For complete game notes, please refer to the PDF version.

This Week
The Omaha men's basketball team (15-11, 4-6 Summit League) embarks on its final roadtrip of the season this week, starting at South Dakota on Thursday, Feb. 20. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at the DakotaDome in Vermillion, S.D., and the game will be televised outside the Omaha area on Midco. KOZN 1620 AM will carry the radio broadcast live with Gary Sharp calling the action, or fans can stream the radio broadcast on their smartphones by downloading NRG Media's app “1620 The Zone.” Links to live stats, audio and video will also be available on OMavs.com.

Scouting the South Dakota Coyotes
South Dakota enters Thursday's game with a record of 10-15 (4-6 Summit League) after a 71-67 win at IUPUI on Feb. 15. Trevor Gruis scored a game-high 18 points with six rebounds and moved past 1,300 points in his career. Tyler Larson (13), Tyler Flack (12) and Trey Norris (10) also scored in double figures, while Flack grabbed a game-best seven rebounds.

Gruis has led USD with 12.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game this season, while Brandon Bos comes in at 11.8 points per contest. The Coyotes are led by interim head coach Joey James, who holds a career record of 10-15.

South Dakota leads the all-time series with Omaha, 51-44. The two teams last squared off on Jan. 25, with the Mavericks earning a 77-73 win at Ralston Arena. UNO's last win in Vermillion came on Jan. 24, 2013 by a score of 95-90.

Quick Hits
•Last Saturday, senior center John Karhoff became the 13th player in program history to surpass 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in his career.
•Kenpom.com lists Omaha's adjusted tempo of 74.0 possessions per 40 minutes at fifth nationally.
•According to RPIRatings.com, UNO's RPI is 168th nationally through games of Feb. 16, the fifth highest of any Summit League team.
•The Mavericks' average scoring margin of 5.9 points is 83rd in the country. UNO's wins have come with an average margin of victory of 18.0 points, while their losses have come by an average of 10.5.
•UNO is 10-2 this season when scoring 80 or more points in a game.
•Omaha finished with a season-high .556 shooting percentage in its win at South Dakota State on Jan. 18. In the last two years, Omaha is 13-5 when shooting .500 or better as a team, including a perfect 9-0 this season.
•Senior guard Justin Simmons has 13 career scoring performances with 20 or more points. Senior center John Karhoff is just behind him with eight, and junior guard CJ Carter has six.
•Omaha tallied its 15th win of the season on Feb. 8, defeating Western Illinois at home, 71-60. This season marks the Mavericks' highest wins total since going Division I.
•The Mavericks' five-game win streak from Nov. 25 to Dec. 14 was their longest stretch since beginning the Division I transition, and it was the UNO's longest since the 2010-11 season.
•Omaha received votes in the CollegeInsider.com mid-major poll for five straight weeks from Dec. 16 to Jan. 13. This year marks the Mavericks' inclusion for the first time in school history.
•Over 2012-13 and 2013-14, Omaha is 14-5 when junior guard CJ Carter scores 15 or more points in a game. Carter led the Mavericks in three straight games to open the year with 18 points at Northern Illinois, 22 at Iowa and 22 vs. UMKC.

Last Time Out: vs. North Dakota State (Feb. 15)
The Omaha men's basketball team capped its four-game homestand on Saturday, falling 75-59 to North Dakota State before a season-best crowd of 2,276 at Ralston Arena. Senior center John Karhoff paced Omaha with 16 points, four rebounds and two steals, becoming the 13th Maverick to surpass 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in his career.

Junior guard CJ Carter added 12 points, and senior forward Matt Hagerbaumer had six points and four boards. As a team, Omaha was held to its lowest scoring effort of the year and shot 32 percent (19-of-60) from the floor with a 17 percent (3-of-18) showing from long range.

North Dakota State finished at 49 percent (29-of-59) for the day and outrebounded the Mavericks, 44-29. The Bison were led by a double-double performance from Taylor Braun, who had 31 points, 15 rebounds, five assists and a steal. Lawrence Alexander (11 points) and TrayVonn Wright (10) joined him in double figures, and Kory Brown added eight points and pulled down seven boards.

Karhoff Joins 1,000 Points/500 Rebounds Club
With his 13-point effort at South Carolina State on Nov. 25, senior John Karhoff's became the 34th Maverick to join the Mavericks' 1,000 Point Club. The Creighton Prep product has now amassed 1,279 career points over three-plus years, which ranks 10th in school history, and 500 rebounds, which is 18th in the record book. On Saturday, Karhoff became the 13th Maverick to reach 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in his career.

Karhoff has also joined the career leaders list in field goals made, rebounds and blocks, and he is on the brink of entering the top 20 in assists. Karhoff's current totals and progress climbing the career ranks is listed below:

KARHOFF IN THE OMAHA CAREER RECORD BOOK
Points -- 1,279 (ranks 10th, needs 30 to tie for ninth)
Rebounds -- 500 (ranks 18th, needs eight to tie for 17th)
FG Made -- 509 (ranks seventh, needs one to tie for sixth)
Steals -- 75 (needs 22 to tie for 19th)
Assists -- 207 (needs five to tie for 20th)
Blocks -- 67 (ranks ninth, needs one to tie for eighth)

#Socks4SlamDunk: Simmons Up for 2014 State Farm Dark Horse Dunker
Senior guard Justin Simmons is one of 16 candidates for the 2014 “State Farm Dark Horse Dunker” competition, it was announced Monday by Intersport, producers of the State Farm College Slam Dunk & 3-Point Championships.

The State Farm Dark Horse Dunker is a bracket-style elimination competition. Round One voting is open for two weeks and features eight head-to-head matchups, and Simmons will be paired against Deonte Jones of Texas Wesleyan. Winners will be announced Feb. 24 when Round Two opens. Voting for Round Two, the Semi-Finals and the Finals will be open one week each. The champion will be announced March 17 and compete at the 26th annual College Slam Dunk Championship in Dallas on April 3. Fans can view a video of each dunker and cast their vote at Facebook.com/CollegeSlam.

Previous “State Farm Dark Horse Dunker” winners include Corey Law (High Point University) in 2013, James Justice (Martin Methodist College) in 2012. The 2011 winner, Jacob Tucker (Illinois College), went on to win the Slam Dunk Championship.

In support of Simmons as a Dark Horse Dunker candidate, fans can vote daily on the College Slam Dunk & 3-Point Championships Facebook page. When posting on social media, fans are also encouraged to use the hashtag #Socks4SlamDunk, a nod to Simmons' nickname on and off the court, “Socks.”

Mavericks Making Headway Nationally
UNO has made its presence known in the national statistical rankings, as the Mavericks' .772 free throw percentage ranks fourth nationally. Omaha is also 26th in points per game (79.8) and 24th in assists per game (15.7) as a team.

Next Up
Omaha returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 22, traveling to Denver. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. (CT) at Magness Arena in Denver, Colo., and KOZN 1620 AM will carry the radio broadcast live with Gary Sharp calling the action. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.