Nebrasketball Player Profile: C.J. Wilcher

The Nebraska Cornhuskers worked the transfer portal quite heavily in the first two seasons under head coach Fred Hoiberg, and that didn’t change heading into year three. As evidenced, Xavier transfer C.J. Wilcher committed and signed with the Huskers after a freshman season in Cincinnati’s Big East program.

Wilcher played in 15 games for Xavier, which finished with a 13-8 record in 2020-21. He averaged 3.3 points and 1.1 rebounds per game in just over 10 minutes per game, while shooting 40 percent from the floor and 35 percent from three-point range.

Wilcher worked his way into heavier floor time late in the season, playing 10 or more minutes in seven of his last nine contests. In the final four games with Xavier, he averaged more than 20 minutes per game. He closed the 2020-21 campaign with seven points in 20 minutes against Butler in the Big East Tournament.

Wilcher’s best performance of the season came in his first collegiate start on March 6 at Marquette, where he had season high in points (10) and minutes (32).

A four-star recruit coming out of high school by ESPN, 247Sports, and Rivals, Wilcher was ranked No. 81 by ESPN in the class of 2020. He was also a top-150 recruit by all three services. He spent his senior season playing for Roselle Catholic, averaging 18.8 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game despite missing nine games because of injury. Wilcher also scored 50 three-pointers as a senior, highlighted by hitting six three-pointers in a 59-58 win in the sectional championship in his final high school appearance.

Wilcher will have four years of eligibility remaining and should find a spot in the rotation this season. He brings an elite level of shooting, and while he may need to grow into bigger minutes as an upper-classmen, don’t be surprised if he still manages to light up the floor this season at times.