THE GAME

The Omaha women's basketball team travels downtown on Saturday, Dec. 20 to take on Creighton University.  Opening tip is set for 12 p.m. at the D.J. Sokol Arena.

THE TEAMS

Omaha (5-5, 0-0 Summit League) split a pair of home games last week.  The Mavs defeated Bakersfield 80-68 on Thursday, before losing to SIUE, 69-54.

Creighton (5-5, 0-1 Big East) went 2-1 last week.  The Bluejays defeated Northern Iowa and Drake, but lost to #12 Nebraska.

MAV NOTES

• Junior guard Brianna Bogard had a team-high 17 points against SIUE on Sunday.  This was the sixth time this season Bogard has scored in double digits.
• Sophomore guard Mikaela Shaw had a team-high 11 rebounds against SIUE.  It was the sixth time this season Shaw has grabbed double-digit boards.
• Senior guard Lanese Bough leads the team in assists (45) and steals (27).  Bough is also second on the team in rebounds (50).
• Shaw is averaging a double-double this season.  She averages 12.8 points and 10.6 rebounds per game.
• Senior center Taijhe Kelly leads the team with 27 blocked shots.  Kelly has blocked four or more shots in a game four times this season.
• Omaha is 1-2 against teams appearing in the CollegeInsider.com Women's Mid-Major Top 25.  The Mavs lost to Northern Colorado (RV) and North Dakota (RV), but defeated #14 Bakersfield, 80-68.
• The Mavs average 64.7 points per game, while allowing only 62.6 points per game.
• This season, Omaha averages 40.4 rebounds and 13.5 assists per game.
• UNO leads the Summit League in scoring defense, field goal defense and 3-point field goal percent defense.
• The Mavs are second in the Summit League in steals, plus are third in assists, assist/turnover ratio and blocked shots.

SCOUTING THE CREIGHTON BLUEJAYS

Creighton enters the week with a record of 5-5 (0-1 Big East) after defeating Drake University 93-71 at home on Sunday.  Marissa Janning had a season-high 30 points with four 3-pointers for the Bluejays.  Janning also led the team with seven assists.  Sydney Lamberty added 17 points, five rebounds and five assists.  Alexis Akin-Otiko chipped in 15 points and seven boards.

Creighton's go-to player is junior guard Marissa Janning.  Janning leads the team in points per game (16.6) and steals (10).  She is also second on the team in assists (3.4) and rebounds (4.7).  Akin-Otiko is second on the team in scoring (12.4) and leads the team in rebounds (5.1).  The senior forward has also blocked 13 shots this season. 

CU is led by 13^th year head coach Jim Flanery, who owns a career record of 240-156.

THE SERIES

Saturday marks the 26^th meeting all-time between Creighton and Omaha.  Omaha holds a 16-9 advantage in the series that dates back to the 1973-74 season.  The Mavs and Jays last met on Nov. 29, 1988 with Creighton defeating Omaha, 71-67.

ON AIR

Saturday's road game against Creighton will be aired live on The Mighty 1290 AM KOIL.  Jon Green will have the call of the game live, and links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.

UP NEXT

Omaha travels to Orem, Utah to finish up the non-conference portion of their schedule on Monday, Dec. 29.  The Mavs take on Utah Valley with tip-off set for 4 p.m. (CT).