Shavon Shields Player Spotlight
When Penn State hosted Nebraska on Jan. 19 earlier this season, the result was a closely contested battle in which the Nittany Lions lost 68-64.
However, while it seemingly was a close game throughout its entirety, the Nittany Lions had all of the answers except for one player, Shavon Shields.
Shields finished that game in January with a stat-line of 29 points on 10-for-11 shooting, six rebounds, and three steals. The lanky guard-forward from Olathe, KS seemingly had all of the answers to master whatever Penn State’s defense did to stop him.
Shields’ big frame at 6-foot-6, 214 pounds makes him an interesting payer to guard because of his outstanding athleticism in such a big body. The Cornhusker freshman is regarded as one of Nebraska’s most talented players and for good reason.
So far this season, Shields has appeared in 18 games averaging a significant amount of minutes at 26.3 per game.
The freshman’s outstanding athletic ability was in no question handed down to him by his father. Will Shields, a Nebraska alum, is to this day regarded as one of the best offensive lineman to ever play in the NFL. As a 12-time Pro Bowl selection, he was a first-ballot finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame just this past year in 2012.
During his high school career at Olathe Northwest High School in Kansas, S. Shields dominated the box scores, averaging 21.2 points per game, 8.5 rebounds per game to go along with 3.0 assists per contest during his senior season.
Those very numbers during his senior season were enough to elevate Shields to become the all-time leader in points, rebounds, free throws, field goals, and steals in his high school’s history.
So, upon coming to Nebraska, it’s no surprise that the Cornhuskers expect big things from their highly coveted wing. Shields hasn’t started the entire season for Nebraska, but one game he did start was that game in mid-January in Happy Valley.
Since consistently cracking the starting lineup after his performance in Happy Valley, Shields has managed to rank as the fourth leading scorer on the team posting averages of 7.4 points and 4.8 rebounds while shooting just over 46 percent from the field.
The 18-year old freshman has only managed to score in double-figures four times this season, but has the ability to enter into a higher gear at any moment, as Penn State witnessed on January 19.
The Nittany Lions (8-14, 0-10 Big Ten) will travel to Nebraska (11-12, 2-8) Saturday to take on Shields and the Cornhuskers where they will attempt to capture that first conference win of the season at 9 p.m. EST on ESPNU.
Sean Flanery is a senior majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, e-mail seanmflanery@gmail.com.
