This Weekend
The Omaha men's basketball team kicks off its third year of Summit League play this weekend, visiting South Dakota on Friday, Jan. 2. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at the DakotaDome in Vermillion, S.D. Gary Sharp will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2, and fans can also stream the audio on their smartphones by downloading NRG Media's app “1620 The Zone.” Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.
    
Scouting the South Dakota Coyotes
South Dakota carries a record 6-8 (0-0 Summit League) into Friday's meeting after stringing together a three-game win streak that started Dec. 18. In that span, the Coyotes have defeated Montana State (55-53), Montana (67-62) and Milwaukee (84-60). On Dec. 28 against the Panthers, Casey Kasperbauer hit seven 3-pointers and scored a game-high 23 points, going 6-of-6 from long range in the second half alone. Kasperbauer was honored as Summit League Player of the Week on Dec. 29.

Friday marks the 97th meeting all-time between South Dakota and Omaha. USD leads the all-time series with Omaha, 52-44. The two teams last squared off on Feb. 20, 2014, with the Coyotes earning an 87-86 win at the DakotaDome. The Mavericks' last win in Vermillion came on Jan. 24, 2013 by a score of 95-90.

Quick Hits
•Junior guard Marcus Tyus knocked down a career-high four 3-pointers at Chicago State on Monday, including three straight in his 14-0 scoring barrage in the second half.
•Junior guard Devin Patterson leads the Summit League in steals (28) this season.
•UNO has five players who average 8.0 or more points per game, and seven different Mavericks have scored in double figures in at least one game.
•According to kenpom.com, UNO is second nationally in adjusted tempo, which estimates of the possessions per 40 minutes a team would have against a team that wants to play at an average Division I tempo. Omaha's adjusted tempo is listed at 75.4, behind only VMI's 78.1.
• When scoring 40 or more points in the first half, Omaha has gone 5-0 this season.
•The Mavericks have scored 20 or more points off turnovers in five of their 12 games so far.
•Omaha has taken a 16-point lead in the first five minutes of play twice this year. The Mavericks went up 16-0 against Iowa Wesleyan on Dec. 10 and 23-7 at Nebraska on Nov. 25.
•UNO earned its first win over a power-six conference on Nov. 22 with a 97-89 triumph at Marquette.
•The Mavericks shot a season-best .571 at Marquette. In the last three years, Omaha is 17-5 when shooting .500 or better as a team, including a perfect 4-0 this season.
•UNO has tallied double-digit offensive rebounds eight of its 12 games: 26 vs. Central Arkansas, 11 at Seattle, 11 at Marquette, 15 at Air Force, 11 vs. Iowa Wesleyan, 17 at UMKC, 12 vs. Northern Colorado, 12 vs. UT Pan American and 16 at Chicago State.
•Since the 2012-13 season, Omaha is 18-11 when senior guard CJ Carter scores 15 or more points in a game.
•This year, UNO is 4-1 when Patterson tallies 20 or more points.
•The Mavericks have hit at least three 3-pointers in 65 consecutive contests since Dec. 9, 2012.
•Omaha leads the Summit League in points per game, field goals made per game and rebounding margin.
•The Mavericks were picked sixth in this year's Summit League preseason poll.

Last Time Out: Mavericks Fall at Chicago State, 69-66
Omaha dropped its final test before conference play begins later this week, falling 69-66 to Chicago State at Jones Convocation Center on Monday night. Junior guard Marcus Tyus led UNO with a game-high 19 points on 6-of-13 shooting with a career-best four 3-pointers. He added six rebounds and two assists and two steals for the night.

Senior guard CJ Carter added 15 points, one assist and one steal, finishing 6-of-11 from the field with a pair of threes. Junior forward Randy Reed II rounded out the Mavericks' double-figure scorers with 11 points, also pulling down four boards with three assists and a steal.

Freshman forward Tre'Shawn Thurman led the way on the glass, cleaning up with a game-high and career-best 12 rebounds. Senior forward Mike Rostampour added eight points and eight rebounds as well.

As a team, Omaha shot 19-of-53 (.358) from the field, 8-of-26 (.308) from long range and 20-of-38 (.526) at the free throw line. Chicago State finished 22-of-49 (.449) from the floor, 8-of-16 behind the arc and 17-of-22 (.773) at the line. The Mavericks outrebounded the Cougars, 42-31, and forced 18 miscues that resulted in 24 points off turnovers.

Terrific Twosome Tearing It Up
Senior guard CJ Carter and junior guard Devin Patterson are the third-highest scoring duo in the Summit League this season. Their combined average of 30.2 points per game is behind only South Dakota's Brandon Bos and Tyler Larson (32.2 ppg) and Oral Roberts' Obi Emegano and Korey Billbury (30.3 ppg).

Individually, Carter ranks sixth in the conference with 15.4 ppg, while Patterson is seventh with 14.8 ppg. Additionally, Carter has nine double-figure scoring games and has led Omaha in scoring four times, while Patterson owns seven double-digit scoring performances and has led the Mavericks in five games this year.

Rebounds by Rostampour
Senior forward Mike Rostampour is second in the Summit League for rebounding this season. The West St. Paul, Minn., native is averaging 7.7 rebounds per game, up from his 5.8 rpg at this point last year.

Rostampour has grabbed at least six boards in each of the last seven games, including his third double-digit rebound effort of the season with 11 vs. Northern Colorado (Dec. 17).

House of Carter
CJ Carter's position in UNO's record books has been rapidly rising during his senior season. He is eighth all-time for career assists (302), 10th in steals (123), 13th in 3-pointers made (115), 13th in scoring (1,197 points) and 18th for field goals made (421). On Dec. 29 at Chicago State, the Omaha native passed former Maverick Jim Gregory (1977-81) on the scoring list, and he is now 57 points away from tying Bob Mackie (1951-55) for 12th.

Stacking Up Nationally
The Mavericks have maintained their place the top 50 in the national statistical rankings, as Omaha's 78.7 points per game ranks 26th among Division I programs, and its 9.0 steals per game are 20th. Individually, junior guard Devin Patterson is 14th with 2.6 steals per game.

Up Next
Omaha returns to action on Sunday, Jan. 4, traveling to Western Illinois. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. at Western  Hall in Macomb, Ill., and Gary Sharp will have the call of the game live on 1180 Zone 2. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.