Mike Daum becomes first Nebraska native to score 3,000 career points in NCAA history

Mike Daum becomes first Nebraska native to score 3,000 career points in NCAA history
Nebraska native Mike Daum is one of the best scorers in the history of Division I men's basketball. RYAN SODERLIN/THE WORLD-HERALD

Mike Daum became the first Nebraska native in NCAA history to score 3,000 points in a career.

He’s also the 10th player all-time to achieve that mark in Division I men’s basketball. He joins another member of that exclusive club with local connections. Former Creighton All-American Doug McDermott finished his career in 2014 with 3,150 points.

Daum — the South Dakota State senior from Kimball, Nebraska — reached the milestone Saturday against South Dakota. He entered the game needing 19 points to reach 3,000, and he got there with a short floater with a little more than a minute left in the second half.

Daum finished the game with 25 points, helping lead SDSU to a 94-89 victory that keeps its half-game lead atop the Summit League.

“Thank you, that’s all I really can say,” Daum said during a postgame TV interview. “I can’t thank my teammates, coaching staff, parents, all the fans that came out today for what they’ve done for me and allowing me to be the person I am today.”

Daum now sits at 10th place all-time with 3,006 career points. He’s poised to next pass Hersey Hawkins — who had 3,008 points for Bradley from 1984-88 — for ninth place.

A farm kid from the Nebraska Panhandle, Daum is a two-time Summit League player of the year and twice received All-America honorable mention. He’s helped lead SDSU to the NCAA tournament in each of the last three seasons.

Daum still has a lot of time to move up the leaderboard. He entered Saturday averaging 25.8 points per game, and the Jackrabbits are guaranteed at least two more contests following Saturday’s meeting with USD. An extended run in the Summit League tournament and an NCAA tournament bid would give Daum even more opportunities to rise in the record book.

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