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Past High Point
 Theriot |  Laudermill |  Cady |
-----------------------------
1 2 total
High Point (NR) 33 24 57
NEBRASKA (12) 45 38 83
----------------------------- | ||
With the victory, Nebraska closed non-conference play with a 10-1 record, while High Point, which returned all five starters from last season's Big South Conference title team, slipped to 6-5 on the season.
Theriot, a 6-0 junior point guard from Middleburg Heights, Ohio, came out aggressive from the tip, pumping in 14 points in the first half to help the Huskers build a 45-33 halftime lead. She continued scoring at a torrid rate in the second half, pouring in 10 points in the first 6:10 after halftime to push NU's lead to 61-39.
Theriot's 31 points came on a career-high 24 field goal attempts, while she also knocked down a career-high 13 shots from the floor. It marked the second 30-point performance of Theriot's career, joining a 33-point effort in an overtime win over Minnesota on Jan. 16, 2014.
"Rachel was aggressive and all 24 of those shots were good shots," Nebraska Coach Connie Yori said. "In fact she still passed up three or four more shots that she should have taken."
Theriot added five assists against just one turnover while contributing four rebounds.
Laudermill, a 5-9 senior guard from Moreno Valley, Calif., was also outstanding. She notched her third 20-point performance of the season with 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting from the floor, including a pair of threes. She added six rebounds, three assists and a block for the Big Red.
Senior forward Emily Cady rounded out a trio of Huskers in double figures with 12 points, six rebounds and three steals in just 21 minutes of action. Cady, the reigning Big Ten Player of the Week, suffered an injury less than five minutes into the second half when she was inadvertently undercut on a rebound and landed on her back. She walked off the court under her own power and returned to the bench for the rest of the game, but did not play.
At the time Cady went down, the Huskers led 55-39 with 15:04 left and were on an 8-0 run after High Point had cut the margin to 47-39 with 18:05 remaining. After Cady left, the Big Red finished off a 20-0 run with 12 straight points to take their biggest lead at 67-39, after back-to-back baskets by Allie Havers with 11:37 remaining.
Havers matched her season high with eight points, while adding five rebounds.
Senior forward Hailie Sample played another strong all-around game with six points, nine rebounds, a career-high matching six assists, two blocked shots and a steal.
Senior guard Brandi Jeffery rounded out the scoring for the Big Red with four points, while adding eight rebounds, two assists and five steals, which were just one off her career high.
As a team, Nebraska hit 48.6 percent (35-72) of its shots from the floor, despite going just 3-for-15 from three-point range. The Huskers also hit 10-of-14 free throws.
The Big Red held High Point to just 33.8 percent (22-65) shooting, including 27.6 percent (8-29) in the second half. The Panthers did knock down 8-of-22 threes, and managed to hit 5-of-8 free throws.
The Huskers dominated the turnover department, winning that battle 18-8. NU committed just one turnover in the second half to finish with a season-best plus-10 turnovers in the game. Nebraska also outrebounded High Point, 42-41, despite playing without its top rebounder, Cady, for the final 15 minutes.
Preseason Big South Player of the Year Kaylah Keys was the only Panther to produce double figures, scoring 10 of her team-high 14 points in the second half. Lindsay Puckett added nine points on 3-of-4 shooting from three-point range, while DeAnneisha Jackson contributed nine points and six rebounds off the bench. Starting forwards Stacia Robertson and Latrice Phelps each contributed eight points and seven boards on the day.
Nebraska built a 45-33 lead at halftime thanks to big halves from Theriot, Laudermill and Cady. Theriot led the Huskers with 14 points on 7-of-14 shooting from the floor. She also had four assists. Laudermill contributed 13 first-half points, including NU's lone three of the half, while adding two assists and a block.
Cady played a nearly flawless first half, scoring 10 points, grabbing five rebounds and snagging three steals, while going 3-for-3 from the floor and 4-for-4 at the free throw line.
As a team, Nebraska shot a sizzling 57.6 percent (19-33) from the floor, despite going 1-for-6 from long range. The Huskers were also 6-of-7 at the free throw line. NU held High Point to just 38.9 percent (14-36) from the floor, but the Panthers knocked down 4-of-9 three-pointers. HPU also won the first-half rebounding battle, 19-18, but the Huskers won the first-half turnover tussle, 9-7.
Nebraska will be off from competition for the holiday before opening Big Ten Conference play at Minnesota on Dec. 29. Tip-off between the Huskers and Gophers at Williams Arena in Minneapolis is set for 8 p.m., with live national television coverage by the Big Ten Network.