Nebraska point guard Rachel Theriot earned preseason first-team All-Big Ten honors from conference coaches and media, when the Big Ten announced its preseason awards on Thursday, Oct. 16.
The awards were announced while Theriot and Nebraska Coach Connie Yori were in Chicago attending Big Ten Basketball Media Day.
Theriot, a 6-0 junior from Middleburg Heights, Ohio, averaged 14.1 points, 3.4 rebounds and 7.1 assists per game last season to help the Huskers to a 26-7 overall record and a trip to the second round of the 2014 NCAA Tournament. She was even better in Big Ten play, averaging 15.6 points, 3.6 boards and 7.3 assists per contest while carrying a Big Ten-best 2.7-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. She helped the Huskers to a 12-4 conference mark.
Theriot was at her best during Nebraska’s run to the Big Ten Tournament title, averaging 18.7 points and 10.0 assists, including a Big Ten Tournament-record 18 assists in a second-round win over Minnesota. They were the most assists by a Big Ten player against a Big Ten opponent in history.
A first-team All-Big Ten selection as a sophomore, Theriot added Big Ten Tournament MVP honors, before being named an honorable-mention All-American by the Associated Press.
Theriot was joined on the Big Ten coaches’ five-player preseason team by Iowa senior point guard Samantha Logic, Michigan State sophomore guard Aerial Powers, Northwestern sophomore forward Nia Coffey and Minnesota senior guard Rachel Banham, who was named preseason Big Ten Player of the Year by both the coaches and the media.
The media chose Theriot, Logic and Banham along with Ohio State junior guard Ameryst Alston, Minnesota sophomore center Amanda Zahui B., and Maryland sophomore guard Lexie Brown.
As a team, Nebraska was picked to finish third in the media’s preseason conference power rankings, trailing preseason favorite Maryland and No. 2 Michigan State. Maryland, which enters its first season in the Big Ten, is coming off a trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four. Michigan State shared the 2014 Big Ten regular-season title with Penn State.
Iowa was the preseason No. 3 pick by the conference coaches behind Maryland and Michigan State. The Big Ten does not announce a full preseason team poll, but chooses only the top-three teams in the conference.
2014-15 Big Ten Coaches Preseason Rankings
1. Maryland
2. Michigan State
3. Iowa
2014-15 Coaches All-Big Ten Team
- Rachel Theriot, Jr., G, Nebraska
- Aerial Powers, So., G, Michigan State
- Nia Coffey, So., F, Northwestern
- Samantha Logic, Sr., G, Iowa
- Rachel Banham, Sr., G, Minnesota (Player of the Year)
2014-15 Big Ten Media Preseason Rankings
1. Maryland
2. Michigan State
3. Nebraska
2014-15 Media All-Big Ten Team
- Rachel Theriot, Jr., G, Nebraska
- Ameryst Alston, Jr., G, Ohio State
- Lexie Brown, So., G, Maryland
- Amanda Zahui B., So., C, Minnesota
- Samantha Logic, Sr., G, Iowa
- Rachel Banham, Sr., G, Minnesota (Player of the Year)