Box Score OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha men's basketball team hosted its first conference home game Thursday night, falling 75-72 to North Dakota State at Ralston Arena. With the loss, the Mavericks are now 7-8 (1-2 Summit League), while the Bison improve to 11-5 (3-0 Summit League).

Senior forward Mike Rostampour and freshman forward Tre'Shawn Thurman led the Mavs with 18 points apiece. Thurman also pulled down a game-high eight rebounds, and Rostampour added another six.

Senior guard CJ Carter also finished in double figures with 14 points, and junior guard Devin Patterson chipped in 11 points with seven assists and two steals.

As a team, Omaha shot 21-of-63 (.333) from the floor, 7-of-21 (.333) from long range and 23-of-27 (.852) at the line. North Dakota State came in at 23-of-44 (.523) from the field, 5-of-15 (.333) behind the arc and 24-of-27 (.889) in free throwing shooting. The Bison outrebounded UNO, 34-25, but committed 20 turnovers to Omaha's season-low eight.

North Dakota State's Lawrence Alexander led the Bison in scoring with 18 points with two 3-pointers.  A.J. Jacobson led the way on the glass with eight boards.

The game started with 11 lead changes in the first half, as neither team went ahead by more than four points until the 4:12 mark. NDSU then put together a 7-0 run capped by a Jacobson three, going up 30-24. The Bison, who shot .423 to UNO's .294 in the first half, stretched it to a 34-29 advantage by halftime.

The Mavericks opened the second half with a 6-2 run in the first four minutes, cutting the Bison's lead to four. A Rostampour layup tied the game at 46-46 with 9:36 remaining, and a Tyus triple gave Omaha the lead at 49-48. UNO's advantage was pushed to four by 52-48 on a Patterson free throw with 8:28 to go, but NDSU regained the lead on buckets by Werner and Alexander.

Omaha managed to tie it one more time on a Thurman dunk at the 6:01 mark, but NDSU roared back with another 7-0 swing to shoot ahead 61-54. The Mavericks came within two on a Thurman dunk, after which the foul fest began. NDSU and UNO went to the line a combined 11 times in the last three minutes, with Paul Miller making 6-of-6 for the Bison to make it 75-72 with four seconds left. Omaha got one more shot off in the final ticks, but a 3-point attempt fell just short to send North Dakota State away with the win.  

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 broadcast nationally on ESPN3, ESPN Full Court and Midco. Gary Sharp and former Maverick Grant Nieland will also have the radio call on 1620 The Zone, and links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.