NO. 14 NORTHWESTERN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: GAME INFORMATION
DATE	OPPONENT	TIME	LOCATION	WATCH	LIVE STATS
Sunday, Jan. 3	Nebraska	1:30 p.m. CST	Welsh-Ryan Arena (Evanston, Ill.)	Big Ten Network	SideArm
Social: Twitter (@NUWBBall and @NU_SportsLive) \| Instagram (@NUWBBall) \| Facebook Game Notes: Northwestern \| Nebraska BTN: Stephanie White and Lisa Byington

EVANSTON, Ill. - The No. 14 Northwestern Wildcats (11-2, 0-1) return home to Welsh-Ryan Arena to host Nebraska on Sunday, Jan. 3. Tip off is slated for 1:30 p.m. CST and will be broadcast live on Big Ten Network.

Fans, come going the #B1GCats for Minions Day! TIckets at the door are just $3 for anyone dressed in Minion attire. Stick around after the game as a post-game screening of Minions will be played on the videoboard.

Join the #B1GCats tomorrow for MINIONS DAY! The game will be followed by a viewing of "Minions" on the video board! pic.twitter.com/Rt9MY4Ymmu
— NU Women's Hoops (@nuwbball) January 2, 2016

SCOUTING NEBRASKA
Overall Record: 9-3, 0-1 B1G
All-Time Series Record: Nebraska leads 7-4
Notables
• Jessica Shepard earned her fifth Big Ten Freshman-of-the-Week award on Dec. 28. She swept the Big Ten Player and Freshman honors on Dec. 21, before being named the USBWA National Freshman of the Week (Dec. 22) and one of the "Starting Five" by NCAA.com (Dec. 23). She is averaging 20.2 points per game on the season.
• Rachel Theriot's 15 assists against California tied for the fourth-highest single-game total in school history and marked the second-best total of her career (18 vs. Minnesota, March 7, 2014).
• Nebraska closed non-conference play 9-0 at Pinnacle Bank Arena this season, stretching its home non-conference winning streak to 20 games.
• The Huskers dropped their Big Ten to Iowa opener despite 28 points and eight rebounds from Shepard.
• Nebraska is coming off a 2014-15 season that saw an NCAA Tournament apperance. The squad returns just two starters from last season.

STRONG START
The Wildcats won 10-straight games to open the season for the second-straight year. NU was one of just two Big Ten teams to open the season with 10-consecutive wins before dropping its first game of the year against No. 16 DePaul on Dec. 19. Northwestern closed out its non-conference slate with an 11-1 mark for the best start to a season under head coach Joe McKeown.

WILDCATS IN THE POLLS
Northwestern women's basketball tipped off the 2015-16 season ranked No. 19 in the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 Poll. The 'Cats have been ranked for eight-straight weeks to start the season and were ranked as high as No. 12 in the AP Poll. It marked the highest rankings since the 1991-92 season when the 'Cats were touted as high as 11. NU enters Big Ten play ranked No. 14 in the AP poll and No. 15 in the USA Today Coaches poll.

COFFEY ROLLS ALONG
Nia Coffey tallied her 1,000th-career point in the 'Cats season-opening win over Howard. The junior became the second active Wildcat to accomplish the feat, and joined eight other players in the Big Ten's 1,000-point club.

The junior was named to the 2015-16 Preseason All-Big Ten team, and was named First-Team All-Big Ten in 2015. Coffey scored in double figures in 31 contests during the 2014-15 season and poured in 20-plus points on seven occasions. Coffey was one of just two Big Ten Players to rank among the league's top 10 in points (15.2 ppg), rebounds (9.7 rpg) and blocks (1.8 bpg), while recording a team-best 14 double-doubles on the year.

This year, Coffey was named to the John R. Wooden Award Preseason Top-30 List. The list is comprised of 30 student-athletes who are the early front-runners for college basketball's most prestigious honor. She was also named to the The Naismith Trophy Early Season Watch List.

So far this year, the junior had recorded six 20+ point performances, including a season-high 27 points in the 'Cats home opener against Howard. Coffey has scored in double figures in 28-straight games, dating back to Jan. 22, 2015, and has averaged a team-best 18.3 points per game. She leads the Big Ten in double-doubles with eight and is one of just 20 current active Division I players with 29+ career double-doubles.

LYON LINES
Maggie Lyon has scored nearly half (690) of her 1,396 career points from 3-point range. Lyon is tied for second in program history in 3-point field goals made with 230 and is tied for second on NU's single-season record list with 83 triples during the 2014-15 season.

Lyon has led the 'Cats in scoring in five games this season, including career-best 31-point performance against North Carolina.

OH, DEAR(Y)!
Ashley Deary has had a stellar start to the 2015-16 season, recording double digit scoring in all 13 games this year. She led the 'Cats in scoring against Western Michigan (11/22/15) with a career-best 25 points and added a career-high 12 assists to mark a program single-game best. At North Carolina, Deary surpassed the 400-assists career mark and became just the fourth active Big Ten Player to accomplish the feat. She ranks third on the squad in scoring, averaging 14.9 points per game.

Ashley Deary recorded 10 steals against Eastern Washington to mark the second most by an individual in the NCAA to date this season. The junior leads the country in steals per game with 4.6 per contest.

TURNOVER FOR WHAT?!
In the Wildcats' non-conference finale against UMKC, NU committed just two turnovers while forcing 24. The 'Cats two turnovers were the fewest in Joe McKeown's coaching career and ties for the fewest among Division I teams this season. Northern Colorado also committed just two against Western State on Nov. 16.

LAST TIME OUT
Five Wildcats scored in double figures for the second time this season, but No. 14 Northwestern (11-2, 0-1 B1G) fell victim to a late Penn State (6-6, 1-0 B1G) run as the 'Cats dropped their Big Ten opener, 79-72, on New Years Eve at Bryce Jordan Arena. Junior Nia Coffey led the Wildcats with 20 points and 12 rebounds, good for her Big Ten-leading eighth double-double of the year. Classmate Ashley Deary recorded her third double-double of the season with 12 points and a game-best 10 assists, while senior Maggie Lyon poured in 14 points, junior Christen Inman tallied 13 and sophomore Lydia Rohde contributed a career-high 11 points.

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#B1GCats Host Nebraska for Big Ten Home Opener Sunday

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Next Event

Players Mentioned

Nia Coffey

Ashley Deary

Maggie Lyon

Northwestern University Athletics

Northwestern University Athletics

#B1GCats Host Nebraska for Big Ten Home Opener Sunday

••••••

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Nia Coffey

Ashley Deary

Maggie Lyon

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