 11). 

Kendall Moriarty put the exclamation point on the win over Penn State (Jan. 11) with a running, half-a-hook three from beyond halfcourt in the closing seconds to beat the shot clock. Moriarty’s improbable shot, which came on a Nebraska baseline inbounds play, was Scott Van Pelt’s “The Best Thing I Saw Today” on ESPN. 

Husker Nuggets

The Huskers have hit at least one three in 454 straight games dating back to a loss at UTEP on Dec. 20, 2008. Nebraska has hit at least two threes in 333 consecutive games.

Nebraska has hit 10 or more threes 22 times in the last 62 games, including 10 times in 2022-23. NU opened 2022-23 by hitting 14-of-34 threes in a win over Omaha (Nov. 7), before going 10-for-27 in a win over Houston Christian (Nov. 11). The Huskers added 11-for-28 long-range shooting in a win over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in Puerto Rico (Nov. 25), before knocking down 12-of-30 in a win over Mississippi State (Nov. 26). The Huskers hit 12-of-25 threes in a win at No. 20 Maryland (Dec. 4) and added 13-of-28 shooting in a win over Wisconsin (Dec. 7). NU knocked down double-digit threes for the third straight game on 11-of-29 shooting against Samford. The Huskers hit 10-of-17 threes in the second half alone to produce a third consecutive double-digit three-point performance for the first time in school history. NU added 10 threes, including three in triple OT in a win over No. 20 Kansas (Dec. 21). The Huskers connected on 13-of-28 threes in a run past Penn State (Jan. 11), before sinking 10-of-21 in a win at Northwestern (Feb. 6).

Through the first 20 seasons with the three-point shot in women’s basketball (1988-2007), Nebraska hit 10 threes in a game just six times (591 games).