The No. 21 Nebraska women’s basketball team hopes to continue its strong Big Ten play in February while shooting for a season series sweep at Michigan on Thursday. Tip-off between the Huskers and Wolverines is set for 6 p.m.
Nebraska heads to Ann Arbor riding a four-game winning streak that began with an 84-51 win over Michigan in Lincoln. The Big Red surge included a win at Iowa and an overtime win at Wisconsin, before the Huskers notched a win over No. 24 Michigan State.
Nebraska has opened February with three straight wins, stretching its February winning streak to 11 games. NU’s last February loss came at Michigan State in 2012. Last season, the Huskers worked their way to a 57-39 win over Michigan in Ann Arbor. Nebraska is 13-4 overall and 7-2 on the road in February as a member of the Big Ten.
Last season, the Huskers went a perfect 7-0 in February to cap a 10-game winning streak that started with their 19th game of the season. Nebraska’s current four-game winning streak also started with its 19th game on the schedule. Over the last four games, the Big Red have outscored their opponents by an average of 77.8 - 61.0.
Michigan carries a 15-9 overall record and a 6-5 Big Ten mark into the season series rematch with Nebraska. After the loss to Nebraska, Michigan dropped a 16-point decision to Minnesota in Ann Arbor before rebounding with a 70-68 road win at Northwestern However, the Wolverines lost their third straight home game 65-56 to Purdue, despite leading the Boilermakers by 14 points in the first half.
Michigan is shooting 44.7 percent from the field and a glossy 38.1 percent from three-point range. The Wolverines are also shooting 74.8 percent from the line, including 76.8 percent in Big Ten play.
Nebraska leads the all-time series with Michigan 8-1
Probable Starters:
Nebraska Cornhuskers
3 - Hailie Sample - 6-1 - Jr. - F - 6.3 ppg
23 - Emily Cady - 6-2 - Jr. - F - 13.5
35 - Jordan Hooper - 6-2 - Sr. - F - 19.4
33 - Rachel Theriot - 6-0 - So. - G - 12.6
1 - Tear’a Laudermill - 5-9 - Jr. - G - 11.1
Michigan Wolverines
14 - Nicole Elmblad - 5-11 - Jr. - F/G - 12.0 ppg
22 - Cyesha Goree - 6-3 - Jr. - F - 11.1
34 - Val Driscoll - 6-4 - Sr. - F/C - 4.9
2 - Siera Thompson - 5-7 - Fr. - G - 13.9
5 - Shannon Smith - 5-7 - Jr. - G - 13.8
Jordan Hooper has pushed her career totals to 2,111 points and 1,023 rebounds. Hooper ranks second on the Nebraska career rebound chart with 1,023, moving past Kelsey Griffin (1,019) with six rebounds in the win over No. 24 Michigan State. Janet Smith owns the NU career record with 1,280 rebounds.
Emily Cady leads the conference in Big Ten games-only with 10.6 rebounds per game. In league play, Cady ranks 23rd in scoring (13.6 ppg), first in rebounding (10.6 rpg) ninth in assists (4.3 apg), and sixth in free throw percentage (.885) in conference play.
Emily needs 70 points to become the 29th player in Nebraska history to score 1,000 in her career.
During Nebraska’s four-game winning streak, Rachel Theriot is averaging 10.0 points and 9.5 assists with an astounding 5.4-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio (38-7).
Over the last four games, Tear’a Laudermill has averaged 20.0 points. She has hit a blistering 52.8 percent from the field, including 51.7 percent from three-point range.
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