OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha women's basketball team fell 64-52 to CSUN Friday at Baxter Arena.
With the loss, the Mavericks dropped to 1-2, while the Matadors improved 1-2.
Leaders for Omaha
Sophomore
Claire Killian led Omaha with a team-high 12 points on 4-of-17 shooting, including four three-pointers, and blocked two shots. Freshman
Josie Filer scored 11 points, grabbed eight boards, dished out three assists, blocked two shots and had two steals. Freshman
Sophie Johnston chipped in 11 points, including three three-pointers, four boards and three assists.
Leaders for CSUN
Serafina Maulupe scored a game-high 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including four three-pointers. Hayley Tanabe added 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including four three-pointers, four assists and three rebounds. Channon Fluker, a two-time Big West Player of the Year, added 12 points, nine boards and two blocks off the bench.
Team Stats
CSUN shot .455 (25-of-55) from the floor, while Omaha shot .300 (18-of-60). The Matadors hit .563 (9-of-16) from beyond the arc, while the Mavericks shot .267 (8-of-30). Omaha held a slight edge on the boards 36-34, including a 16-10 advantage in offensive rebounds.
Inside the First Half
CSUN raced out to a 7-2 lead in the first three minutes of the game on a Tanabe three-pointer and a Maulupe bucket. Jordyn Jackson's layup gave the Matadors an 11-4 lead midway through the first quarter. The Mavericks responded with four points from Filer and a senior
Kalen Phillips layup to make it a one-point game, 11-10. The quarter closed with CSUN and Omaha exchanging baskets as the Matadors led 13-12 at the end of the opening 10 minutes.
Freshman
Mariah Murdie's jumper gave Omaha a 14-13 lead in the opening minute of the second quarter. Maulupe scored eight of CSUN's next 11 points as the Matadors took a 24-14 lead. Killian sparked an Omaha 8-0 run with a pair of three's to cut the lead to two. CSUN ended the period on a 7-1 spurt to take a 31-23 lead at halftime.
Inside the Second Half
Johnston opened the second half with a pair of three-pointers as Omaha cut the lead to five, 35-30. Tanabe's trey with 1:04 left in the third period capped a 10-2 CSUN run that pushed the lead to 45-32. Junior
Andi Pierce hit a pair of free throws while Fluker converted a layup to end the quarter with the Matadors leading 47-34.
Fluker and Juliana Louis each scored three points for CSUN in the opening 1:20 of the fourth quarter to push the lead to 14. After an Omaha timeout, Killian and Phillips hit back-to-back three-pointers as the Mavericks climbed back into the game. A Maulupe trey halted the UNO run. A Phillips layup, followed by a Killian three-pointer put UNO within six with 3:57 left in the period. Omaha was outscored 8-2 down the stretch as CSUN claimed the 64-52 victory.
Up Next
Omaha returns to the court next Friday, Nov. 23, against Campbell in the Florida International Tournament in Miami, Fla. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. and links to live stats and radio will be available on OMavs.com.