This Week
After three straight games on the road, the Omaha men's basketball team returns home this week to host North Dakota State on Thursday, Jan. 8. Tipoff is set for 7:05 p.m. at Ralston Arena, and the game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN3 and Midco with Tom Nieman on play-by-play and Brad Newitt providing color commentary. Fans may access the broadcast on ESPN Full Court and/or Midco, WatchESPN.com and with the WatchESPN app.

Gary Sharp and former Maverick Grant Nieland will also have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2, and fans can 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.

Fans are encouraged to arrive early, as Ralston Arena will offer $1 beers, sodas and hot dogs for the hour prior to tipoff.
    
Scouting the North Dakota State Bison
North Dakota State carries a record 10-5 (2-0 Summit League) and a four-game win streak into Thursday's meeting. The Bison defeated South Dakota State 72-69 on Sunday, completing a 2-0 start to conference play. Kory Brown led NDSU with 17 points, while Lawrence Alexander -- the league's leading scorer -- tallied 16 points and seven rebounds. Dexter Werner also had 14 points, and NDSU shot 49 percent from the floor while registering only six turnovers.

Head coach David Richman is in his first year at North Dakota State, and he holds a career coaching mark of 10-5.

Thursday marks the 66th meeting all-time between Omaha and North Dakota State, with the Bison leading the series, 39-26. The two teams last met on Feb. 15, 2014, when NDSU earned a 75-59 win at Ralston Arena. UNO's last win over North Dakota State came on March 5, 2004 with an 81-74 overtime triumph at the NCC Tournament.

Quick Hits
•Senior forward Mike Rostampour leads the Summit League in offensive rebounds (40) this season.
•UNO has six players who average 8.0 or more points per game, and eight different Mavericks have scored in double figures in at least one game.
• According to kenpom.com, UNO is third 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 75.1, behind only VMI (78.3) and Coppin State (75.7).
• When scoring 40 or more points in the first half, Omaha has gone 5-0 this season.
•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 nine of its 14 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, 16 at Chicago State and 13 at Western Illinois.
•Since the 2012-13 season, Omaha is 19-12 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 67 consecutive contests since Dec. 9, 2012.
•Omaha leads the Summit League in points per game, field goals made per game, rebounding margin and steals per game.
•The Mavericks were picked sixth in this year's Summit League preseason poll.

Last Time Out: Leathernecks Hold Off Omaha, 80-78
Omaha finished its three-game road stint on Sunday afternoon, falling 80-78 to Western Illinois at Western Hall. Junior guard Marcus Tyus scored a career-high 25 points, shooting 9-of-17 with a pair of threes. He added five rebounds, two assists and a steal for the afternoon.

Senior guard CJ Carter chipped in 18 points with three steals, a pair of assists and a rebound, while junior forward Jake White had 11 points with six boards. Senior forward Mike Rostampour led the way on the glass, pulling down 10 rebounds alongside seven points, two steals and an assist.

As a team, Omaha shot 24-of-57 (.421) from the field, 5-of-19 (.263) from long range and 25-of-39 (.641) at the foul line. Western Illinois finished at 25-of-50 (.500) from the floor, 10-of-25 (.400) behind the arc and 20-of-26 (.769) at the line. UNO won the rebounding battle, 36-33.

Tyus On a Tear
Junior guard Marcus Tyus finished with a career-high 25 points at Western Illinois on Sunday, shooting 9-of-17 with a pair of threes. He has scored in double figures in seven straight contests since Dec. 10, averaging 18.0 points per game in that span.

In UNO's last seven games, during which the Mavericks have gone 4-3, Tyus has shot 42-of-75 (.560) from the floor, including 15-of-29 (.517) from long range. In the first seven games of the year, in which Omaha was 3-4, Tyus shot 23-55 (.418) overall and 7-of-20 (.350) behind the arc.

In Omaha's start to conference play, Tyus has averaged a team-high 22.0 points per game, shooting 14-of-25 (.560) from the floor and 3-of-7 (.429) from three.

Home Sweet Home
The 2014-15 season marks UNO's third and final season playing at Ralston Arena, which serves as the home of Maverick men's basketball, Omaha Lancers hockey and Omaha Beef indoor football. The Mavs will play a full Summit League schedule this year with eight conference games, and in total they have 13 games on the slate at Ralston. In 2015-16, Omaha will move its games to the on-campus UNO/Community Arena, which is currently being constructed just south of Aksarben Village between 64th and 67th streets on Center Street.

Last season, Omaha was 11-4 at Ralston Arena. UNO's 11 home wins came at an average margin of 21.4 points, and the Mavs scored an average of 82.3 points per game on their home court while holding their opponents to 69.8.

On Nov. 16, UNO opened its season at Ralston Arena, defeating Central Arkansas by a 100-75 tally. They followed up with wins over Nevada, 78-54 on Nov. 29, Iowa Wesleyan, 94-67 on Dec. 10, Northern Colorado, 92-82 on Dec. 17 and UT Pan American, 77-72 on Dec. 21. The Mavericks' average margin of victory at home is 18.2, and they score an average of 88.2 points per game.

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 (308), 10th in steals (127), 13th in 3-pointers made (118), 13th in scoring (1,239 points) and 15th for field goals made (436). On Dec. 29 at Chicago State, the Omaha native passed former Maverick Jim Gregory (1977-81) on the scoring list, and he is now 15 points away from tying Bob Mackie (1951-55) for 12th.

Terrific Twosome
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 29.8 points per game is behind only South Dakota's Brandon Bos and Tyler Larson (32.0 ppg) and Oral Roberts' Obi Emegano and Korey Billbury (30.8 ppg).

Individually, Carter ranks fourth in the conference with 16.2 ppg, while Patterson is ninth with 13.6 ppg. Additionally, Carter has 11 double-figure scoring games and has led Omaha in scoring five 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 nine games, including his fourth double-digit rebound effort of the season with 10 at Western Illinois (Jan. 4).

Stacking Up Nationally
The Mavericks have maintained their place the top 50 in the national statistical rankings, as Omaha's 79.1 points per game ranks 23rd among Division I programs, and its 8.9 steals per game are 20th. Individually, junior guard Devin Patterson is 21st with 2.3 steals per game.

Up Next
Omaha returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 10, hosting South Dakota State. Tipoff is set for 4:35 p.m. at Ralston Arena, and the game will be televised live on ESPN3 and Midco. Gary Sharp and former Maverick Grant Nieland will also have the radio call of the game on 1620 The Zone, and links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.

Fans are encouraged to arrive early, as Ralston Arena will offer $1 beers, sodas and hot dogs for one hour prior to tipoff.