12-3-07 NU BBall Report

We’ve seen enough college basketball so far to get a good feel for everything. Based on how your team has played so far, how would you adjust your preseason predictions?

The Huskers are 5-1 at this juncture in the year. This is almost on pace for where I thought we’d be. Unfortunately, we lost out intrastate rivalry game to Creighton by 12. Simply, we started the game poorly and could not recover. (Sr C #21) Aleks Maric did not live up to his Preseason All Big XII status. He had a horrific game. On the other hand, this past weekend the Huskers upset Arizona State, a team boasting two High School All Americans. The game was a resounding for the win. At one point, the Huskers were 2 away from doubling up the Devils. The defense was absolutely tenacious. So, we are about where I would expect us to be record wise. The offense has not been as good as I expected, but we are still growing. Based on this, I still think we can get near 20 wins though it may be more of a struggle than I thought. When this team’s shots fall and keep Doc Sadler’s tenacity, it will be dangerous to the remaining squads on the roster. I’m not quite saying “look out KU,” but we have the potential to cause problems and make it to the postseason.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of your team?

Strengths – Effort, effort effort – Coach Doc Sadler does not let this team have a night off. They will dive fore every ball. They have the most talent in few real games, but they will be very hard working. Simply, Nebraska is blue collar, and the team is blue collar. Second, this team seems to have good chemistry. From watching the bench and the floor during games, the team encourages one another and communicates well. It has not come through all the time on offense, but they are progressing. Third, they are young and have potential. The starting lineup has 2 JUCO juniors, 1 senior, 1 sophomore, and 1 true freshman. That senior is the only senior on the team. We are also redshirting 4 players this year. Without question, Doc is building a program, not a team.

Weaknesses – We have improved athletically from last year by a lot, but we are still not there. We can win upset games fairly well, but we will never be a Big XII favorite until we make more upgrades. The team is making progress in this area, but it will simply require Doc putting in the time on the recruiting trail. Also, big man depth is an issue. Aside from (Sr C #21) Aleks Maric, there is still no proven underneath threat. (Jr C 20) Shang Ping and (Soph PF #32) Chris Balham have shown some flashes but have also made some horrible plays. Finally, as mentioned above, there has been little offensive continuity this year. The team has not slashed to the basket very well, and the outside shooting has been sporadic at best. To me, this is mainly due to 3 new starters. I think we have improved since the first game and will continue to do so.

What games are coming up? What’s going to happen?

Dec. 5 at Western Kentucky (FSNMW) 7:00 -- This will be the first game outside of Nebraska for the Huskers. WKU is a tough team that has been to the tournament in the past. I think the Huskers can win, but it will be a struggle with the lack of road experience on the team. Maric MUST play better than he did in the Creighton game.

Dec. 9 Rutgers 2 p.m. – This could be a slugfest with two scrappy teams. Hopefully, a Devaney Center crowd makes the difference in this game which I think could be a tight one. The Huskers will need to come out swinging and shooting to win this game.

Dec. 11 Savannah State 7 p.m. – This is one of the few remaining cupcake games. I would expect this to be a tune-up game before the big clash with Oregon in Omaha the next weekend. Look for the Huskers to try some things to confuse the Ducks the next game.


How quickly will we get turned around on offense?

Hopefully, this will happen soon. I think it takes time. It seems to me that (Fr PG #24) Cookie Miller has been a little bit restrained by Doc until he faced the fire. This 5’7” point guard can flat out play when he is given the chance. I think, as the season progresses, he will be given more freedom to improvise and drive. With this, we will get better kick out opportunities, thus better production. To me, point guard play, particularly that of Miller, will be key to our offensive success this season. He has the potential and the skills.

Any recruiting news?

The Huskers inked two players for the ’08 class during the early signing period. This is one over our scholarship limit, so look for some more roster changes in the off-season. First, the Huskers signed 7’0 Chris Niemann, a German club player. He will need to put on some weight but looks to be a good get since we are losing Maric. However, he will have qualification issues, as two of his club teammates have been ineligible because member of the team were paid. This could be a problem. The second signee is a HUGE one of the Huskers. Roburt Sallie is a 6’5” wing player who committed to the Huskers but did not qualify out of prep school, so he has been at JUCO this year. He has offers from Memphis, Washington, KU, and others. However, he stayed loyal to us because we supported him. Reports say he is very athletic, a slasher, and can play above the rim. These should be nice additions for the program.