LINCOLN, NEBRASKA. – The Panthers hit the road for the first time in the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) to a familiar tournament partner.
The last time UNI played the Nebraska Huskers in Lincoln in the postseason, the Panthers came out victorious with a two-point win in the first round of the 2016 WNIT. The two teams haven’t met since, but the Panthers will look to have the same magic at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Sunday afternoon. Fans wanting to watch the game on B1G+ will need a subscription for Sunday afternoon’s matchup.
THE PANTHERS:
– UNI started the WNIT with a bang in an 88-76 win over the Colorado State Rams. The Panthers had their best half of shooting all year at a 73% clip to push the game out of reach early. UNI led by as much as 24 in the third quarter.
– The Panthers head to Lincoln, Neb. for the first time in seven years for a matchup with the Nebraska Huskers. The last time UNI faced off against Nebraska was in the first round of the WNIT in 2016. The Panthers are 1-6 all-time against the Huskers with their lone win coming in the team’s last meeting.
– With an 88-point performance on Thursday night, UNI has set a new program record for most points in a season. The previous record was set by last year’s Panther team at 2,347 points in 34 games played. At only 32 games played, UNI has put up 2,404 points breaking last year’s record in their high-octane offensive performance against the Rams.
– Sophomore forward Grace Boffeli continues her All-MVC First Team season, setting a season-high in rebounds against the Rams on Thursday night. Boffeli grabbed 15 boards for her 15th double-double of the year. She is now two double-doubles away from tying the program record of 17 set by Alex Cook in 2002-2003.
THE HUSKERS:
– Nebraska comes into Sunday night’s game with a record of 17-14 and a Big Ten conference record of 8-10. The Huskers beat a familiar Missouri Valley Conference team in the first round of the WNIT on Wednesday, getting a nine-point win over the Missouri State Lady Bears.
– The Huskers have now played two MVC teams this year with a record of 1-1 against the conference. Nebraska played Drake back in the nonconference portion of the regular season and lost at the Knapp Center in Des Moines to the Bulldogs 80-62.
– Nebraska makes its 23rd program postseason appearance with its WNIT selection this year. Last year the Huskers made the NCAA Tournament, falling to no. 9 Gonzaga in the first round. This is Nebraska’s seventh appearance in the WNIT and its first since 2021.
– The Huskers are led by guard Jaz Shelley, an Australia native who has been with Nebraska since last season after transferring from Oregon. Shelley averages 14.6 points, 6.1 assists, and 1.6 steals per game and was named to the All-Big Ten First Team at the end of the regular season.
