Huskers Set for Battle with Bulldogs

Nebraska Cornhuskers (10-0, 1-0 Big Ten)

vs. Drake Bulldogs (7-2, 0-0 MVC)

Sunday, Dec. 19, 2021, Noon (CT)

Pinnacle Bank Arena – Lincoln, Nebraska

Tickets: Huskers.com / 800-8-BIG-RED
Free General Admission: Secure online or at arena 
Live TV: BTN (Larry Punteney, Brenda VanLengen)
Live Radio: Huskers Radio Network (11:45 a.m.)
Matt Coatney (PBP), Jeff Griesch (Analyst)
Lincoln (107.3 FM), Omaha (ESPN 590 AM), Huskers.com, Huskers App
Halftime Recognition: 2021 NCAA Runner-Up Volleyball Team
Special Event: Happy Husker Holidays
Pregame Presentation: Bella Cravens, Nebraska Graduate

Huskers Set for Sunday Showdown with Bulldogs 

The Nebraska women’s basketball team continues its three-game home stand with one of its biggest non-conference games of the season when the Big Red battles Drake on Sunday in Lincoln.

Tip-off between the Huskers (10-0, 1-0 Big Ten) and the Bulldogs (7-2) is set for Noon (CT) at Pinnacle Bank Arena with live television coverage by the Big Ten Network with Larry Punteney and Brenda VanLengen on the call. Matt Coatney and Jeff Griesch will call the action on the Huskers Radio Network (B107.3 FM, Lincoln; ESPN 590 AM, Omaha), Huskers.com and the Huskers App.

Nebraska Athletics will honor the 2021 NCAA Runner-up Husker Volleyball Team at halftime. The Big Red fell in a thrilling five-set national championship match on Saturday night in Columbus, Ohio, and will join the Husker women’s basketball team immediately after returning to Lincoln.

All general admission tickets acquired today online or at Pinnacle Bank Arena will be free to allow Husker fans to join in the volleyball celebration and support the women’s basketball team against Drake. 

The Huskers enters Sunday’s game as one of just seven remaining unbeaten teams in NCAA Division I women’s basketball. Nebraska is coming off a 78-50 win over Drake’s Missouri Valley Conference counterpart Indiana State on Saturday, Dec. 11. The win over the Sycamores gave NU just the second 10-0 start in school history, joining the Big Red’s 30-0 start by the 2009-10 team on its way to a Big 12 title and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. 

Only the 2009-10 team has ever produced an 11-game winning streak in the history of Nebraska women’s basketball.

Nebraska’s early season success is making waves nationally, with the Huskers sitting at No. 4 in the NET Rankings (Dec. 13).

The Huskers received 27 votes to rank No. 30 in the Associated Press Top 25 (Dec. 13), before climbing to No. 31 with 24 votes in the USA Today Coaches Top 25 (Dec. 14).

The Huskers lead the nation in defensive rebounds per game (33.4 rpg) and rank No. 3 nationally in field goal percentage (.484), while ranking No. 4 in both scoring margin (+30.5 ppg) and field goal percentage defense (.310). Overall, Nebraska ranks among the top 20 teams in the nation in 17 statistical categories, including scoring offense (6th, 84.1 ppg) 

Sophomore transfer Jaz Shelley (Moe, Australia) continues the outstanding start to her Husker career by averaging team bests of 15.2 points, 4.7 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.5 blocks while hitting 31-of-58 threes (.534). The 5-9 point guard also ranks second among the Huskers with 6.5 rebounds.

Shelley is the only Big Ten player to rank among the top 20 in the conference in all five major statistical categories: scoring (12th), rebounding (12th), assists (8th), blocks (3rd), steals (16th).

Nebraska Cornhuskers (10-0, 1-0 Big Ten)

14 – Bella Cravens – 6-3 – Jr. – F – 8.1 ppg, 7.6 rpg

34 – Isabelle Bourne – 6-2 – So. – F – 10.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg

0 – Ashley Scoggin – 5-7 – RSo. – G – 8.9 ppg, 1.3 rpg

1 – Jaz Shelley – 5-9 – So. – G – 15.2 ppg, 6.5 rpg

4 – Sam Haiby – 5-9 – Jr. – G – 9.3 ppg, 4.1 rpg

Off the Bench

40 – Alexis Markowski – 6-3 – Fr. – F/C – 8.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg

21 – Annika Stewart – 6-3 – Fr. – F – 5.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg    

3 – Allison Weidner – 5-10 – Fr. – G – 5.1 ppg, 3.7 rpg

32 – Kendall Coley – 6-2 – Fr. – F/G – 4.6 ppg, 3.0 rpg

5 – MiCole Cayton – 5-9 – Gr. – G – 3.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg

11 – Ruby Porter – 5-10 – Fr. – G – 2.9 ppg, 0.9 rpg

15 – Kendall Moriarty – 6-1 – Fr. – G – 2.2 ppg, 0.4 rpg

10 – Whitney Brown – 5-8 – Fr. – G – 2.1 ppg, 0.9 rpg

Head Coach: Amy Williams (Nebraska, 1998)

Sixth Season at Nebraska (82-75); 15th Season Overall (275-184)

Drake Bulldogs (7-2, 0-0 Missouri Valley)

42 – Maggie Bair – 6-3 – Jr. – F – 13.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg

43 – Grace Berg – 6-0 – RJr. – F – 11.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg

2 – Maddie Petersen – 5-8 – Gr. – G – 6.1 ppg, 2.7 rpg

10 – Katie Dinnebier – 5-8 – Fr. – G – 10.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg

11 – Megan Meyer – 5-8 – Jr. – G – 11.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg

Off the Bench

14 – Anna Miller – 6-3 – Fr. – F – 8.9 ppg, 5.7 rpg

32 – Courtney Becker – 6-0 – So. – F – 6.4 ppg, 6.3 rpg

15 – Allie Wooldridge – 6-1 – Sr. – F – 6.0 ppg, 2.2 rpg

23 – Maggie Phipps – 5-11 – Fr. – G – 4.6 ppg, 2.2 rpg

34 – Sara Beth Gueldner – 5-9 – Jr. – G – 3.4 ppg, 0.6 rpg

22 – Hannah Fuller – 5-8 – Gr. – G – 2.7 ppg, 2.9 rpg

12 – Ashley Iiams – 6-1 – Fr. – F – 1.0 ppg, 0.8 rpg

Head Coach: Allison Pohlman (Northern Iowa, 2000)

First Season at Drake & Overall (7-2)

Scouting the Drake Bulldogs

• First-year Drake Head Coach Allison Pohlman leads a red-hot Bulldogs team to Lincoln riding a six-game winning streak. Drake’s last loss came to nationally ranked Iowa State in Des Moines (98-76, Nov. 18). The Bulldogs also suffered a 61-46 loss to South Dakota at the Knapp Center, following an 82-79 home win over Creighton to open the season on Nov. 10.

• Although she is in her first season as the head coach at Drake, Pohlman has been a member of the Bulldog staff since 2007 and served as associate head coach under Jennie Baranczyk from 2014 to 2021. Baranczyk left Des Moines to lead the Oklahoma program for the 2021-22 season.

• Pohlman’s ties to the Missouri Valley Conference go back to her playing days when she was one of the top players in Northern Iowa history. She finished her career with 1,463 points, 711 rebounds, 278 assists and 274 steals. She was a three-time first-team All-MVC selection after earning a spot on the Valley’s All-Freshman Team in 1997.  She was the 2000 Valley Defensive Player of the Year and runner-up to Missouri State legend Jackie Stiles for the MVC’s Player-of-the-Year award.            

• This year’s Drake squad has featured a consistent starting five led by junior forward Maggie Bair, who has averaged 13.0 points and 6.0 rebounds in just 16 minutes per game.

• Fellow junior forward Grace Berg has pitched in 11.0 points and 4.3 rebounds, while Iowa transfer Megan Meyer leads the Bulldog backcourt with 11.6 points and 2.7 boards per contest. Meyer has knocked down a team-best 20 three-pointers this season.        

• Katie Dinnebier has added 15 threes at a 45.5 percent shooting clip to average 10.8 points, while also leading DU with 4.1 assists per game. Maddie Petersen (6.1 ppg, 2.7 rpg) rounds out the starting five.

• The Bulldog bench also has been extraordinarily productive early in the season. Anna Miller, a 6-3 freshman forward, is averaging 8.9 points and 5.7 rebounds in just 16 minutes per game.

• Sophomore Courtney Becker has pitched in 6.4 points and 6.3 rebounds, while senior forward Allie Wooldridge has added 6.0 points and 2.2 boards. Both Becker and Wooldridge are shooting better than 50 percent from the field.

• Freshman Maggie Phipps (4.6 ppg, 2.2 rpg), junior Sara Beth Gueldner (3.4 ppg, 0.6 rpg) and graduate student Hannah Fuller (2.7 ppg, 2.9 rpg) all add more production for the Bulldogs. 

• Drake ranks among the top 12 teams nationally with 9.7 threes per game, but only Meyer has averaged 2.0 threes per contest. A total of 11 Bulldogs have hit at least three threes this season.

• The Bulldogs are outscoring opponents by an average of 14.1 points per game while also carrying a plus-9.4 rebound margin. However, Drake owns a minus-2.9 team turnover margin while committing 18.1 turnovers per game.

• Drake defeated Creighton, 82-79, in the season opener in Des Moines (Nov. 10), before suffering its only two losses of the season in back-to-back home games to South Dakota (46-61) and Iowa State (76-98). The setback to South Dakota marks the only time that the Bulldogs have scored fewer than 75 points this season. USD held Drake to just 25.9 percent (15-58) shooting from the field.

Nebraska vs. Drake Series History

• Nebraska owns a narrow 11-10 lead in the all-time series with Drake, but the Bulldogs notched an 83-77 victory over the Huskers in the last meeting between the two teams on Nov. 7, 2018, at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

• Nebraska’s Sam Haiby and Drake’s Hannah Fuller were the only two current players for either team to compete in the last meeting between the two schools. Haiby scored 13 points on 4-of-7 shooting in 20 minutes off the bench in her first collegiate game, while Fuller played eight minutes and did not score for the Bulldogs.

• Drake’s victory snapped a 12-game win streak in season openers by the Huskers. It also marked the second straight win by the Bulldogs at Pinnacle Bank Arena, joining an 84-70 victory in Lincoln on Dec. 6, 2016.

• Drake actually owns a 7-5 lead in the all-time series with the Huskers in Lincoln, dating back to the first meeting between the two teams on March 1, 1980, which the Bulldogs won 71-65.

• Nebraska’s last win over Drake in Lincoln came with a 62-59 victory in the Postseason WNIT at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on March 16, 2006.

• Nebraska has answered with a 5-3 series mark on the road, including an 89-84 double-overtime win over the Bulldogs in Des Moines on Dec. 9, 2017. 

• The Huskers also own a 64-63 win over Drake in the only neutral site meeting between the two teams, which came on March 8, 1980. Although it was technically a neutral site game, it was also played in Des Moines.

Nebraska Numbers to Watch

• Through games Dec. 12, the Huskers ranked among the top 10 teams nationally in win-loss percentage (1.000, 1 of 10/1 of 2 10-0), defensive rebounds per game (1st, 33.4 rpg), field goal percentage (3rd, .484), field goal percentage defense (4th, .310), scoring margin (4th, +30.5 ppg), free throw attempts (5th, 232), free throws made (6th, 164), scoring offense (6th, 84.1 ppg), assists (9th, 195), assists per game (10th, 19.5 apg) and rebounds per game (10th, 46.2 rpg).  

• Nebraska guard Jaz Shelley ranks among the top 16 players in the Big Ten in scoring (12th, 15.2 ppg), rebounding (12th, 6.5 rpg), assists (8th, 4.7 apg), blocked shots (3rd, 1.5 bpg), steals (16th, 1.6 spg), three-point field goal percentage (2nd, .534), three-pointers made per game (2nd, 3.1), assist-to-turnover ratio (4th, 2.5) and free throw percentage (12th, .781).

• Husker shooters Jaz Shelley (2nd, 3.1 pg) and Ashley Scoggin (12th, 2.0 pg) rank among the top players in the Big Ten in three-point field goals made per game.

• Nebraska’s backcourt has been strong taking care of the ball while creating opportunities for their teammates. Sam Haiby (2.5) and Jaz Shelley (2.5) rank No. 3 and 4 in the Big Ten in assist-to-turnover ratio based on the NCAA and Big Ten minimum of 3.0 assists per game. However, Husker reserves Ruby Porter (4.7) and Allison Weidner (3.5) own better assist-to-turnover ratios than Haiby and Shelley.

• Through 10 games, Nebraska ranks sixth nationally in scoring offense with 84.1 points per game. The only time in the last 25 years that Nebraska has averaged more than 75 points per game in a season came in 2009-10 (77.4 ppg). That Husker team went unbeaten in the regular season, won the Big 12 regular-season title and advanced to Nebraska’s first NCAA Sweet Sixteen as a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

• Point guard Jaz Shelley has pulled down 65 total rebounds in 271 minutes this season. In two seasons (971 minutes) at Oregon (2019-20, 2020-21), the 5-9 Shelley totaled 70 rebounds.

• Jaz Shelley leads Nebraska with 15 blocked shots through 10 games, nearly tripling her two-year total at Oregon (6) in 55 games with 12 starts. 

Nebraska Streaks

• Nebraska heads into Sunday’s game with Drake on a 10-game winning streak, marking just the second time in school history the Huskers have opened a season 10-0, joining NU’s 2009-10 squad that started 30-0, won the Big 12 title and earned a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.

• Nebraska’s last 10-game winning streak came from Jan. 20 through Feb. 28, 2013, when the Huskers reeled off 10 consecutive Big Ten Conference victories.

• The Huskers are riding a seven-game home winning streak, dating back to an 87-72 victory over Penn State in last year’s regular-season home finale at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Feb. 21, 2021. 

• The last time Nebraska had a home winning streak of longer than seven games came with a nine-game home winning streak in 2015-16.

• Sam Haiby has scored in 92 of 95 games in her Husker career. She had scored at least two points in 53 consecutive games for Nebraska before being held scoreless without a field goal attempt against Drexel (Nov. 27). The last time she had been held scoreless also came at a Thanksgiving Tournament against USC at the South Point Shootout on Nov. 29, 2019. The Huskers won that game 67-54. She was also held scoreless in a 70-69 loss at Wisconsin on Jan. 27, 2018. 

• Haiby has scored in double figures in back-to-back games for the Big Red.

• Jaz Shelley has produced double-figure points in six consecutive games, the longest current double-digit scoring streak by a Husker.

• The Huskers have knocked down at least one three in 408 straight games dating back to a loss at UTEP on Dec. 20, 2008. Nebraska has hit at least two three-pointers in 287 consecutive games.

Cravens Claims Nebraska Diploma

• Bella Cravens will earn her bachelor’s degree as a communication studies major at Nebraska on Saturday, Dec. 18 at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Cravens, a junior from Laie, Hawaii, spent her first two seasons at Eastern Washington, before completing her degree in three semesters (3 1/2 total years) from Nebraska.

• Cravens continues the Nebraska women’s basketball program’s impressive academic success. The Huskers have posted a 100 percent Graduation Success Rate in 17 consecutive seasons, including the most recent announcement in November of 2021.

• Coach Amy Williams will honor Cravens for the accomplishment in a brief pregame ceremony at center court on Sunday.

Marginal Differences

• Nebraska enters the game against Drake with a combined 10-game victory margin of 305 points – the largest of any 10-game opening stretch in school history, surpassing the 256-point margin by NU’s 2009-10 team.

• The largest combined cumulative margin of any 10-game stretch in school history came from the 2009-10 team in Games 3-12, when the Huskers won 10 games by 315 total points.

Deep Bench Boosts Big Red

• The Husker bench has outscored opponent reserves 332-165 (+16.7 ppg) through 10 games, including a 251-119 edge (+22.0 ppg) in six games at Pinnacle Bank Arena

• All 13 Huskers are averaging better than 8.0 points per 40 minutes, including four Huskers (Annika Stewart, 25.3 pp40; Alexis Markowski, 24.1 pp40; Jaz Shelley, 22.3 pp40 and Isabelle Bourne, 21.4 pp40) who are averaging better than 20 points per 40 minutes. 

• No Husker ranks among the top 25 players in the conference in minutes per game. Jaz Shelley leads Nebraska with 27.2 minutes per game, while Jada Peebles from Illinois ranks 25th in the conference (29.8 mpg).