Nebraska-Omaha avenged its season-opening loss to Augustana, winning a tightly-contested North Central Conference battle, 64-62, Thursday night at Sapp Fieldhouse.
Zac Robinson had a huge first half for UNO, hitting four 3-pointers, going on to score a team-leading 20 points.
Michael Jenkins followed with 19, adding seven assists and two clutch free throws in the final seconds which proved to be the deciding factor.
The win improves the Mavericks to 11-8, 2-3 in NCC play. The Vikings, who were led by Matt Paulson with 17 points, fall to 15-6, 2-4.
Robinson opened the game with three of his triples in the first three and a half minutes of the game to stake the Mavs to an early 11-8 lead. The teams exchanged baskets in a fast-paced first half, but after a Tom Ver Douw layup tied the game at 17-17 midway through the half, UNO scored nine straight points, highlighted by Robinson's fourth 3-pointer and a strong dunk from
Jerry Bennett. The Mavericks held a 35-30 lead at halftime.
The second half was marked by physical play, and again, the teams battled nip-and-tuck throughout. The score stood tied seven times in the second half. A pair of free throws by Eric Krogman gave the Vikings a one-point lead, 48-47, with 12:11 to play. Robinson's only 2-pointer of the game immediately gave the advantage back to UNO, and it never fell behind again.
The Mavericks' biggest lead of the second half was seven points, 58-51, with 6:01 to play on a jumper by
Denny Johnston. A free throw from Ian Thomas and two 3-pointers from Marques Blank tied the score again with 1:39 left. But Jenkins hit four free throws in the final moments, including two with four seconds left, to seal the win.
UNO's next game is at St. Cloud State Saturday at 4 p.m.
