Outlook (2009-10)
Cory Montgomery will shoot for All-Big 12 honors as a senior after starring for the Huskers in her first year as a starter in 2008-09. Although she has started just one year for the Huskers, Montgomery ranks sixth in career rebounding (457) and ninth in career scoring (947) among active Big 12 players entering 2009-10. She is also poised to become the 24th player in Nebraska history to reach the 1,000-point plateau.
Last season she ranked seventh in the Big 12 in scoring (15.2 ppg) and eighth in rebounding (7.8 rpg), while ranking second in the league and 20th nationally in free throw percentage (85.6 percent).
An honorable-mention All-Big 12 selection in 2009, Montgomery will contend for conference honors on and off the court, while also being a candidate for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award.
She will team with two-time first-team All-Big 12 forward Kelsey Griffin, returning starter Catheryn Redmon, senior center Nikki Bober and junior center Jessica Periago to give the Huskers one of the most talented, versatile and experienced front lines in the Big 12 in 2009-10.
"Cory did everything we asked of her last year after losing Kelsey and Nikki to injury. She stepped up and played at an All-Big 12 level." Coach Connie Yori said. "She runs the floor extremely hard, can score from anywhere and also represents our team well off the court."
Junior (2008-09)
Montgomery stepped into a starting role and emerged as an All-Big 12 player. She ranked seventh in the league in scoring (15.2 ppg), eighth in rebounding (7.8 rpg) and second in free throw percentage (85.6 percent, 95-111). She also ranked 20th nationally at the line.
She was even better in Big 12 play, averaging 16.2 points and 7.8 boards in league action, while hitting 88.2 percent (45-51) of her free throws. She also hit 45.7 percent of her field goal attempts in league play, while knocking down 14-of-38 three-pointers.
Montgomery scored 20 or more points on 11 occasions, including a career-high 30 points in the regular-season finale at Oklahoma State on March 7. She hit 12-of-16 shots from the field and pulled down 11 boards for her second straight double-double.
It was one of seven double-doubles on the year for Montgomery, who scored in double figures 24 times, including 12 in NU's last 13 games.
She averaged 19.6 points and 9.0 rebounds over NU's final seven games to help the Huskers earn a spot in the second round of the Postseason WNIT. In the last seven games, she hit 11-of-26 three-pointers (42.3 percent) and 25-of-26 free throws (96.1 percent), while hitting 48.5 percent (50-103) of her shots from the field. She also played 35 minutes per game over the last seven contests.
Montgomery was a workhorse throughout the year, playing 31.9 minutes per game, nearly matching her total minutes played from her first two seasons combined.
She produced her first double-double of the year with 22 points and 11 rebounds in a win over Butler in Albuquerque, N.M., on Nov. 28. She added 17 points and eight rebounds the next night in a loss to New Mexico while earning a spot on the Holiday Inn & Suites Express Midtown Thanksgiving All-Tournament team. She had opened the week on the road at Denver with 20 points and nine boards against the Pioneers on Nov. 24, helping her claim the first Big 12 Player-of-the-Week award of her career on Dec. 1.
Montgomery had 20 points and 11 boards in a win over Oral Roberts on Dec. 2. She had four 20-point efforts and two double-doubles in NU's first seven games, despite playing with lower leg and back injuries that kept her out of nearly all of NU's practices over a three-week span.
After 17 points and nine rebounds against two-time Big Ten Player-of-the-Year Jantel Lavender and Ohio State on Dec. 6, Montgomery notched her third double-double with 11 points and 10 boards at UTEP on Dec. 20.
Montgomery posted her first Big 12 double-double with 22 points and a career-high 14 rebounds against No. 8 Baylor. She added her fifth double-double with 17 points and 11 boards in a win over Texas Tech on Feb. 14.
She posted her sixth double-double with 12 points and 10 boards in a win over Colorado on March 3, before erupting for 30 points and 11 boards at OSU.
Montgomery earned second-team academic All-Big 12 honors and her fifth selection to the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll during the spring semester.
Sophomore (2007-08)
One of the Big 12's top reserves, Montgomery averaged 9.4 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. She capped a solid season with a 12-point, five-rebound effort in 18 minutes in Nebraska's 61-58 first-round win over Xavier at the NCAA Tournament in College Park, Md., March 23. During a critical second-half stretch, Montgomery hit three straight jumpers to help NU hold off a late Xavier rally. She added eight points, two boards and two assists in 29 minutes in a narrow second-round loss to top-seeded Maryland on March 25.
She scored in every game, including 15 double-figure efforts. Montgomery's season included a pair of 20-point performances. She tied a season high with 21 points while pulling down eight rebounds in 23 minutes in NU's 82-72 win at Iowa State on Jan. 19. She hit 10-of-18 shots, including 1-of-2 three-pointers to help the Huskers to their first win in Ames since 1997. She added an assist and a block against the Cyclones.
Montgomery set her season best with 21 points in 17 minutes in a win over USC (Dec. 8). She posted her first career double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds in a win over 2008 NCAA Tournament qualifier Robert Morris.
Starting with the win over the Colonials, Montgomery produced double figures in six straight games, including 12 points at Cal State Bakersfield (Dec. 13) and 13 points in her first career start at Long Beach State (Dec. 15). The win over LBSU marked the first of four straight starts by Montgomery in the absence of an injured Kelsey Griffin. Montgomery averaged 12 points and 6.5 rebounds in her four starts, including 14 points and six boards in a season-high 32 minutes at No. 18 Ohio State (Dec. 22). She added 17 points, eight boards and three assists in a win over Denver (Dec. 30).
During regular-season non-conference action, she averaged 11.7 points and 5.4 rebounds in 20.6 minutes per game. In Big 12 play, she averaged 7.7 points and 3.9 rebounds in 17.7 minutes per contest. She hit 44.4 percent (8-18) of her three-point attempts and 77.8 percent (21-27) of her free throws, while knocking down 45.2 percent of her shots in Big 12 action.
Montgomery had 10 points and six boards in 20 minutes in a win over No. 15 Texas (Jan. 9). She added 10 points and eight boards in 17 minutes at No. 11 Oklahoma (Jan. 16). She had 18 points and five boards against No. 17 Oklahoma State (Feb. 10).
Montgomery had 14 points and a steal in 16 minutes against Marist (Nov. 23), before adding 12 points and five rebounds in 13 minutes in a win over Akron to earn a spot on the 2007 Oahu Classic All-Tournament Team.
Montgomery earned first-team academic All-Big 12 honors and claimed spots on the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll in both the fall and spring semesters.
Freshman (2006-07)
Montgomery played in all 32 games and averaged 5.3 points and 2.2 rebounds in 11.1 minutes per game. She was the only NU newcomer to play every game in 2006-07.
She had a season-best 18 points against Texas-Pan American (Nov. 28), and added 16 points and a season-high eight rebounds against Nicholls State (Dec. 21). She contributed 16 points and five boards against Florida Atlantic (Nov. 12), before scoring 15 points in a win over Cal State Fullerton (Nov. 17).
Montgomery went 3-for-3 from three-point range on the year with hits against Creighton, Nicholls State and Iowa State. Her shot against the Cyclones came at the first-half buzzer in the Big 12 quarterfinals.
Montgomery added Big 12 bests with eight points and five rebounds in 15 minutes at Kansas State on Feb. 7.
She added five first-half points against Temple in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Raleigh, N.C.
In addition to her perfect shooting from three-point range, Montgomery hit 73.2 percent (41-56) of her free throw attempts. She knocked down 49.2 percent of her shots from the field and dished out 15 assists.
In Big 12 regular-season competition, Montgomery averaged 1.9 points and 1.4 rebounds per game, while appearing in all 16 contests.
High School
Montgomery was a five-year starter and five-time team MVP for Cannon Falls High School.
As a senior, she capped a remarkable career by averaging 19.7 points and 10.8 rebounds per contest. She also contributed 3.4 assists, 2.2 blocks and 2.1 steals per game, while shooting 51.8 percent from the field and 84.0 percent from the free throw line. She led the Bombers to a 28-6 record.
She guided Cannon Falls to a Minnesota Class 2A state title, earning Class 2A Tournament MVP honors and first-team all-tournament accolades for Coach Chuck Benda. In the state semifinal game, Montgomery scored 37 points and pulled down 17 rebounds to lead the Bombers past previously unbeaten Minnesota Valley Lutheran.
Montgomery was a four-time first-team all-conference and all-area selection and was a three-time area player of the year. As a senior, she was also chosen as the Cannon Falls Senior Female Athlete of the Year.
As a junior, Montgomery averaged 17.4 points, 9.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 3.0 blocks and 2.2 steals per game to earn honorable-mention All-Minnesota accolades.
Montgomery attended Nebraska Women's Basketball Summer Camps following her freshman, sophomore and junior years of high school.
An outstanding all-around athlete who also lettered four times in volleyball and once in softball, she played for the Minnesota Stars club team coached by Tim and Brad Hested that won the 2005 AAU state title. She also played for the Stars' Under-19 team coached by Willie Taylor.
Montgomery was ranked as the No. 56 high school center prospect and the No. 221 overall prospect in the nation by the All-Star Girls Report.
Along with her athletic success, Montgomery was also an exemplary student. She was ranked No. 1 academically in her high school class and was a member of the National Honor Society. She earned academic all-state honors in both basketball and volleyball as a senior.
Personal
Cory is the daughter of Mike and Jodi Montgomery, and has one brother, Zach, 24, and two sisters, Alexis, 20, and Jordan, 16. Cory was born Sept. 11, 1987, in Brooklyn Center, Minn.
Cory, who also enjoys playing the clarinet, piano, flute and saxophone, owns a 3.289 GPA as a business administration major at Nebraska. She earned first-team academic All-Big 12 honors in 2008, and second-team accolades in 2009.
An excellent student, Montgomery has also claimed five spots on the Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll.
She chose Nebraska over Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Illinois, Drake and Wisconsin-Green Bay.
Courtesy: Scott Bruhn/NU Media Relations
