This Week
The Omaha men's basketball team returns to the state of Colorado this Wednesday, Nov. 25, visiting Northern Colorado. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. (CT) at Bank of Colorado Arena in Greeley, Colo., and Gary Sharp will have the call of the game on 1180 Zone 2. 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.

Quick Hits
•UNO returns nine letterwinners from its 2014-15 team, including three starters in senior guards Marcus Tyus and Devin Patterson and sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman. Tyus, who suffered a season-ending knee injury last February, did not play in the Mavericks' four opening games.
•Thurman is averaging team highs of 14.0 points and 7.0 boards per game.
•Newcomers Zach Jackson and Tra-Deon Hollins have earned spots in the starting lineup, with Jackson becoming the first freshman to start a season opener since CJ Carter at Fort Wayne on Nov. 12, 2011.
•UNO's top scorer off the bench has been senior guard Tim Smallwood, who has 8.8 points per game.
•According to kenpom.com, UNO is fifth 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 77.7.

Scouting the Northern Colorado Bears
Northern Colorado has a record of 1-3 (0-0 Big Sky) entering the week. The Bears opened the season with a 109-72 loss to Kansas before returning home for an 85-70 win over Colorado Christian. Head coach B.J. Hill is in his sixth season at UNC with record of 77-80.

Wednesday marks the 59th meeting between Omaha and Northern Colorado, with the Mavericks leading the all-time series 31-27. UNO took the last meeting against UNC, 92-82, on Dec. 17, 2014, as well as the last matchup played in Greeley, 94-62, on Jan. 9, 2003. Omaha has won six straight games against the Bears dating back to 2000-01.

Last Time Out: Colorado Holds Off Mavericks, 87-82
Omaha pulled within three in the final 30 seconds of the game but came up just short at Colorado Sunday afternoon, falling 87-82 at Coors Events Center. Senior guard Devin Patterson was one of five Mavericks to score in double figures and led the game with 19 points, adding three steals, two rebounds and an assist. Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins also had outstanding performance, posting season highs of 14 points, eight rebounds, eight assists and five steals while shooting 6-of-11 from the field.

Senior forward Jake White added 16 points with four boards, and sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman registered 13 points and five rebounds with a steal. Senior guard Tim Smallwood rounded it out with 10 points off the bench, shooting 3-of-6 from the floor with a pair of threes.

Omaha shot 47 percent (34-of-72) from the floor to Colorado's 39 percent (24-of-62). The Buffs held the edge on the glass, outrebounding UNO 52-32, while the Mavericks finished with the upper hand in steals, 11-5.

Hollins Steals the Defensive Spotlight
Four games into the season, junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the nation with 17 total steals. Driven by his 4.3 steals per game, which also ranks fourth, Omaha as a team is fourth in the country for total steals (42) and 14th for steals per game (10.5).

Hollins has long been regarded for his defensive prowess and is no stranger to pacing the nation in steals, as he led the all players in the NJCAA with 4.1 swipes per game while playing at Central CC in 2013-14.

Rallying for the Win
Omaha overcame a 10-point second-half deficit vs. UMKC last Tuesday, winning 95-89 in overtime. The last time the Mavericks trailed by 10 or more points and came back to win was Feb. 26, 2014, when UNO was down 11 in the second half and went on to a 73-67 victory.

At a Glance: 2014-15
Omaha finished the 2014-15 season, its fourth and final year of reclassification to NCAA Division I, with a record of 12-17 (5-11 Summit League). Two Mavericks, guard CJ Carter and forward Mike Rostampour, earned all-conference recognition, as Carter garnered second-team plaudits and Rostampour was named honorable mention.

UNO finished the year on a three-game win streak on the road, defeating Fort Wayne 73-67, IUPUI 87-80 in double-overtime and North Dakota 80-78.

As a team, Omaha led the Summit League with 8.2 steals per game last year, spurred by guard Devin Patterson, who paced the conference with 59 steals. The Mavericks were also first in the conference for points per game (76.8), field goals made per game (26.4) and free throws made per game (17.7).

#euromavs: A Maverick Adventure to Italy
Omaha embarked on its first overseas training trip August 12-22 of this year with a tour of Italy, spending 11 days in three cities with four games against foreign competition. The Mavericks won all four contests, defeating All Star Varese 85-43, Stellazzurra 75-39, Isernia 107-31 and Luiss University 81-41. Sophomore forward Daniel Meyer (11.5 points per game), senior forward Jake White (10.0 ppg) and senior guard/forward Randy Reed II (10.0 ppg) all averaged double-figure scoring for the trip.

The team stayed in Milan, Florence and Rome, and sightseeing activities included a private boat tour at Lake Como, visits to the Duomo, the Accademia Museum, Ponte Vecchio, Santa Maria Novella, the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain and tours of the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Vatican.

League Leaders
Omaha leads the Summit League in points per game (85.0), field goals made per game (29.8), field goals attempted per game (65.5), steals per game (10.5) and free throws attempted per game (27.0). Senior guard/forward Randy Reed II, who is 10-for-10 at the line, paces the conference in free throw percentage (1.000), and junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is first in the league for steals (17). Sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman also tops all league players for offensive boards (10).

Pitter Patterson
Senior guard Devin Patterson is known for his quickness, and the Portsmouth, Va., native led the Summit League with 59 steals last year. Four games into his senior season, he is 11th on the Omaha career steals list with 126 in just over two seasons. Patterson's next hurdle is Corey Hahn (1998-2002), who had 130 steals for 10th.

Patterson also joined the top 20 in school history for career assists in the opening weekend with his total rising to 219, passing former teammate John Karhoff (2010-14), who had 218. Patterson's next target is Tom Thompson (1984-88), who owned 229 helpers.

Tracking Tre'Shawn
After 30 blocked shots to his credit as a freshman and four so far this season, sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman needs just two to enter the top 10 in school history for career blocks. The Omaha Central product had two vs. UC Santa Barbara, one vs. Saint Mary's and another vs. UMKC.

Thurman started all but three games in his freshman season, becoming the first UNO freshman to earn a start since CJ Carter in 2011-12. Thurman finished with 18 points and a career-best five blocks against Nevada last year, the most blocks by any Maverick since Gabe Zweiner tallied five against Nebraska-Kearney on Dec. 3, 2005.

Thurman followed his five blocks against the Wolf Pack with three at Kansas State, along with a career-high 19 points. He became the first player to have three or more blocks in back-to-back games since Jerry Bennett did so in 2007-08 with three apiece against North Dakota and Fort Lewis.

Thurman averaged 9.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game in his debut season, tallying 14 double-digit scoring efforts.

Zach Jack Attack
Freshman guard Zach Jackson made his first career start vs. UC Santa Barbara and scored the first basket at Baxter Arena with a jumper 52 seconds into the game. The Wichita, Kan., native finished with four points, two assists, two steals and a rebound in his debut, playing 25 minutes. Jackson then scored the first basket in the Mavericks' second game as well, posting 10 points, four boards, four assists, three steals and a block vs. Saint Mary's.

Over Jackson's four starts this season, he has averaged 7.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.

Gibson Provides a Spark
Freshman guard JT Gibson sparked Omaha in its second-half rally vs. UC Santa Barbara on Nov. 13, nailing back-to-back 3-pointers nine minutes in to start a 25-4 run over the next seven minutes of play. Gibson, the 2015 Gatorade Minnesota State Player of the Year, registered eight points, a rebound and assist in his Maverick debut. He became the first freshman to hit at least two triples in a season opener since CJ Carter did so at Fort Wayne on Nov. 12, 2011.

Gibson followed up with another sound performance off the bench vs. Saint Mary's on Nov. 15, finishing with 13 points and six rebounds while shooting 4-of-7 from the field with a trio of threes. For the season, he has averaged 5.8 points per game and is second on the team with five 3-pointers made.

White Out
Despite nagging injury issues to start his junior season in 2014-15, forward Jake White was highly productive in the time he saw on the court last year. Over 20 appearances, including three starts, White averaged 7.3 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, the latter of which ranked second on the team. In those contests, he had five double-figure scoring efforts and two double-figure rebounding performances.

In 2015-16, White is one of three Mavericks averaging in double figures, credited for 12.5 points per game. He has scored in double figures in three consecutive games, including a career-high 17 vs. UMKC on Nov. 17.

Wiping Down the Offensive Glass
Omaha finished the 2014-15 season ranked second in the Summit League with 11.1 offensive boards per game, its highest average since head coach Derrin Hansen's first UNO team had 13.0 per game in 2005-06. Last year, the Mavericks tallied double-digit offensive rebounds in 62 percent (18 of 29) of their games, including a season-high 26 vs. Central Arkansas in the season opener.

This year, Omaha is up to 11.8 offensive boards per game, grabbing 10 or more in the first three games.

Smallwood Steps Up
Senior guard Tim Smallwood moved into a starting role in the last six games of the 2014-15 season after Marcus Tyus suffered a season-ending injury. Smallwood stepped up, averaging 7.0 points per game with eight 3-pointers, second-most on the team during that six-game span. The Tulsa, Okla., native went off in a double-overtime win at IUPUI, hitting 5-of-7 seven shots from long range to finish with a career-high 15 points. He also had a standout effort on the glass in his start vs. Western Illinois, grabbing a career-high seven boards with a career-best-tying three steals.

Smallwood led the Mavericks vs. Saint Mary's on Nov. 15, posting a season-high 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting with a pair of 3-pointers. He has scored in double digits off the bench in three straight games, adding 11 points vs. UMKC on Nov. 17 and 10 more at Colorado on Nov. 22. Smallwood leads Omaha with six triples made this year.

Stacking Up Nationally
The Mavericks rank seventh nationally for total steals (42) and 14th for steals per game (10.5) through the first four games this season.

Individually, junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the nation in total steals (17) and is fourth in steals per game (4.3). Senior guard/forward Randy Reed is tied with 36 other players across the country with a 1.000 free throw shooting percentage, and senior guard Devin Patterson is also 18th in the country for total steals (10).

TT for a D-D
Sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman has the last two double-doubles of any Maverick, tallying his first at IUPUI on Feb. 28, 2014. He achieved the second double-double of his career Nov. 17 vs. UMKC, finishing with a career-high 30 points and 11 rebounds.

Prior to Thurman, former Maverick forward Mike Rostampour accounted for eight of the last nine double-doubles by an Omaha player.

What Makes Up the Mavericks
•UNO returns 61 percent of its offensive production from last season, as this year's returners accounted for 1,361 of the Mavericks' 2,226 points. The returning nine are also credited for 69 percent (696) of last season's 1,009 rebounds.
•Senior guards Devin Patterson and Marcus Tyus are UNO's leading returning scorers after averaging 13.0 and 11.7 points per game, respectively, both of which ranked among the top 15 scorers in the Summit League. Patterson also led the league in steals (59) and was second in assists (104), while Tyus was third for 3-point percentage (.440).
•Patterson played the most minutes last season of any returner on this year's roster, averaging 30.5 minutes per game as a junior.
•Sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman became the first Maverick freshman to start since 2011-12, breaking into the starting five in the second game of the season.
•UNO's 2015-16 roster includes six seniors, one junior, five sophomores and four freshmen.
•The Mavericks hail from eight different states. Six are from Nebraska, three are from Minnesota, and two are out of Kansas, while Oklahoma, Missouri, Virginia and Montana are all represented once on the roster.

Compared to the Opposition
One of the nation's top teams in steals per game, Omaha has equaled or tallied more steals than its opponent in all four contests this year. Over three games UNO has:
    •More or equal steals compared to its opponent four times
    •Fewer or equal turnovers compared to its opponent four times
    •More or equal FT attempts compared to its opponent twice
    •More rebounds compared to its opponent twice
    •More or equal blocks compared to its opponent twice
    •More or equal 3-point field goals made compared to its opponent twice

Fresh Faces
The Mavericks have six new faces on the roster this year: junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins, sophomore forward Mitchell Hahn, freshmen guards JT Gibson and Zach Jackson, freshman forward Ben Kositzke and freshman center Zach Pirog. Five of the six will be eligible to play in 2015-16, and four -- Hollins, Gibson, Jackson and Pirog -- have seen the floor so far this season.

Hollins, a hometown product, won four consecutive state championships at Omaha Central, where he was teammates with fellow Maverick Tre'Shawn Thurman. Hollins was a two-time first-team all-state pick, averaging 12.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game as a senior. He began his collegiate career at Central Community College, where he was part of a team that qualified for the NJCAA Division II National Tournament, and Chipola College.

Hahn, a native of Fremont, Neb., played one season at Holy Cross before transferring to UNO. As a prep at Fremont, he was named the state player of the year by Gatorade and the Nebraska Basketball Coaches Association in 2013-14, and he was named first-team all-state that season. As a senior, Hahn averaged 18.7 points and 10.8 rebounds per game. In accordance with NCAA transfer rules, he will sit out this season.

Gibson played at Champlin Park High School in Brooklyn Park, Minn., where he was the Gatorade State Player of the Year. Gibson was a first-team all-state selection while helping his team to the state title game, as well as a two-time all-conference pick.

Jackson comes from Wichita East High School in Wichita, Kan., where he was two-time all-state honoree and led his team to a state championship as a senior. Jackson averaged 12.3 points, 8.0 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 2.2 steals and 0.7 blocks per game.

Pirog, from Highlands Ranch, Colo., was listed as a two-star recruit by ESPN during his career at ThunderRidge High School. Pirog helped his team to the state title game and was a two-time all-state selection.

Kositzke is another local product who rounds out the Mavericks' class, coming from Millard West. He was first-team all-state selection as a senior and helped the Wildcats to two state tournament appearances.

Now Entering the Game
Sophomore guard Alex Allbery sat out the 2014-15 season after transferring from St. Thomas and is now eligible to play in 2015-16. Allbery, a local product from Creighton Prep, began his collegiate career playing one of year of baseball at St. Thomas, where he hit .545 as a freshman. His team finished third at the NCAA Division III World Series.

Allbery made his Maverick debut against Saint Mary's, finishing with two rebounds and two assists in eight minutes off the bench.

Hansen Guides Mavericks in 11th Season
Head coach Derrin Hansen is in his 11th season at the helm of the Omaha men's basketball program in 2015-16, boasting a career record of 163-140 over his head coaching career. He took the job after serving as an assistant coach for seven years with former Maverick head coaches Kevin McKenna and Kevin Lehman. Hansen has the second-most victories of any coach in program history, behind only Bob Hanson.

Hansen has coached or assisted teams that have earned five trips to the NCAA Division II Tournament, while also garnering two regular-season league titles and three tournament crowns. In 2007-08, his squad recorded a school-record 25 wins in its final season of North Central Conference play, and the Mavs won their final NCC Tournament to advance to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time since 2004-05. In 2009-10, UNO earned an NCAA Tournament berth by capturing the MIAA Tournament crown in just its second year as a member of the league.

As a player at Nebraska Wesleyan, Hansen's 1988 squad advanced to the NCAA Division III semifinals, and while serving as a student coach, the 1990 Plainsmen advanced to the final 16.

Hansen is assisted by assistant coaches Tyler Erwin, Pat Eberhart and James Miller.

2015-16 Slate Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
Omaha's 2015-16 schedule includes 30 games, and the team will play in 13 states against schools from 10 other Division I conferences. The schedule has two opponents from both the WAC and the Big Sky and one each from the Big West, Pac-12, Big Ten, MAC, SEC, Mountain West, OVC and SWAC or MEAC. Two opponents – Wyoming and defending Summit League champion North Dakota State – played in the 2015 NCAA Tournament.

The Mavericks have never faced seven of their opponents: UC Santa Barbara, Saint Mary's (Minn.), Colorado, Eastern Michigan, Montana State, Southern and North Carolina Central. They hold a combined all-time record of 160-188-2 over all teams on the regular-season slate.

Next Up
Omaha returns to action on Friday, Nov. 27, visiting Minnesota. Tipoff is at 2 p.m. at Williams Arena in Minneapolis, Minn., and the game will be broadcast live on ESPN3. Gary Sharp will also have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2, and fans can stream the audio on their smartphones by downloading NRG Media' app “1620 The Zone.” Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.