The Nebraska women’s basketball team added a talented player to a roster that includes four returning All-Big Ten honorees, when Head Coach Amy Williams announced the signing of NCAA Division I two-year starting guard and Omaha native Maddie Krull to its 2022-23 roster on Tuesday, April 26.
Krull, a transfer from South Dakota, joins the Huskers with three years of eligibility remaining. The four-time Nebraska Class A all-state honoree out of Millard South High School started all 35 games for a Coyote team that advanced to the 2022 NCAA Sweet Sixteen. For the season, the 5-9 guard averaged 6.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.3 steals in 31.5 minutes per game.
A tough and versatile competitor, Krull had 13 points, three rebounds and four assists while playing the full 40 minutes in USD’s first-round NCAA Tournament victory over Ole Miss (March 18). She added six points, seven rebounds, two assists and three steals to help the Coyotes to a 61-47 upset of No. 7 Baylor (March 20) to propel them to the Sweet Sixteen.
“We are so excited to add Maddie Krull to our Husker family,” Williams said. “She is a winner who loves to compete. Every team she has has ever been a part of has been a winning team, and she carried that over into two very successful seasons to start her college career. Maddie was a key member of a team that went to the Sweet Sixteen, and we are happy to welcome her home to Nebraska. We can’t wait to have her competing as a Husker.”
Krull, who started all 60 games in her two-year career at USD, joins Nebraska returning starters Sam Haiby, Isabelle Bourne, Jaz Shelley, Alexis Markowski and Allison Weidner on Nebraska’s 2022-23 roster. The Big Red also return significant contributors from the 2021-22 season in Annika Stewart, Kendall Coley and Kendall Moriarty who helped the Huskers to a 2022 NCAA Tournament bid with a 24-9 overall record.
In 2021-22, Krull scored in double figures 10 times, including a season-high 16 points to go along with four assists, two rebounds and a career-high two blocked shots in a 73-71 win at Creighton (Dec. 16). Krull also knocked down a career-best four three-pointers on just five attempts against the eventual NCAA Elite Eight-qualifying Jays.
“I could not be more excited to represent my home state,” Krull said. “Being a Husker and wearing that N on my jersey is truly a dream come true for me. I’m so excited to start working with these coaches and this entire team!”
She added her first career double-double with 12 points and a career-high 11 rebounds in an overtime win over Pittsburgh (Nov. 27) at the Paradise Jam in the Virgin Islands. Krull closed her USD career with five points, seven rebounds and an assist in a low-scoring 52-49 loss to No. 12 Michigan in Wichita (March 26) while making her 60th consecutive start.
A member of the Summit League All-Newcomer Team as a true freshman at South Dakota, Krull helped the Coyotes win the Summit League Tournament title and advance to the 2021 NCAA Tournament. One of five Coyotes to play in all 25 games in 2020-21, she became the first freshman starter at USD since 2016. Along the way, she ranked fourth on the team by averaging 9.2 points per game, while adding 3.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game.
She scored in double figures 13 times, including a career-high 20 points in a win over North Dakota State (Feb. 27, 2021). She also put up 15 points on three other occasions during Summit League action. Krull made an instant impact by scoring 12 points on 6-of-9 shooting in her first collegiate game in a loss to No. 1 South Carolina (Nov. 28, 2020). She also had 14 points and a season-best eight rebounds in a win over Oral Roberts (Feb. 21, 2021). She ranked second among the Coyotes with 59 assists as a freshman, including a season-high six against Denver (Jan. 3, 2021).
In her two seasons with the Coyotes, Krull totaled 467 points (7.8 ppg), 235 rebounds (3.9 rpg), 134 assists (2.2 apg) and 72 steals (1.2 spg).
A top-100 recruit in the ESPN rankings, Krull was ranked No. 67 overall in the high school senior class of 2020. She finished her career at Millard South ranked No. 2 in school history with 1,312 points. She also set the Millard South record with 430 career assists and 304 steals.
She averaged 15 points, 4.5 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 5.0 steals per game as a senior for the Patriots in 2019-20. She averaged a high school career-best 15.5 points per contest as a junior. As a sophomore in 2017-18, Krull scored 30 points in a Class A state semifinal win over Lincoln East. A standout in the classroom as well, Krull was an Academic All-State selection and a National Honor Society member. She was also a two-time recipient of Millard South’s all-around student award. Krull also accumulated enough college credit to earn an associate degree along with her high school diploma.
