This Week
The Omaha men's basketball team closes the regular season this week, hosting Oral Roberts on Thursday, Feb. 25. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Baxter Arena, and Gary Sharp and Grant Nieland will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2. Fans can stream the 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.

Fans are encouraged to arrive early, as UNO will honor its five seniors -- Kyler Erickson, Devin Patterson, Randy Reed II, Tim Smallwood and Jake White -- with pregame festivities.

Quick Hits
•Omaha sits in third place in the Summit League standings behind Fort Wayne and South Dakota State.
•Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins had his fourth 20-point game Saturday with 24 points at IPFW, which marked the 30th Maverick performance of 20 or more points this year. UNO had 20 scoring efforts with 20+ over 29 games in 2014-15.
•Hollins is the nation's leader in both steals (115) and steals per game (4.0). On Saturday, he cleared the previous Summit League single-season steals record (115) set by Cleveland State's Ken Robertson (1988-89).
•Senior guard Devin Patterson became the 36th 1,000-point scorer in program history on Jan. 23 at Oral Roberts.
•Hollins (17.0 ppg), Patterson (17.0 ppg), sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman (11.7 ppg) and senior forward Jake White (10.3 ppg) have all averaged double-figure scoring when facing Oral Roberts. Hollins also has a team-leading 7.0 rebounds per game against the Golden Eagles.
•White's 505 points and Patterson's 497 this year are the 15th- and 18th-highest single-season totals in school history. White's total of 505 is also the most scored in a year since Justin Simmons posted 517 in 2012-13.
•White (17.4 ppg) and Patterson (19.1 ppg) both own scoring averages over 17.0 ppg. The last time a Maverick squad had two scorers with at least 17.0 ppg apiece was 2010-11, with Tyler Bullock (19.1 ppg) and Mitch Albers (17.3 ppg).
•UNO is a perfect 9-0 when shooting 50 percent or better this year, including 4-0 in league play.
•Omaha has posted double-digit steals in 13 games this season.
•Eleven different Mavericks have had at least one double-figure scoring performance this year.
•Omaha received votes six straight weeks in the CollegeInsider Mid-Major Top 25 poll from Jan. 11 to Feb. 15.
•According to kenpom.com, UNO is sixth nationally with an adjusted tempo of 76.5, 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 was picked seventh in the Summit League's preseason poll.

Scouting the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles
Oral Roberts carries a record of 14-14 (6-8 Summit League) into the week along with a three-game win streak. In last Friday's 62-58 victory over Denver, the league's leading scorer Obi Emegano paced the Golden Eagles with 26 points, hitting 14-of-14 from the line.

Head coach Scott Sutton is in his 17th season at Oral Roberts with a career record of 320-222. Thursday marks the sixth meeting between Omaha and ORU, with the Golden Eagles leading the all-time series 4-1. The Mavericks won the most recent matchup, 85-79, on Jan. 23 in Tulsa, Okla., while

Last Time Out: Fort Wayne Outlasts Mavericks, 94-90
Omaha staged a late rally but was just short in its bid to tighten the Summit League title race last Saturday, falling 94-90 to Fort Wayne at Gates Sports Center. Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins led all scorers with 24 points, shooting 10-of-18 with two 3-pointers for his fourth 20-point scoring performance of the season. The Omaha Central product added five rebounds, game highs of seven assists and four steals plus one block.

Senior guard/forward Randy Reed II scored a career-high 19 points off the bench, hitting 9-of-11 from the field with while grabbing five boards. Senior forward Jake White added 16 points and six rebounds, and senior guard Kyler Erickson had 12 points on a trio of 3-pointers, four caroms and two assists. Sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman rounded it out with 11 points, a team-high nine rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block.

Omaha Homaha
The addition of senior guard Kyler Erickson to Omaha's starting five on Feb. 10 marked the third different lineup the Mavericks have used this season. Erickson, out of Millard South, joined two other hometown natives -- junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins and sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman, both from Omaha Central -- as starters.
    The last time UNO had a starting lineup with at least three players from Omaha was Nov. 23, 2012 vs. Bethune-Cookman, when CJ Carter, Koang Doluony and John Karhoff got the nod.

Erickson Named to Allstate NABC Good Works Team
Senior guard Kyler Erickson has been named to the 2016 Allstate NABC Good Works Team, it was announced Feb. 9. The Allstate NABC Good Works Team recognizes a distinguished group of student-athletes who have demonstrated a commitment to enriching the lives of others and contributing to the greater good in their communities. Erickson was one of 154 NABC nominees.

As a senior at Millard South High School, Erickson witnessed a shooting in his school's administration office on Jan. 5, 2011. Nearly a year and a half later, he suffered the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), and since undergoing successful treatment, he has become a vocal advocate encouraging others to seek assistance for mental health issues. Erickson runs a website, KylerErickson.com, that details his story, and his videos have garnered widespread attention with over 50,000 views in 110 countries. Erickson's message of “turning tragedy into testimony” encourages people in all walks of life to confront mental health challenges they may be facing.

Erickson has served as a speaker, member and volunteer for the National Alliance on Mental Illness and spoken to over 20 elementary, middle and high schools in Omaha and San Diego. He also starred in an episode of “The Harbor TV,” a hope-filled homeroom program for high schools across the country and has mentored several mentally ill students and residents in the Omaha area. Additionally, Erickson has volunteered with multiple local charities, organizations and schools.

Members of the Allstate NABC Good Works Team will be invited by Allstate to be recognized at the 2016 NCAA Men's Final Four and NABC Convention and will participate in a community service project to benefit the host city of Houston.

Man of Steal
Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the nation in both total steals (115) and steals per game (4.0), well ahead of the second-ranked players, Hameed Ali of Texas A&M Corpus Christi (75) and Kris Dunn of Providence (2.9).

If Hollins maintains his pace, he will become just the 12th Division I player to average 4.0 steals or more for a season. The last time it happened was 2002, when Alabama A&M's Desmond Cambridge averaged a nation-leading 5.52 spg and Providence's John Linehan had 4.48 spg.

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.

Stacking Up Nationally
Omaha is fourth in the nation for steals (269), as well as fifth for free throws made (544), sixth for scoring offense (84.3 ppg), seventh for steals per game (9.3), 10th for free throw attempts (736) and 16th for turnovers forced (15.9).

Individually, junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the nation in steals (115) and steals per game (4.0) and is 14th for assists (169) and 25th for assists per game (5.8). Senior forward Jake White (505) and senior guard Devin Patterson (497) both rank in the top 60 nationally for points scored this season, with White at 56th and Patterson at 60th.

League Leaders
Omaha leads the Summit League in seven statistical categories: points (2,445), points per game (84.3), field goals made per game (29.8), field goals attempted per game (63.3), free throws made per game (18.8), free throws attempted per game (25.4) and steals per game (9.3).

Individually, junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is first among all league players for assists (169) and steals (115).

Hollering About Hollins
Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is Omaha's all-time single-season steals leader, and since joining the top 20 for career steals on Feb. 6, he now ranks 14th. His 169 assists are also the fifth-highest single-season mark in school history.

Hollins had one of his finest games of the season vs. Fort Wayne on Jan. 16, 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.

Hollins had another outstanding performance Feb. 10 vs. South Dakota State, finishing with a season-high 28 points, nine boards, eight assists, four steals and a block.

Two for 20
Omaha has had at least two scorers with 20 or more points on the same night six times this season and is 5-1 in those games. An astonishing four Mavericks were 20-point scorers on Jan. 16 vs. Fort Wayne, marking the first time that has occurred in the modern era.

Last season, the Mavericks had two 20-point scorers in the same game just twice -- last on Nov. 22, 2014 in their road upset of Marquette, when Patterson had 26 points and CJ Carter had 25.

Bouncing Back
Omaha has shown the ability to bounce back from losses this season, going 8-3 in games that follow a defeat.

Close Calls
Omaha's losses have come by an average margin of 5.5 points this year, its lowest average in the Derrin Hansen era. The Mavericks have fallen by one (vs. UC Santa Barbara, at Wyoming), three (at Minnesota, vs. Denver), four (at Fort Wayne), five (at Colorado, vs. Fort Wayne), seven (vs. Eastern Michigan, at Missouri, at Western Illinois), 11 (at South Dakota State) and 12 (at IUPUI). Last season's average margin of loss was 10.8 points.

Terrific Trio
Senior guard Devin Patterson, senior forward Jake White and sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman are the highest-scoring trio in the Summit League this season. Their average of 48.7 points per game is over six points higher than the scoring average for the next trio on the list, Oral Roberts' Obi Emegano, Jalen Bradley and Albert Owens (42.3). White is fourth among conference scorers with 17.5 ppg, while Patterson is fifth (17.1) and Thurman is 11th (14.2 ppg).

DP for Three
Senior guard Devin Patterson hit three 3-pointers vs. Fort Wayne on Jan. 16, becoming the Mavericks' active career leader in that category. He now owns 105 treys in three seasons and leads Omaha this year with 46 triples. In games when Patterson knocks down at least three 3-pointers, UNO is 5-2.

Pitter Patterson
Senior guard Devin Patterson is known for his quickness, and the Portsmouth, Va., native led the Summit League in steals each of the last two seasons. He is now fifth on the Omaha career steals list with 167 in three years, and his next hurdle is Dean Thompson (1980-84), who had 174.

Patterson also joined the top 20 in school history for career assists in the opening weekend, and his total has risen to 303 for ninth. His next target is Thad Mott (1988-92), who had 328.

Additionally, Patterson has pushed his career scoring total to 1,137 points, which is the most of any active Maverick. He became Omaha's 36th 1,000-point scorer on Jan. 23 at Oral Roberts and now ranks 16th in school history for scoring, needing 23 points to tie Art Allen (1968-71), who had 1,160.

Tracking Tre'Shawn
After 30 blocked shots to his credit as a freshman and 34 more this season, sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman has made his way into the top 15 in school history for career blocks. The Omaha Central product is now 11th, and his next hurdle to break into the top 10 is Terry Sodawasser (1981-85), who had 65. Thurman's 34 blocks this year tie John Eriksen (1979-80) as the 10th-highest single-season mark in school history.

Thurman's 21 blocks in Summit League play are the second-most of any conference player this year. He put up five blocks at South Dakota on Jan. 9, matching his career high set against Nevada as a freshman.

Picking Up the Pace
Omaha ranks sixth nationally in scoring with 84.3 points per game, up from 76.8 ppg last season. It marks the second-highest scoring average of any Derrin Hansen-coached team at UNO and is the fourth Maverick squad under his direction to average more than 80 points per contest, joining teams from 2010-11 (81.3 ppg), 2009-10 (84.6) and 2008-09 (81.3).

In its 17 wins this season, UNO has averaged 88.1 points per contest, scoring 95 points or more in seven of those games. In their wins, the Mavericks have also shot 50 percent from the field, 33 percent from long range and 77 percent at the line, compared to 44 percent, 32 percent and 69 percent, respectively, across their 12 losses.

White Out
Senior forward Jake White is credited for 17.4 points per game, the highest average on the team, and he has scored in double figures in all but three games. The Chaska, Minn., native owns six double-double performances this season: Dec. 1 vs. Eastern Michigan (14 points/12 rebounds), Dec. 9 at Missouri (18 points/10 rebounds), Dec. 16 vs. Simpson (17 points/11 rebounds), Dec. 19 at Wyoming (17 points/career-high 13 rebounds), Jan. 16 vs. Fort Wayne (26 points/11 rebounds) and Feb. 3 at Western Illinois (21 points/career-high-tying 13 rebounds).

White was named to the Global Sports Classic All-Tournament Team for his play over the four tournament games, Dec. 13-22. He averaged 19.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game, shooting 62 percent (26-of-42) from the field and 77 percent (23-of-30) at the line.

Home Sweet Home Advantage
During head coach Derrin Hansen's career, Omaha has won 70 percent of its home contests, going 105-44. The Mavericks secured their first win at brand-new Baxter Arena on Nov. 15, 104-58 vs. Saint Mary's (Minn.).

The 2014-15 season marked UNO's third and final season playing at Ralston Arena, which served as the home of Maverick men's basketball since 2012-13. Over three years at Ralston, Omaha posted a home record of 25-16.

Last season on its home court, UNO's average margin of victory was 17.3, and it scored an average of 79.8 points per game. Over the 10 previous years of the Hansen era, the Mavericks averaged 81.6 points per game at home at Sapp Fieldhouse and Ralston Arena, including 80.5 during the four Division I years.

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 but three games this year. Over 29 contests UNO has:
    •More or equal steals compared to its opponent 26 times
    •Fewer or equal turnovers compared to its opponent 24 times
    •More or equal free throws made compared to its opponent 22 times
    •More rebounds compared to its opponent 13 times
    •More or equal blocks compared to its opponent 14 times
    •More or equal 3-point field goals made compared to its opponent 12 times

#euromavs: A Maverick Adventure to Italy
Omaha embarked on its first overseas training trip August 12-22, 2015 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.

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 178-150 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. Two opponents – Wyoming and defending Summit League champion North Dakota State – played in the 2015 NCAA Tournament.

Entering the season, the Mavericks had never faced six of their opponents: UC Santa Barbara, Saint Mary's (Minn.), Colorado, Eastern Michigan, Montana State and Southern. They hold a combined all-time record of 175-198-2 over all teams on the regular-season slate.

Next Up
Omaha returns to action March 5-8, making its first appearance at the Summit League Tournament in Sioux Falls, S.D. A full tournament bracket will be released at the conclusion of all regular-season games on Saturday, Feb. 27.