Markowski, Potts Notch Double-Doubles in Win

Photo Credit: Nebraska Athletic Communications

Lincoln - Alexis Markowski and Natalie Potts both posted double-doubles to power the Nebraska women’s basketball team to a 77-53 victory over Florida Atlantic on Wednesday night at Pinnacle Bank Arena. 

With the victory, the Huskers improved to 5-2 on the season, while the Owls slipped to 3-3. 

Markowski led all scorers with a game-high 18 points, including the first nine points of the fourth quarter for the Big Red. She pitched in 10 rebounds, including four on the offensive end. It was Markowski's third double-double of the season and 24th of her career.

Potts, the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week, contributed the first double-double of her career with 12 points and a career-high 12 rebounds, including six offensive boards. With Potts and Markowski leading the way, Nebraska pulled down 17 offensive rebounds and turned them into 17 second-chance points.

Sophomore Callin Hake put three Huskers in double figures while knocking down 3-of-4 three-pointers. Jaz Shelley added a trio of three-pointers of her own to finish with nine points, as Nebraska matched its season high with 10 three-pointers in the game.

Freshman Jessica Petrie also contributed nine points, including seven points in a big fourth quarter, while Darian White pitched in five points and a game-high eight assists for the Huskers. Overall, every Husker scored at least two points.

Nebraska jumped to a 19-10 lead at the end of the first quarter despite a slow start shooting the basketball. The Huskers pushed the lead to 31-17 midway through the second before a 7-0 Florida Atlantic run cut the lead in half. The Big Red took a 37-29 lead to halftime, but extended the margin by winning the third quarter 17-10.

The Huskers opened the fourth with a 54-39 lead, and Markowski ended any hopes for the Owls with nine points in the first 3:10 of the period to push the Big Red lead to 63-42. 

As a team, Nebraska hit 40.8 percent (29-71) of its shots from the field, including 10-of-26 three-pointers (.385). The Huskers also knocked down 9-of-11 free throws (.818) and finished with a 39-31 edge on the boards. The Huskers also dominated the turnover department, 18-9, outscoring the Owls, 17-2 in points off turnovers.

The Owls hit 41.3 percent (19-46) of their shots, but Nebraska's 25 extra field goal attempts were too much to overcome. FAU sank just 4-of-15 three-pointers, and 11-of-18 free throws.

Rose Caverly led Florida Atlantic with nine points, while the Huskers limited the Owls' leading scorer Aniya Hubbard to just eight points, including FAU's final five points of the game. Hubbard entered the game averaging 20.2 points per contest.

Nebraska continues its three-game home stand by battling Georgia Tech on Saturday, Dec. 2. Tip-off with the 5-2 Yellow Jackets is set for 2 p.m. (CT) with tickets available now at Huskers.com. The game can also be heard across the Huskers Radio Network, and a live video stream will be available to subscribers of B1G+.