Big Red Tip-Off

The Nebraska Athletic Department invites fans to get their first look at the 2014-15 Husker men’s and women’s basketball programs, as the Huskers will host the Big Red Tip-Off at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Wednesday, Oct. 29.

The fun and free event will feature scrimmages from both programs.  Doors at Pinnacle Bank Arena open at 5:45 p.m. while the program will begin at 6:30 p.m. with introductions of both teams. The Husker women will conduct a 15-minute scrimmage first before halftime festivities take place with a 3-point shooting contest between players from both teams, a dunk contest from the Husker men and a performance by the Scarlets. The Husker men will scrimmage for 15 minutes following halftime while the teams will have combined autograph session on the main concourse at the end of the event until 8:30 p.m. The men’s scrimmage will feature live commentary from Coach Miles, while Sports Nightly will broadcast its show during the 6 p.m. hour from Pinnacle Bank Arena.

Big Red Tip-Off Event Schedule

• 5:45 p.m. – Gates open
• 6:00 p.m. – Sports Nightly Broadcast from Pinnacle Bank Arena
• 6:30 p.m. – Introductions of both men’s and women’s teams
• 6:50 p.m. – Women’s scrimmage for 15 minutes
• 7:05 p.m. – Halftime show (3-point contest, dunk contest, Scarlets performance)
• 7:25 p.m. – Men’s scrimmage for 15 minutes
• 7:45 p.m. – Autograph session on concourse until 8:30 p.m. (4 areas of MBB/WBB players)

The Big Red Tip-Off marks the first opportunity to see the 2014-15 Huskers prior to the first exhibition games for the women (Wayne State on Nov. 2) and men (Southwest Minnesota State on Nov. 6). The Nebraska Athletic Ticket Office will have staff on hand to assist fans in purchasing women’s season tickets, or in answering questions about the men’s basketball waitlist or transferring tickets.

Hopes are high for both teams entering the 2014-15 season, as the Husker men return all five starters from a team that reached the NCAA Tournament, while the Husker women return four starters back from its Big Ten Tournament championship squad.

The Nebraska men have been a preseason top-25 selection by several publications coming off a year where the Huskers went 19-13 and reached the NCAA Tournament. Tim Miles, the reigning Big Ten Coach of the Year, welcomes back all five starters, including All-America candidate Terran Petteway and All-Big Ten performer Shavon Shields. Petteway led the Big Ten in scoring at 18.1 points per game while averaging 4.8 rebounds per game, while Shields averaged 12.8 points and a team-best 5.8 caroms per outing. It marks the first time since 2003-04 and just the third time in the last 15 years that the Huskers returned a pair of double-figure scorers. Forwards Walter Pitchford and David Rivers and guard Tai Webster round out the Husker returning starters. In all, Nebraska welcomes back nine letterwinners who return 81.5 percent of NU’s points and 85.6 percent of its rebounds from last season.  The Huskers also welcome a five-member recruiting class including transfers Moses Abraham (Georgetown) and Andrew White III (Kansas), as well as freshmen Jake Hammond, Tarin Smith and B.J. Day.

The Husker women return four starters who all earned All-Big Ten awards in 2014, led by first-team all-conference and honorable-mention All-American Rachel Theriot. The 6-0 point guard fueled Nebraska’s run to the Big Ten Tournament title by earning MVP honors. She is joined by second-team All-Big Ten selections Emily Cady and Tear’a Laudermill and Big Ten All-Defensive Team pick Hailie Sample. The returning Huskers helped Nebraska to a 26-7 overall record that included a 12-4 Big Ten mark in 2014. The Big Red advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament and finished in the top 25 in the national rankings for the third straight year. The four returning starters along with senior Brandi Jeffery and sophomores Allie Havers and Esther Ramacieri will be joined by the highest-ranked recruiting class in school history in 2014-15. NU’s seven-player group of newcomers give Coach Connie Yori a talented 14-player roster, which matches her second-largest squad in her 13 seasons at Nebraska.