The Nebraska women’s basketball team returns to Pinnacle Bank Arena on Thursday night hunting for another Big Ten Conference home win when the Huskers take on Wisconsin. Tip-off between the Huskers (12-2, 2-1 Big Ten) and the Badgers (9-5, 1-2 Big Ten) is set for 7:05 p.m. (CT) with tickets on sale now at Huskers.com.
Nebraska notched its second Big Ten home win with a 72-58 victory over then-No. 24 Minnesota on Saturday at Pinnacle Bank Arena.
Kate Cain, a Lisa Leslie Award candidate, continued her strong open to Big Ten play with season highs of 19 points and 15 rebounds to go along with six blocked shots. In league play, Cain is averaging 15.0 points, 13.7 rebounds and 3.7 blocks. She leads the Big Ten in blocks per game while matching Wisconsin’s Imani Lewis for the conference lead in rebounding during league play.
Cain claimed her first spot on the Big Ten Weekly Honor Roll (Jan. 6) by averaging 14.5 points, 14.5 rebounds and 5.0 blocks last week. She hit 70 percent (14-20) of her shots from the field.
Hannah Whitish played big for the Huskers in the win over Minnesota with a season-high 17 points while matching her season high with five three-pointers. The senior from Barneveld was the 2016 Wisconsin High School Player of the Year. She is the first Husker in history to reach the combined career milestones of 1,000 points (1,084), 400 assists (416) and 200 three-pointers (223).
Sophomore guard Sam Haiby (Moorhead, Minn.) added 17 points against her home state school and leads Nebraska in scoring in Big Ten play (15.3 ppg).
Fellow sophomore Leigha Brown leads Nebraska overall in scoring this season at 13.7 points per game off the bench. She is a leading contender for Big Ten Sixth Player of the Year honors, and is the only Big Ten player to rank among the top 30 in the league in scoring without making a start.
Nebraska vs. Wisconsin Series History
• Nebraska leads the all-time series with Wisconsin, 9-7, including a 51-48 win over the Badgers at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Feb. 11, 2018. All nine of Nebraska’s victories over the Badgers have come as Big Ten foes.
• The Badgers have won back-to-back games against the Huskers in Madison, including the 70-69 win over the Huskers at the Kohl Center on Jan. 27, 2019. Nicea Eliely hit a driving layup with 0.7 seconds left to give the Huskers a 69-67 lead, before Kelly Karliss answered with a three-pointer in front of the Wisconsin bench as time expired. Taylor Kissinger led Nebraska with 15 points, while Kate Cain added 14 points and seven rebounds. Hannah Whitish and Nicea Eliely each had 12 points. Marsha Howard led Wisconsin with 18 points and seven boards.
• Wisconsin rolled to an 82-56 win over the Huskers in Madison on Feb. 9, 2017, for the largest margin of victory in the series. Despite the back-to-back wins for the Badgers in Madison, the Huskers have won nine of the last 11 meetings in the series.
• Nebraska meets Wisconsin at the Kohl Center in Madison on Saturday, Jan. 25, at 11 a.m. (CT) in a game televised by BTN.
• The Huskers are 9-2 against the Badgers as Big Ten Conference opponents, including 5-0 in Lincoln and 3-0 at Pinnacle Bank Arena. Nebraska is 4-2 against Wisconsin at the Kohl Center. Nebraska’s first three wins at the Kohl Center were by a combined nine points, including a 71-70 OT win on Feb. 5, 2014, a 55-53 win on Feb. 28, 2013, and a 75-69 win on Jan. 12, 2012 – the first meeting between the schools as Big Ten foes.
• Wisconsin won the first five meetings between the two school as non-conference opponents, including a pair of overtime victories at the Devaney Center in Lincoln and three wins in Madison. All five of the non-conference meetings between the schools were decided by 10 or fewer points.
• Overall, 12 of the 16 all-time meetings have been decided by 10 or fewer points, including three overtime contests.
