Rachel Theriot

Classroom

Rachel Theriot has been a four-year star at Nebraska in all areas. In the classroom, Theriot has maintained nearly a 3.4 GPA as a child, youth and family studies major. A nominee for CoSIDA Academic All-America honors in 2015 and 2016, Theriot is a two-time Academic All-Big Ten selection (2014, 2015) for the Huskers. She also has been a member of the Nebraska Scholar-Athlete Honor Roll in each of her first six semesters at the University of Nebraska. She is on track to earn her bachelor’s degree from Nebraska in May, and the University of Nebraska women’s basketball program as a whole continues to maintain a 100-percent graduation rate under Coach Connie Yori. Nebraska is one of only eight Division I women’s basketball programs that has carried a 100-percent graduation rate in each of the last four NCAA Tournaments.

Character

Rachel Theriot enters her fourth season as a leader for the Nebraska women’s basketball program. One of the nation’s top point guards, Theriot has displayed her character by helping to lead the Huskers to three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. As a freshman, she fought through an excruciatingly painful foot injury for the entire season as a starter, helping the Huskers advance to the second NCAA Sweet Sixteen in program history. As a sophomore, she started every game, replacing first-round WNBA Draft pick Lindsey Moore as the leader of the Big Red backcourt. Theriot, who had to overcome offseason foot surgery and a lengthy rehab, set the Nebraska single-season assist record, the Big Ten Tournament assist record, and was named MVP of the Big Ten Tournament after leading Nebraska to its first-ever conference tournament title. An honorable-mention AP All-American as a sophomore, Theriot was also a preseason candidate for all of the major national player of the year awards prior to her junior season. However, in practice on Feb. 3, 2015, Theriot suffered a season-ending ankle injury that required surgery and a six-month rehabilitation. She entered her senior season as the only experienced starter on a new-look Nebraska team. Theriot continued to be a leader for Nebraska despite her injury, helping young guard Natalie Romeo become one of the Big Ten’s most explosive scorers entering the 2015-16 season. A naturally quiet, reserved person, Theriot has grown immensely as a leader and scholar in her time at Nebraska.

Community

One of the most active Nebraska women’s basketball players in the community over the past three years, Rachel Theriot is a two-time member of Nebraska’s prestigious Tom Osborne Citizenship Team (2014, 2015). A 2014 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar Award winner, Theriot has been a regular mentor to young students at the Belmont Elementary School in Lincoln since her arrival on campus in 2012. Theriot also was one of several Huskers across all sports to journey to the town of Pilger in the summer of 2014 after the Northeast Nebraska town was devastated by a tornado. She has been a regular on Nebraska’s visits to local hospitals and has volunteered her time with the People’s City Mission. She also has volunteered with the Red Cross and at numerous other Nebraska Athletic Department-sponsored outreach events.

Competition

A 2014 Associated Press honorable mention All-American as a sophomore, Rachel Theriot was a candidate for the Wade, Naismith and Wooden National Player of the Year awards as a junior in 2015. A first-team All-Big Ten choice as a sophomore, Theriot captured Big Ten Tournament MVP honors after leading Nebraska to its first-ever conference tournament title. In three Big Ten Tournament games in 2014, Theriot averaged 18.7 points and a Big Ten-record 10.0 assists per game. Her tournament began with a Big Ten-record 18 assists against Minnesota. She closed with a game-high 24 points in the championship game win over Iowa. In her career, Theriot has scored 1,023 points while ranking fifth in school history with 444 assists. She set the Nebraska single-season record with 234 assists as a sophomore in 2014 and has a chance to break the school career assist mark (699) held by 2013 first-round WNBA Draft pick Lindsey Moore. A remarkably efficient and smart basketball player, Theriot is an 87.1 percent career free throw shooter (92.6 percent as a junior) and a 40.1 percent career three-point shooter. A member of the Big Ten All-Freshman Team in 2013, Theriot earned second-team All-Big Ten honors as a junior in 2015 despite missing nearly the entire month of February and the postseason after suffering a season-ending foot injury on Feb. 3. Theriot averaged 16.5 points, 4.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game while leading Nebraska to a 17-4 record through 21 games in 2015.