This Week
The Omaha men's basketball team returns to the road this week, visiting UMKC on Thursday, Dec. 15. Tipoff is set for 6:35 p.m. at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo., and Gary Sharp will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2. Fans can stream audio on their smartphones by downloading NRG Media's app “1620 The Zone,” and links to live video, audio and stats will be available on OMavs.com.

Quick Hits
•Omaha is 8-7 all-time against WAC foes. The Mavericks are 1-0 vs. CSU Bakersfield, 0-1 vs. Chicago State, 2-3 vs. Colorado State, 0-1 vs. Denver, 1-0 vs. Grand Canyon, 2-1 vs. UMKC, 1-0 vs. San Jose State and 1-1 vs. Seattle.
•Four of Omaha's starters average double-figure scoring: junior forward Tre'Shawn Thurman (14.5 ppg), senior guard Marcus Tyus (12.4 ppg), sophomore guard Zach Jackson (11.9 ppg) and senior guard Tra-Deon Hollins (10.5 ppg).
•Over their careers, Thurman and Hollins have both averaged at least 12 points per game, notching at 12.2 ppg and 12.0 ppg, respectively.
•Omaha's victory over Montana State last Saturday marked the first time this year that the Mavericks rallied for a win after trailing at the half.
•Omaha capped the 2015-16 season at 18-14 overall and 10-6 in the Summit League, finishing third in the conference standings. The Mavericks were picked fourth in the league's 2016-17 preseason poll last month.
•Hollins and Thurman were both named Preseason All-Summit, with Hollins on the first team and Thurman on the second team.
•Hollins was the nation's leader in both steals (127) and steals per game (3.9) as a junior.
•Tyus has returned to the lineup after redshirting in 2015-16. Previously, Tyus had not played in a game since Feb. 7, 2015 at Denver, when he suffered a season-ending knee injury.
•UNO lost five letterwinners from 2015-16, including second-team All-Summit performers in guard Devin Patterson and forward Jake White.
•Omaha was a perfect 10-0 when shooting 50 percent or better last year. This year, the Mavericks are 2-1.
•Eight different Mavericks have scored in double figures over the first 10 games this year.
•Thurman registered his third double-double of the year Nov. 30 at Cal State Fullerton. In games with a Thurman double-double over the last three seasons, Omaha is 5-4.

Scouting the UMKC Kangaroos
UMKC is 7-4 (0-0 WAC) on the year after a 93-71 win over William Jewell last Saturday. Five Kangaroos scored in double figures: LaVell Boyd (21), Kyle Steward (14), Xavier Bishop (13), Jordan Giles (12) and Aleer Leek (10). Boyd, UMKC's leading scorer, has averaged 19.1 points per game this season.

Head coach Kareem Richardson is in his fourth year at UMKC, carrying a record of 43-62.

Thursday's game is the 12th meeting all-time between Omaha and UMKC. The Mavericks won the last matchup 95-89 in overtime on Nov. 17, 2015 at Baxter Arena.

Last Time Out: Tyus Fires in 37, Leads Omaha Past MSU, 97-91
Behind a career-best 37-point scoring effort from senior guard Marcus Tyus, Omaha took down Montana State 97-91 at Baxter Arena Saturday evening. The scoring onslaught from Tyus came on 12-of-17 shooting from the field, including 6-of-8 from distance, as well as 7-of-8 at the free throw line. In addition to the second 30-point scoring performance of his career, the Ramsey, Minn., native added four rebounds, two assists and two steals for the night.

Junior forward Tre'Shawn Thurman shot 8-of-9 from the floor en route to 25 points, also adding three assists, two steals and team bests of seven rebounds and four blocks.

Sophomore guard Zach Jackson tallied 12 more points and six rebounds, while sophomore forward Mitch Hahn rounded it out with another 10 points.

As a team, Omaha outshot Montana State .545 (30-of-55) to .429 (30-of-70), aided by a .440 (11-of-25) output from long range to MSU's .390 (16-of-41). The Mavericks also outscored the Bobcats 15-2 on fast breaks.

UNO vs. UMKC
Omaha and UMKC have played six times since the Mavericks moved to Division I in 2011-12, and Omaha leads the series 4-2 in that span.

In his two career games vs. UMKC, junior forward Tre'Shawn Thurman has been a force, averaging 24.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, 3.0 steals and 2.0 blocks per contest. As a freshman playing at Municipal Auditorium in 2014, he finished with 19 points, eight boards, one assist, four steals and three blocks against the 'Roos. Last season at Baxter Arena, he scored a career-high 30 points and added 11 caroms, a pair of steals and a block.

Mark Another 37 for Marcus
Senior guard Marcus Tyus tallied his second 30-point game of the season last Saturday vs. Montana State, besting his previous career high of 33 points set Nov. 13 at USC. Tyus dropped 37 points against the Bobcats, which tied for the sixth-best scoring performance in school history with Calvin Kapels vs. St. Cloud State (Jan. 26, 2006) and Devin Patterson at Duquesne (March 16, 2016). It was also the most points scored by a Maverick since Patterson's showing at Duquesne in the CBI.

Road Warriors
Omaha has played seven of its first 10 games on the road this season, with trips to UC Santa Barbara, USC, Kansas State, Eastern Michigan, Cal State Fullerton, Iowa and Iowa State. The Mavericks will have traveled 14,254 miles by tipoff Thursday at UMKC.

Junior forward Tre'Shawn Thurman has led the charge for Omaha in road battles. At home, he has averaged 13.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per game; in away contests, he has 14.9 points per game and doubled his performance on the glass to 8.9 rebounds per game.

On the road, Omaha is an .816 free throw shooting team, up from .692 at home. The Mavericks also average 39.7 rebounds per game in away games compared to 32.3 at Baxter Arena.

Solid at the Stripe
Omaha has been strong at the free throw line this season, hitting at a .770 clip. The Mavericks have shot below .700 just twice and earlier this year fired at over .900 in back-to-back games -- .923 (24-of-26) Nov. 26 at Eastern Michigan and .926 (25-of-27) Dec. 30 at Cal State Fullerton.

The last time a Maverick team shot .900 or better at the stripe in back-to-back games was 2007-08 vs. York College (.926 on Jan. 12, 2008) and Nebraska-Kearney (.900 on Jan. 14, 2008).

Tyus on Track
Though he entered the 2016-17 season having not played a game since Feb. 7, 2015, senior guard Marcus Tyus is the next Omaha player on track to join the prestigious 1,000-Point Club. Over four active seasons (2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2016-17), he has amassed 911 career points, spurred most recently by his career-high 37-point performance Dec. 10 vs. Montana State. If he reaches 1,000, Tyus will be the 37th UNO player to achieve the feat.

Omaha's active career leader for 3-pointers, Tyus is 15th on the Mavericks' career triples chart. His career total of 109 sits behind Devin Patterson (2013-16), who had 116.

Tracking Tre'Shawn
After 30 blocked shots to his credit as a freshman and 35 more as a sophomore, junior forward Tre'Shawn Thurman made his way into the top 10 in school history with 65 career blocks. Midway into the 2016-17 campaign, the Omaha Central product now sits at seventh on the list with 76, and his next hurdle is Matt Hagerbaumer (2010-14), who had 79 for sixth.

Thurman's 35 blocks in 2015-16 were the 10th-highest single-season mark in school history, and the total ranked him third in the Summit League. His 21 blocks in league play were also the second-most of any league player last year.

Action Jackson
Sophomore guard Zach Jackson is second on the team for rebounding with 5.5 boards per game and third for scoring with 11.9 points per game this season. In Omaha's season opener Nov. 12 at UCSB, he scored 14 points and pulled down a career-best and eight rebounds and has matched the rebounding performance twice more -- Nov. 15 at Kansas State and Dec. 3 at Iowa. Jackson also put up a career-high 21 points at Iowa on Dec. 3, and he has scored in double figures in all but two games this season.

Jackson started 24 games in his freshman campaign in 2015-16, averaging 3.5 points and 2.1 rebounds per contest. A native of Wichita, Kan., he scored in double figures twice, first notching 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting vs. Saint Mary's, then 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting at Montana State.

Jackson was the first Omaha freshman to start a season opener since CJ Carter in 2011. Jackson also had the distinction of making the first basket in Baxter Arena history, nailing a jumper 52 seconds into last year's season opener vs. UC Santa Barbara.

Feelin' Hahn, Hahn, Hahn
Sophomore forward Mitch Hahn is averaging 8.6 points per game, the most of any Maverick coming off the bench.

The Fremont, Neb., native had an impressive debut Nov. 12 at UC Santa Barbara, leading all scorers with 15 points in reserve with five 3-pointers. Hahn was the first Maverick to knock down at least five triples in a season opener since former Maverick Jeff Martin did so in 2009-10.

Hahn has matched his season best of 15 points twice more -- Nov. 19 vs. Rice, shooting 5-of-7 with two 3-pointers, and again Dec. 3 at Iowa. He is second on the team for threes made this season with 16.

Looking to the Bench
Omaha's bench outscored Buena Vista's bench 60-28 on Nov. 22. The last time the Mavericks' bench enjoyed a scoring margin of 30 or more was March 1, 2014, when UNO outscored Fort Wayne's reserves 59-26.

The 2016-17 Mavericks are averaging 27.6 points per game by bench scorers, the highest of any Derrin Hansen-coached team. The next highest average is courtesy of the 2013-14 squad, which had 24.9 bench points per game.

Stacking Up Nationally
As a team, Omaha ranks 24th nationally in free throw percentage (.770) and 30th for free throws made (187). Individually, senior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is fourth among Division I players for total steals (29), seventh for total assists (65), eighth for steals per game (2.9) and 12th for assists per game (6.5).

League Leaders
As a team, Omaha is the Summit League's leader in free throws made per game (18.7) and free throws attempted per game (24.3). Individually, senior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the way in steals (29) and assists (65) for the second straight season.

Compared to the Opposition
Over the first 10 contests of the 2016-17 season, Omaha has:
    •More or equal field goals made compared to its opponent four times
    •More or equal 3-point field goals made compared to its opponent three times
    •More or equal free throws made compared to its opponent seven times
    •More rebounds compared to its opponent four times
    •More or equal steals compared to its opponent four times
    •Fewer or equal turnovers compared to its opponent six times
    •More or equal blocks compared to its opponent four times

History-Making Hollins
Senior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is Omaha's all-time single-season steals leader, and he joined the top 20 for career steals on Feb. 6, 2016. Hollins moved up to eighth in school history Dec. 10 vs. Montana State, passing Vernon Manning (1978-82), and now has a career total of 156 swipes.

Hollins' 196 assists last season were also the second-highest single-season mark in school history. He broke into the  all-time top 20 for assists Nov. 19 vs. Rice and moved up to 14th Dec. 5 at Iowa State; his current total of 261 helpers recently passed Caleb Steffensmeier (2010-14).

Hollins had one of his finest performances of the 2015-16 season vs. Fort Wayne on Jan. 16, 2016, finishing with 23 points, a season-high 13 assists and a season-best eight steals alongside five rebounds. He claimed Omaha's single-season steals record (then 81) in the game, clearing the previous mark of 80 set by Manning (1981-82). Hollins was also the first Omaha player in six years to record a double-double off points and assists.

Bouncing Back
Omaha showed the ability to bounce back from losses last season, going 8-4 in games that followed a defeat. The Maverick offense also came back with a vengeance in those games, averaging 92.8 points per game in the next contest after a loss. This season, UNO is 3-2 after a loss and averages 89.4 points in those games.

2016-17 Slate = Tough Test for Mavericks
Omaha's 2016-17 schedule includes 29 games, and the team will play in 13 states against schools from nine other Division I conferences. The schedule has two opponents from both the Big 12 and Big West and one each from the Pac-12, Big Ten, ACC, Conference USA, MAC, Big Sky and WAC. Five opponents – USC, Iowa, Iowa State, Pitt and defending Summit League champion South Dakota State – played in the 2016 NCAA Tournament.

The 2016-17 season also features four opponents the Mavericks have never faced: USC, Rice, Cal State Fullerton and Pitt. They now hold a combined all-time record of 137-175 over all teams on the regular-season slate.

Next Up
Omaha returns to action on Sunday, Dec. 18, hosting Cal State Fullerton. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. at Baxter Arena, and Gary Sharp and John Karhoff will have the radio call on 1620 The Zone. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.