Postin Up with Brandon Ubel

In this week's edition of Postin' Up, we sit down with freshman forward Brandon Ubel. Brandon has learned a lot since coming to Lincoln last fall, including how to balance school and athletics and what music can and can't be played in the basketball locker room. Luckily he has his big sister on campus to help him as it figures it all out.

HI: I was looking over your bio and noticed you finished high school with a 4.1 GPA. I'm assuming school has always been a top priority for you?

BU: "My parents have always told me you got to have school first. If something doesn't work out or you get hurt, you have something to fall back on. So I've always been the kind of guy where school is my top priority."

HI: A lot of athletes talk about how difficult it is to balance school and sports when they get to college. Have you had any troubles getting used to college life?

BU: "I heard it was going to be pretty tough. It's definitely busier, but I feel like I've acclimated pretty well to handling both sides of it."

HI: You still holding up that 4.1?

BU: "I think I had like 3.6 first semester. So not too bad."

HI: I saw that your older sister, Kayla, is also a Husker as a middle distance runner for the Nebraska women's track and field team. How much did having her up here impact your decision to come to NU?

BU: "It's definitely nice to know you have somebody up here you can always call or talk to or just hang out with and be around. It was definitely nice, but it wasn't obviously the main reason I came here. But it's definitely nice to have her up here."

HI: Who wins in a foot race between you two?

BU: "She would probably win in those races, yeah."

HI: Does she ever play you in basketball?

BU: "She has. I kill her, though."

HI: You're originally a native of Overland Park, Kan., but I hear you have quite a bit of family down in Oklahoma, both in Norman and Stillwater. Will you have much family coming up for Saturday's game against OU?

BU: "Not coming up here, but I'm sure I'll have quite a few family members down in Stillwater when we go down there. It'll be fun."

HI: Did you follow Oklahoma or Oklahoma State sports much growing up?

BU: "No. Obviously I grew up in Kansas, and both my parent went to KU. It just so happens that almost the entire rest of my family is from Oklahoma and went to either OSU or OU."

HI: We'll end this with a real tough one: What were the last three songs you listened to on your iPod?

BU: "Like the last three? OK. 'Where The Green Grass Grows' by Tim McGraw. I can't remember all the songs, but definitely Tim McGraw, Toby Keith. Pretty much country mostly."

HI: Country, huh? Do you ever get to play your music on the locker room stereo before practice or games?

BU: "I've tried a couple times, but it usually gets shut off pretty quick."