Huskers Open Regular Season with Omaha Monday

The No. 23 Nebraska women’s basketball team opens 2024-25 regular-season play by taking on Omaha on Monday, Nov. 4 in Lincoln.

Tip-off between the Huskers (23-12, 11-7 Big Ten, 2023-24) and the Mavericks (8-23, 3-13 Summit, 2023-24) is set for a noon (CT) following Nebraska’s annual Life Skills Sportsmanship Pep Rally at Pinnacle Bank Arena.

As of the final day of open registration (Oct. 21), a record 75 schools from around the state had registered to participate with more than 3,800 middle grade students and accompanying adults expected to attend the event, which begins at 9:30 a.m. The Life Skills program, which features messages from Husker student-athletes, including Coach Amy Williams, Alexis Markowski, Allison Weidner, Kendall Moriarty and Kendall Coley, along with volleyball’s Merritt Beason and Bergen Reilly, track’s Micaylon Moore and Niko Schultz and baseball’s Drew Christo and Caleb Clark, will last approximately one hour.

Doors to Pinnacle Bank Arena will open 60 minutes prior to tip rather than the normal 90-minute opening so students attending the rally can be relocated inside the arena for the basketball game. Concessions at PBA also will be taking cash payments to accommodate students.

Nebraska women’s basketball Starting 5 Packs and Single-Game Tickets are on sale now at Huskers.com or during regular business hours Monday-Friday by calling 1-800-8-BIG-RED.

A live video stream of the game will be provided to subscribers of B1G+. Nebraska fans can listen across the Huskers Radio Network, including 107.3 FM in Lincoln and 590 AM in Omaha, the Huskers App and Huskers.com, as Matt Coatney and Jeff Griesch begin their 24th season together calling all the action of Nebraska women’s basketball. Pregame starts at 11:30 a.m. (CT).

The Huskers enter the 2024-25 season following their best season in a decade. Nebraska fought its way to the second round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament after running to the Big Ten Tournament Championship Game in Minneapolis.

The Huskers, who are ranked No. 23 in the Associated Press and USA Today/WBCA preseason polls, are led by returning first-team All-Big Ten performer Alexis Markowski. The 6-3 center out of Lincoln Pius X High School earned her third consecutive first-team preseason All-Big Ten nod after averaging team bests of 15.7 points and 10.5 rebounds for the Big Red as a junior.

Markowski was also named one of 50 preseason candidates for the Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy for the third consecutive season when the watch list was announced on Monday, Oct. 28.

Reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Year Natalie Potts joined Markowski in the starting lineup for all 35 games last season. The 6-2 forward from O’Fallon, Mo., was an eight-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week and averaged 10.2 points and 5.5 rebounds for the Huskers.

Fellow Big Ten All-Freshman selection Logan Nissley also returns. The 6-0 shooting guard from Bismarck, N.D., averaged 7.0 points and 2.1 rebounds in her first season. Nissley started Nebraska’s final 10 games and led the Big Red with 16 points in a first-round NCAA win over Texas A&M.

The Huskers are also eager for the return of 2022-23 starter Allison Weidner (Humphrey, Neb.), along with the much-anticipated debut of two-time Nebraska High School Player of the Year Britt Prince (Elkhorn North High School) to the Husker backcourt.

Nebraska opened the season with an 89-52 exhibition win over Doane on Sunday, Oct. 27 at PBA. Markowski led the Big Red with 16 points, 10 rebounds and three assists, while Prince pitched in 12 points, two assists and three steals. Newcomer Alberte Rimdal put three Huskers in double figures with 10 points, while Potts contributed nine points, seven rebounds, two blocks and two steals. Weidner pitched in seven points, two rebounds, two assists and three steals, while Jessica Petrie added nine points and eight rebounds.

23/23 Nebraska Cornhuskers (0-0)
vs. Omaha Mavericks (0-0)
Monday, November 4, 2024, Noon (CT)
Pinnacle Bank Arena - Lincoln, Nebraska
Life Skills Sportsmanship Pep Rally (9:30 a.m.)
Live Video: B1G+
Live Radio: Huskers Radio Network (11:30 a.m.)
Matt Coatney (PBP), Jeff Griesch (Analyst)
Lincoln (107.3 FM), Omaha (590 AM), Huskers.com, Huskers App

23/23 Nebraska Cornhuskers (23-12, 11-7 Big Ten, 2023-24)
22 - Natalie Potts - 6-2 - So. - F - 10.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg
40 - Alexis Markowski - 6-3 - Sr. - C/F - 15.7 ppg, 10.5 rpg
3* - Allison Weidner - 5-10 - RJr. - G - 10.2 ppg, 6.2 rpg
5** - Alberte Rimdal - 5-9 - Sr. - G - 7.2 ppg, 1.5 rpg
23 - Britt Prince - 5-11 - Fr. - G - HS
Off the Bench
2 - Logan Nissley - 6-0 - So. - G - 7.0 ppg, 2.1 rpg
4 - Kennadi Williams - 5-4 - Fr. - G - HS
12 - Jessica Petrie - 6-2 - So. - F - 3.8 ppg, 2.0 rpg
14 - Callin Hake - 5-8 - Jr. - G - 6.1 ppg, 2.8 rpg
15 - Kendall Moriarty - 6-1 - Sr. - G - 3.1 ppg, 1.3 rpg
32 - Kendall Coley - 6-2 - Gr. - F/G - 2.2 ppg, 1.7 rpg
33 - Amiah Hargrove - 6-2 - Fr. - F - HS
44 - Petra Bozan - 6-3 - Fr. - F/C - HS
Head Coach: Amy Williams (Nebraska, 1998)
Ninth Season at Nebraska (137-111); 18th Season Overall (330-220)
*Nebraska 2022-23 statistics; **Florida 2023-24 statistics

Omaha Mavericks (8-23, 3-13 Summit League, 2023-24)
1 - Aaliyah Moore - 6-1 - Sr. - F - 1.6 ppg, 1.9 rpg
22 - Cora Olsen - 5-9 - So. - F - 5.4 ppg, 2.5 rpg
24 - Morgann Gardner - 6-2 - Sr. - F - 7.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg
14 - Katie Keitges - 5-8 - Gr. - G - 6.3 ppg, 1.7 rpg
20 - Grace Cave - 5-7 - Sr. - G - 12.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg
Off the Bench
2 - Lauren Perry - 5-7 - Jr. - G - JUCO
13 - Alana Powell - 5-8 - So. - G - JUCO
0 - Harriet Ford - 6-3 - Fr. - C - HS
11 - Ali Stephens - 5-11 - So. - F - 1.4 ppg, 0.8 rpg
Head Coach: Carrie Banks (Detroit Mercy, 2000)
Fifth Season at Omaha (37-72); Fifth Season Overall (37-72)

Scouting The Omaha Mavericks
• Carrie Banks enters her fifth season leading Omaha, after the Mavericks struggled to an 8-23 overall record, including a 3-13 mark in the Summit League in 2023-24.

• Senior Grace Cave, a 5-7 guard from Weeping Water, Neb., returns to fuel the Maverick backcourt. Cave led Omaha in scoring (12.3 ppg), assists (3.3 apg) and steals (1.5 spg), while ranking second on the team with 4.0 rebounds per game last season. Cave led the Mavs with a game-high 26 points on 4-of-7 three-point shooting while adding four assists in a 96-79 exhibition loss at Drake (Oct. 27). Cave had six points and two rebounds in 19 minutes as a starter in Omaha’s season-opening loss at Nebraska (Nov. 7, 2022).

• Fellow returning starting Katie Keitges adds more experience to the backcourt. The 5-8 graduate guard from Knoxville, Iowa, averaged 6.3 points while leading the team with 55 three-pointers (.393) a year ago. She also led the team with 26 starts. Keitges managed seven points on 2-of-3 three-point shooting while adding three assists in the exhibition loss at Drake. Keitges had three points, three rebounds and two assists in 24 minutes in the 2022-23 opener at Nebraska (Nov. 7, 2022).

• Millard South grad Cora Olsen returns for her sophomore season after starting 11 games as a freshman. The 5-9 forward managed 5.4 points and 2.5 rebounds in just over 15 minutes per game in 2023-24. She was UNO’s second-leading scorer with 13 points in 30 minutes at Drake (Oct. 27).

• Newcomer Aaliyah Moore, a 6-1 senior transfer from Loyola Chicago, added seven points in the exhibition loss to the Bulldogs. Moore also led the Mavs with seven rebounds.

• Senior Morgann Gardner rounds out Omaha’s probable starting five. The 6-2 forward from Racine, Wis., had four points and three rebounds at Drake after averaging 7.1 points and 3.5 rebounds for the Mavs last season. Gardner led UNO with a 48.2 field goal percentage a year ago, including 15-for-37 (.405) shooting from long range. Gardner had three points, two rebounds and an assist as the only other active Mav joining Cave and Keitges who played against the Huskers in the 2022-23 opener.

• While Gardner, Cave, Keitges and Olsen give Omaha four returning players with starting experience, the only other returning player on the Mav roster is sophomore Ali Stephens. The 5-11 forward averaged 1.4 points after playing in 13 games last season.

• Omaha has replaced nine players off last year’s roster with 10 newcomers. Only four of those newcomers saw action in the exhibition game at Drake. In addition to the start for Division I transfer Aaliyah Moore, junior college transfer Lauren Perry produced double figures with 10 points in 22 minutes off the bench. The 5-7 guard from Sylvania, Ohio, played at Lakeland Community College in Kirtland where she was the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference Player of the Year, Playmaker of the Year and first-team All-OCCAC after averaging 17.6 points, 6.1 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 4.3 steals as a sophomore for the Lakers.

• Fellow junior college guard Alana Powell managed seven points on 1-of-8 shooting at Drake. She also dished out three assists while going 5-for-5 at the free throw line in her Division I debut. Powell played at the Community College of Baltimore County-Essex last season.

• Australian Harriet Ford had two points and six rebounds in 15 minutes off the bench for Omaha at Drake. The 6-3 center from Perth also went 1-for-8 from the field.

• Ford is one of five freshmen on the Omaha roster, including Kyana Weir (Perth, Australia), Daria Shelby (Canton, Mich.), Paige Horne (Scottsbluff, Neb.), Kendyl Delimont (Ainsworth, Neb.).

• Moore, Perry and Powell are joined by senior guard Ja Harvey (Fresno State) and junior guard Mar Vidal (Felician University) as transfers into the Maverick program. Harvey averaged 8.8 points in 29 games for Fresno State last year. She led the Bulldogs with 53 steals and hit 35 percent (22-63) of her three-pointers. She also ranked second on the squad with 51 assists. Vidal averaged 9.0 points and 4.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists and NCAA Division II Felician last year.

Nebraska vs. Omaha Series History
• Nebraska leads the all-time series with Omaha 17-9, including a 100-36 win in the most recent meeting with the Mavs in the 2022-23 season opener at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Nov. 7, 2022.

• Isabelle Bourne led five Huskers in double figures with 21 points as Nebraska rolled to the largest season-opening victory margin in school history. Nebraska sank 14 threes with 10 different Huskers hitting at least one shot from long range. Allison Weidner (19), Maddie Krull (18), Alexis Markowski (13), Annika Stewart (10) rounded out the Huskers in double figures. Current Huskers Kendall Coley (5), Kendall Moriarty (3) and Callin Hake (3) all found the scoring column for the Big Red.

• Monday’s opener will mark just the fourth regular-season meeting between the two University of Nebraska system schools since 1987. The Huskers battled their way to a 66-58 win over the Mavs at PBA on Nov. 22, 2016, after beating Omaha 80-44 at the Devaney Center on Nov. 26, 2010.

• In the only meeting in Omaha since 1980, the Mavs clawed their way to a 76-74 win over the Huskers on Dec. 20, 1986. It is the lone win for UNO in the last six meetings with the Big Red.

• The last time Omaha defeated the Huskers in Lincoln came on Jan. 30, 1980, when the Mavericks managed a 66-62 victory at the Devaney Center.

• The series between the Huskers and Mavs dates to the second recorded game in Nebraska women’s basketball history, when UNO defeated NU 47-41 in Lincoln (Dec. 4, 1974). The Huskers also played their third game against UNO, suffering a 48-47 defeat to the Mavs in Omaha (Jan. 17, 1975).

• The Huskers avenged the two early losses with a 71-54 neutral site victory over Omaha (March 19, 1975) in one of three meetings with the Mavs in the 1974-75 season, which was a partial schedule played the year prior to Nebraska women’s basketball’s first full varsity season in 1975-76.

• The Huskers and Mavs faced each other 19 times in the 1970s, with Nebraska going 12-7 in those meetings. The Huskers are 5-2 against Omaha since 1980.

Husker History of Home-Opening Success
• Nebraska owns a history of season-opening success on the Huskers’ home court. NU improved to 47-3 in home season openers with a 90-42 win over Northwestern State on Nov. 6, 2023.

• NU is 10-1 at Pinnacle Bank Arena in season openers, including a 100-36 victory over Omaha (Nov. 7, 2022). Nebraska’s lone loss came on Nov. 7, 2018, with an 83-77 setback to Drake. In the first regular-season game in the history of Pinnacle Bank Arena, Nebraska powered its way to a 77-49 win over UCLA on Nov. 8, 2013, in front of a Husker opening-day record crowd of 9,750 in the first Nebraska Life Skills Sportsmanship Pep Rally associated with women’s basketball.

• Nebraska’s only season-opening home losses have come to Drake (2018), South Dakota State (Nov. 19, 2005) and Kansas (Nov. 21, 1980).

• Nebraska has been strong in its first four home games every season. In fact, NU is 174-26 (.870) over 50 seasons in its first four home contests, including 43-7 in Game No. 2, 40-10 in Game No. 3 and 44-6 in Game No. 4.

Markowski Named to Naismith Watch List
• Nebraska’s Alexis Markowski was among the 50 women’s college basketball players named to the Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy Watch List, announced by the Atlanta Tipoff Club on Oct. 28.

• Markowski, a 6-3 center out of Lincoln Pius X High School, earned her third consecutive appearance on the Naismith Trophy preseason list.

• A three-time preseason first-team All-Big Ten selection, Markowski earned first-team All-Big Ten honors a year ago after averaging 15.7 points and 10.5 rebounds for the Huskers. She also earned a spot on the Big Ten All-Tournament Team after powering the Big Red to the Big Ten Championship Game.

• A Lisa Leslie Center-of-the-Year Award candidate as a sophomore and junior, Markowski was a second-team All-Big Ten selection as both a freshman and sophomore. She was also the 2022 Big Ten Freshman of the Year.

Markowski Earns Preseason All-Big Ten Honors
• Nebraska’s Alexis Markowski captured Preseason All-Big Ten honors for the third consecutive season when the conference announced its annual awards on Thursday, Sept. 26.

• Markowski, a 6-3 center from Lincoln, Neb., was one of 10 players across the conference’s 18 teams to earn preseason recognition from both the Big Ten coaches and media. She also earned preseason All-Big Ten honors as a junior in 2023-24 and as a sophomore in 2022-23, after being named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year following the 2021-22 season.

• A two-time Lisa Leslie Award candidate, Markowski claimed first-team All-Big Ten honors at the conclusion of a 2023-24 season when she led Nebraska to an appearance in the Big Ten Championship Game and a trip to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

• Markowski, who led Nebraska with team-best averages of 15.7 points and 10.5 rebounds while starting all 35 games for the 23-12 Huskers in 2023-24, produced 19 double-doubles a year ago to push her career total to 40. She has matched Husker first-team All-Americans Kelsey Griffin (2006-10) and Jordan Hooper (2011-14) for Nebraska’s career double-doubles record.

• Markowski earned a spot on the 2024 Big Ten All-Tournament Team by averaging 16.5 points, 11.3 rebounds and 3.8 assists over four games, including 23 points, 13 rebounds and five assists in the Big Ten Championship Game.

• Markowski enters the 2024-25 season just 44 rebounds away from becoming the sixth player in school history with 1,000 career rebounds. She is 324 rebounds away from Janet Smith’s more than 40-year-old Nebraska career rebound record (1,280). Markowski, who had 369 rebounds last season, is also within striking distance of one of the top-five rebounding totals in Big Ten Conference history.

• Markowski, who earned second-team All-Big Ten honors as a sophomore in 2022-23, owns 1,363 points entering her senior season.

• USC’s JuJu Watkins was the only unanimous choice of the coaches and media to earn preseason All-Big Ten honors. The sophomore was the preseason Big Ten Player of the Year by both.

• The coaches and media were also in agreement on the top five teams in preseason voting, beginning with No. 1 USC, No. 2 UCLA, No. 3 Ohio State, No. 4 Maryland and No. 5 Indiana.

Opener with Omaha to Feature Life Skills Pep Rally
• The Nebraska Life Skills Sportsmanship Pep Rally at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Monday, Nov. 4 promises to be the largest rally associated with the Husker women’s basketball season opener since the event helped open the doors to Pinnacle Bank Arena in 2013.

• As of Tuesday, Oct. 29, a record 75 schools from around the state have registered to participate with more than 3,800 students and accompanying adults committed to attending the event, which will take place prior to the Nebraska women’s basketball team’s season-opening game against Omaha on Monday, Nov. 4.

• Last season, the pep rally welcomed more than 3,300 students and accompanying adults from 62 middle grades schools from across the state of Nebraska.

• The pep rally helped the Huskers attract the second-largest opening-day crowd in program history with 7,065 fans on hand at PBA, trailing only the 9,750 fans on hand for the opening game in the history of the building against UCLA in 2013.

• The event, which is co-sponsored by the Nebraska High School Hall of Fame, features positive messages from Husker student-athletes, coaches and athletic administrators. This year’s Pep Rally will mark the sixth time since 2013 (also 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023) the event has been paired with Nebraska’s season-opening women’s basketball game.

• The 2022 Nebraska Life Skills Sportsmanship Pep Rally included 2,200 students and more than 200 accompanying staff members from 42 schools across Nebraska for the opener with Omaha.

• The Life Skills Sportsmanship Pep Rally, which is focused on 4th through 8th grade students across the state of Nebraska, not only includes inspiring messages from current and former Nebraska student-athletes and staff members, it also includes complimentary pizza from Nebraska Athletics and water provided by Pepsi for students and accompanying school staff members.

• The 2024 Pep Rally is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. and conclude at approximately 10:45 a.m., prior to Nebraska and Omaha taking the court for pregame warm-ups ahead of their noon tip-off.

Nebraska Life Skills Sportsmanship Pep Rallies at Women’s Basketball
2024 - TBA (attendance) / 3,800 (students/staff - 75 schools) vs. Omaha
2023 - 7,065 (attendance) / 3,300 (students/staff - 62 schools) vs. Northwestern State
2022 - 6,233 (attendance) / 2,500 (students/staff - 40 schools) vs. Omaha
2021 - 4,476 (attendance) / 1,600 (students/staff - 30 schools) vs. Maine
2019 - 5,250 (attendance) / 2,000 (students/staff - 27 schools) vs. Alabama A&M
2013 - 9,750 (attendance) / 4,000 (students/staff - 45 schools) vs. UCLA

Huskers Ranked No. 23 in Preseason Polls
•  Nebraska opens the 2024-25 season at No. 23 in both the Associated Press Poll released on Tuesday, Oct. 15 and the USA Today/WBCA Top 25 announced on Thursday, Oct. 24.

•  The Huskers are coming off a trip to the second round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament and an appearance in the Big Ten Tournament Championship Game. The Big Red, which finished with a 23-12 record a year ago that included an 11-7 Big Ten regular-season mark, returns first-team All-Big Ten center Alexis Markowski (Lincoln, Neb.) and Big Ten Freshman-of-the-Year Natalie Potts (O’Fallon, Mo.), along with Big Ten All-Freshman selection Logan Nissley (Bismarck, N.D.).

•  Returning starters Kendall Moriarty (Wheaton, Ill.) and Callin Hake (Victoria, Minn.) are also back, along with contributors Kendall Coley (Minneapolis, Minn.) and Jessica Petrie (Gold Coast, Australia).

•  Nebraska also hopes to be bolstered by the return of redshirt junior guard Allison Weidner (Humphrey, Neb.), who missed last season with an injury. The Huskers also look forward to showcasing two-time Nebraska High School Player-of-the-Year Britt Prince (Elkhorn, Neb.), one of the nation’s top recruits, alongside fellow freshmen Amiah Hargrove (Christopher, Ill.), Petra Bozan (Split, Croatia) and Kennadi Williams (Lincoln, Neb.) as well as senior transfer Alberte Rimdal (Koge, Denmark).

•  The 2024-25 season marks the second time in the past three years that Nebraska has opened in the AP Top 25. In 2022-23, the Huskers began the season at No. 22 in the AP Poll.

•  The Huskers are one of six Big Ten Conference teams ranked in the preseason polls, joining No. 3/3 USC, No. 5/6 UCLA, No. 14/14 Ohio State, No. 18/18 Maryland and No. 25/24 Indiana. Iowa (26/30) led the next group of Big Ten teams receiving votes, while Illinois (29/37), and Michigan State (AP 31) give the Big Ten nine teams among the top 32 nationally in the polls. Michigan (T48 USA) also received one vote in the coaches poll.

•  Defending national champion South Carolina earned the No. 1 spot in both polls, while UConn starts the season at No. 2 in both national rankings.

•  Last season, Nebraska finished No. 25 in the final NCAA NET rankings.

Huskers Win Women’s Four-Sport Attendance
• Nebraska was the top draw in NCAA Division I women’s team sports in 2023-24, attracting a nation-leading 418,198 total fans to women’s basketball, volleyball, soccer and softball home games.

• Nebraska’s four-sport total was 19,090 more than South Carolina’s 399,108, while LSU finished third with 328,380 fans across the same four sports.

• Iowa finished fourth with 280,773 to rank second in the Big Ten - nearly 138,000 fans behind the Huskers, while Texas ranked fifth nationally with 270,757.

• Nebraska was the only school in the country to rank in the top 15 nationally in average home attendance in all four major women’s team sports in 2023-24, including No. 1 in volleyball (264,665), No. 10 in softball (38,919), No. 15 in women’s basketball (97,411) and No. 15 in soccer (17,203).

• Overall, Nebraska ranked third nationally in seven-sport attendance (football, men’s basketball, baseball) with a school-record 1.49 million fans attending Husker home events in 2023-24. Only LSU and Tennessee attracted more fans than the Big Red.

Huskers Celebrate 50 Years of Women’s Sports

• Nebraska Athletics will be celebrating 50 years of women’s varsity athletics throughout the 2024-25 season across its sports.

• The first season that varsity letters were distributed to Husker women’s athletes was 1975-76.

• The first partial season for women’s basketball came with a 16-game schedule under Coach Jan Callahan in 1974-75, before the first women’s basketball players earned varsity letters in 1975-76.

• Nebraska women’s basketball has advanced to 16 NCAA tournaments. The NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament did not exist until 1982. It was a 32-team field.

• Nebraska women’s basketball has won conference titles in the Big Ten (tournament, 2014), Big 12 (regular season, 2010) and Big Eight (regular season, 1988).

• Husker women’s basketball players have claimed 14 All-America awards, including Wade Trophy winner and first-team All-American Karen Jennings (1993), Senior CLASS Award winner and first-team All-American Kelsey Griffin (2010) and first-team All-American Jordan Hooper (2014). Nebraska’s other All-Americans include Lindsey Moore, Rachel Theriot, Kiera Hardy, Nicole Kubik, Anna DeForge and Amy Stephens.

• Eight Husker women’s basketball players have earned Academic All-America honors from the College Sports Communicators, led by three-time first-team Academic All-American and two-time Academic All-American of the Year Karen Jennings, who was the first Husker female athlete inducted into the College Sports Communicators Academic All-America Hall of Fame in 2008.

• A total of 38 Huskers have scored 1,000 points in their women’s basketball careers.

• A total of 247 Nebraska women’s basketball players have earned varsity letters.

Markowski Shares Husker Double-Double Record
• Nebraska’s Alexis Markowski is making her mark as the top double-double producer in the history of Husker basketball. Markowski notched 19 double-doubles in 35 games as a junior to join first-team All-Americans Kelsey Griffin (2006-10) and Jordan Hooper (2011-14) atop the Husker career double-doubles list with 40. Griffin and Hooper both produced their school records in four full seasons of starting every game for the Big Red, while Markowski has her entire fourth season in front of her.

• Markowski’s next double-double will put her alone atop Nebraska’s career double-doubles list with 41.

•  A first-team All-Big Ten selection in 2024, Markowski produced her most recent double-double with 23 points and 13 rebounds in Nebraska’s Big Ten Championship Game overtime loss to No. 3 Iowa in Minneapolis (March 10).

• The 2024 Big Ten All-Tournament choice also posted a double-double with 22 points and 12 rebounds in a Big Ten Tournament quarterfinal win over Michigan State (March 8).

• She produced the biggest double-double of her career with 20 points and 21 rebounds in a 77-65 road win at Purdue (Feb. 17). It was just the fifth 20-point, 20-rebound performance in Husker history. She added 12 points and 10 boards in a win over Northwestern (Feb. 20), before contributing 10 points and 12 boards in a win over Minnesota (Feb. 24).

• Markowski scored in double figures 32 times in 35 games last season, including eight 20-point performances. She was held to nine points and 16 rebounds at No. 2 Ohio State (Feb. 14) and had nine points and 13 rebounds in a Big Ten semifinal win over Maryland (March 9). She had eight points and eight rebounds in a second-round NCAA Tournament loss at No. 12 Oregon State (March 24).

• She produced double-figure rebounds on 21 occasions in 2023-24.

Weidner Ready for Return After 55 Games
• Allison Weidner is ready to be back on the court in front of the Pinnacle Bank Arena crowd after missing 55 consecutive regular-season games over the past two seasons because of leg injuries.

• The 5-10 redshirt junior guard from Humphrey, Neb., averaged 10.2 points and 6.2 rebounds through 13 games as a starter for the Huskers as a sophomore in 2022-23, before suffering a left leg injury early in the fourth quarter of Nebraska’s triple-overtime victory over Kansas (Dec. 21).

• Weidner had started 21 consecutive games before missing the first game of her career in the loss to No. 14 Michigan (Dec. 28). She underwent successful surgery on her left leg on Jan. 10, 2023.

• She was on track to return for the Huskers ahead of the 2023-24 season before suffering a right leg injury in practice on Friday, Oct. 13, 2023. She underwent successful surgery on Oct. 25.

• Weidner has continued to gain strength in her recovery and earned a starting spot in Nebraska’s closed scrimmage against North Dakota State (Oct. 19). She posted four points and four assists in the Husker victory over the Bison at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.

• In 46 career games with 22 starts, Weidner has averaged 8.1 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.3 assists.

Husker Roster Filled with State Players of the Year
• The 2024-25 Nebraska women’s basketball roster features four state players of the year in basketball, who won their respective awards from their home states from 2021 to 2024.

• The quartet of Alexis Markowski (Nebraska, 2021), Natalie Potts (Missouri, 2021, 2023), Logan Nissley (North Dakota, 2021, 2022, 2023) and Britt Prince (Nebraska, 2023, 2024) combined for eight total state basketball player-of-the-year honors, while adding a pair of state volleyball player-of-the-year awards (Nissley, North Dakota, 2021, 2022). 

• In addition, Allison Weidner was the Nebraska Girls Athlete of the Year across all sports in 2021, while Britt Prince added a Nebraska Girls Athlete of the Year award over all sports in 2024.

• Prince (2,491), Weidner (2,282) and Markowski (1,485) combined for 6,258 points during their Nebraska High School careers. 

• While freshman Amiah Hargrove was not the overall Illinois state player of the year, she was the Illinois Class 1A Player of the Year in 2023 and was named the Southern Illinois Player of the Year three times (2022, 2023, 2024).

• Hargrove (2,774), Potts (2,108) and Nissley (1,664) combined for 6,546 points in their high school careers, while Hargrove and Potts each added more than 1,000 career rebounds.

Prince Ready to Open College Career at PBA

• One of the most highly regarded players in the history of the state of Nebraska, two-time Gatorade and MaxPreps Player of the Year Britt Prince is set to make her college debut on a home court that has provided her with amazing success.

• Prince, who won four consecutive Nebraska Class B state high school championships while playing for her mother, Ann Prince, at Elkhorn North High School (2021-22-23-24) was the No. 16 recruit in the country according to Prospects Nation and No. 28 according to ESPN.

• An honorable-mention high school All-American last year by the Naismith award and MaxPreps, Prince produced one of the best senior seasons in Nebraska high school history in 2023-24. She averaged 27.0 points, 10.3 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 2.9 steals. She led the state in both scoring and assists as a senior on her way to finishing with a Class B record 2,491 points, surpassing Husker All-American Jordan Hooper’s previous mark of 2,078.

• Prince also matched Hooper for No. 2 in state tournament history with 271 career points.

• In addition to being a four-time Super-State selection in basketball, Prince was a six-time gold medalist and two-time silver medalist at the Nebraska State Track & Field Championships.

• She was the 2024 Nebraska Girls Athlete of the Year across all sports.

• In Nebraska’s closed scrimmage against North Dakota State in Sioux Falls, S.D., Oct. 19, Prince scored nine points, grabbed three rebounds and dished out three assists as a starter.