This Weekend
The Omaha men's basketball team plays its final non-conference home game this weekend, welcoming Cal State Fullerton on Sunday, Dec. 18 for the second of two meetings this year with the Titans. 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. 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
•The Mavericks are 2-3 all-time against Big West teams -- 1-0 vs. Cal State Fullerton, 1-1 vs. UC Santa Barbara and 0-2 vs. former member Pacific.
•The last time Omaha played a non-conference opponent twice in the same season was 2013-14 vs. South Carolina State (Nov. 19 at Ralston Arena and Nov. 25 in Orangeburg, S.C.)
•Four of Omaha's starters average double-figure scoring: junior forward Tre'Shawn Thurman (13.9 ppg), senior guard Marcus Tyus (13.2 ppg), sophomore guard Zach Jackson (12.2 ppg) and senior guard Tra-Deon Hollins (10.2 ppg).
•Omaha's victory at UMKC Thursday night marked the second straight game this year in which 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 11 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 Cal State Fullerton Titans
Cal State Fullerton is 4-6 (0-0 Big West) on the year following a 75-62 home win over Southern Utah on Dec. 10. Four Titans scored in double figures: Dwight Ramos (14), Tre' Coggins (13), Kyle Allman (12) and Austen Awosika (10). Coggins, a Preseason All-Big West pick, has averaged a conference-leading 19.6 points per game this season.

Head coach Dedrique Taylor is in his fourth year with the Titans and carries a career record of 34-68.

Wednesday's meeting marks the second meeting between Omaha and CSUF. The Mavericks won the first matchup this season on Nov. 30 by a score of 83-73 in Fullerton, Calif.

Last Time Out: Second-Half Surge Propels Omaha Past UMKC, 80-75
Omaha used a second-half surge to defeat UMKC Thursday night, dealing the Kangaroos their first home loss with an 80-75 victory at Municipal Auditorium. Senior guard Marcus Tyus led UNO in scoring for the second straight game, finishing with 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting alongside three rebounds and four assists.

Sophomore guard Zach Jackson tacked on 15 points spurred by 4-of-6 shooting from long range, adding six rebounds and a steal. Junior guard Daniel Norl also tallied in double figures with 10 points, and junior forward Tre'Shawn Thurman pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds with eight points.

Senior guard Tra-Deon Hollins also dished out a game-best six assists and added seven points, eight rebounds and two steals.

Omaha outshot UMKC .438 (28-of-64) to .380 (27-of-71) from the floor and .375 (9-of-24) to .286 (8-of-28) from distance. UNO also had the edge in rebounding, 47-40.

Road Game Rewind: Omaha at Cal State Fullerton
Omaha and Cal State Fullerton met for the first time this season on Nov. 30, with the Mavericks prevailing 83-73 at Titan Gym in Fullerton, Calif. Junior forward Tre'Shawn Thurman recorded his second straight double-double -- and his third of the season -- with 17 points and a game-high 12 rebounds in the game. Senior guard Tra-Deon Hollins added a game-high and season-best 20 points along with six boards, four assists and four steals. He hit 5-of-10 from the field and was a flawless 8-of-8 at the free throw line.

Sophomore guard Zach Jackson also tallied in double figures, finishing with 12 points on perfect 10-of-10 shooting at the line as well as five rebounds. Senior guard Marcus Tyus had 10 points, firing in 4-of-7.

As a team, Omaha shot .419 (26-of-62) to CSUF's .435 (27-of-62) but finished at a .926 (25-of-27) clip at the line, ahead of the Titans' .458 (11-of-24). The Mavericks also had the advantage on the boards, outrebounding Fullerton 46-35.

The Titans were led by 18 points from Tre' Coggins. Dwight Ramos put up another 12 points on three 3-pointers off the bench, and Jackson Rowe added 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds.

Marcus Making His Mark
Senior guard Marcus Tyus tallied his second 30-point game of the season Dec. 10 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 11 games on the road this season, with trips to UC Santa Barbara, USC, Kansas State, Eastern Michigan, Cal State Fullerton, Iowa, Iowa State and UMKC. The Mavericks have traveled 14,254 miles in that span.

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 14.0 points per game and nearly doubled his performance on the glass to 9.0 rebounds per game.

On the road, Omaha is a .790 free throw shooting team, up from .692 at home. The Mavericks also average 38.4 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 .757 clip. The Mavericks have shot below .700 just three times 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 932 career points, spurred most recently by a 21-point performance Dec. 15 at UMKC. 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 110 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 12.2 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 27.5 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 for free throws made (202). Individually, senior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is third among Division I players for total steals (31), seventh for total assists (71), ninth for steals per game (2.8) and 14th for assists per game (6.5).

League Leaders
As a team, Omaha is the Summit League's leader in free throws made per game (18.4) and free throws attempted per game (24.3). Individually, senior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the way in steals (31) and assists (71) for the second straight season.

Compared to the Opposition
Over the first 11 contests of the 2016-17 season, Omaha has:
    •More or equal field goals made compared to its opponent five times
    •More or equal 3-point field goals made compared to its opponent four times
    •More or equal free throws made compared to its opponent eight times
    •More rebounds compared to its opponent five 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 seventh in school history Dec. 15 at UMKC, tying Andrew Bridger (2006-10), and now has a career total of 158 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 13th at UMKC, as his 267 helpers passed CJ Carter (2011-15).

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 Vernon Manning (1981-82). Hollins was also the first Omaha player in six years to record a double-double off points and assists.

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 138-175 over all teams on the regular-season slate.

Next Up
Omaha closes the non-conference portion of its schedule on Wednesday, Dec. 21, visiting Pitt at 6 p.m. CT in Pittsburgh, Pa. The game will be broadcast live on ACC Network Extra, and Gary Sharp will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2. Links to live stats, audio and video will be available on OMavs.com.