Leading Off
The Omaha men's basketball team seeks its fifth straight win this Thursday, Jan. 24, visiting Purdue Fort Wayne. The game is set for 6:30 p.m. CT at Gates Sports Center in Fort Wayne, Ind., and Gary Sharp will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2. Links to live video, audio and stats will be available on OMavs.com.
Quick Hits
• With its win Sunday over South Dakota, Omaha moved into a tie for first in the Summit League standings.
• The Mavericks' 5-1 start to league play matches its previous best set by the 2015-16 team.
• Omaha has won eight of its last nine games. Its four-game win streak equals its longest of the season (Dec. 15-28).
• During the Mavericks' current win streak,
Matt Pile has averaged a double-double (13.3 ppg/10.8 rpg).
• Omaha has won its last four decisions on the road. The last time the Mavericks won four straight away from home was Jan. 7-23, 2016.
• The Mavericks have outrebounded their opponent in four straight games with an average margin of 7.5. The last time Omaha outrebounded its opponent in four consecutive games was Dec. 8-17, 2014.
• Omaha is the only team in the league to have all five starters averaging double figures:
Zach Jackson (18.1 ppg),
JT Gibson (14.3 ppg),
Mitch Hahn (11.2 ppg), Pile (10.6 ppg) and
KJ Robinson (10.4 ppg).
• Omaha is one of three league teams -- with South Dakota State and Purdue Fort Wayne -- with at least two players in the conference's top 10 for scoring. Jackson is fourth, and Gibson is ninth.
• Jackson averaged a team-leading 21.5 points per game and shot .636 (14-of-22) from the field and .700 (7-of-10) from long range to carry Omaha to a perfect 2-0 week last week.
• The Mavericks, who rank 16th nationally and first in the Summit League for fewest turnovers per game, have had single-digit turnovers in nine of the last 11 games.
• The Mavericks' assist-to-turnover ratio jumped from 0.9 in the first nine games to 1.8 over the last 10.
• Omaha is four wins shy of two century marks: its 100th win since gaining membership in the Summit League in 2012-13 and
Derrin Hansen's 100th career conference win since taking the reins of the Maverick program in 2005-06.
• The Mavericks were picked eighth in the 2018-19 Summit League's Preseason Poll, and Jackson was a first-team Preseason All-Summit selection.
• Jackson collected second-team All-Summit accolades as a junior. Since Omaha joined the Summit League in 2012-13, 10 Mavericks have combined for 12 All-Summit awards.
• Jackson and Hahn are both team captains for the second straight year.
Scouting the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons
Purdue Fort Wayne is 12-9 (4-2 Summit League) after an 87-58 loss at Western Illinois Saturday night. John Konchar led the Mastodons with 12 points and eight rebounds, and Jarred Godfrey added another 10 points. Konchar enters this week's home stand needing 15 points to break Purdue Fort Wayne's all-time career scoring record.
Purdue Fort Wayne, which finished 18-15 (7-7 Summit League) a year ago, was voted fourth in the Summit League's preseason poll. Konchar was a first-team Preseason All-Summit selection and totes three first-team all-league awards over his career. Head coach Jon Coffman is 90-62 in five years at Purdue Fort Wayne.
All-Time Against Purdue Fort Wayne
Sunday marks the 16th meeting between Omaha and Purdue Fort Wayne, and the Mastodons lead the all-time series 11-4, all in the Mavericks' Division I era. The Mastodons have a 6-1 advantage in Fort Wayne since 2011-12, including three consecutive wins there.
Omaha and Purdue Fort Wayne last met Feb. 10, 2018 at Baxter Arena, where the Mavericks prevailed 90-85. In their last matchup in Fort Wayne, on Jan. 13, 2018, the Mastodons won 82-78.
Last Time Out: Mavericks Top South Dakota 75-68 For Fourth Straight Win
Omaha moved into a tie for first place in the Summit League standings Sunday night, defeating South Dakota 75-68 at Baxter Arena.
Zach Jackson led all scorers with 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting with four-3 pointers, marking his second straight 20-point scoring effort.
Matt Pile tallied his team-leading seventh double-double on 12 points and a career-high 14 rebounds, hitting 5-of-8 from the floor. The sophomore added three assists, a steal and a season-high four blocks.
Mitch Hahn and
JT Gibson matched each other with 15 points, with Gibson shooting 7-of-9.
KJ Robinson finished with eight points, four rebounds and a game-high and season-best seven assists.
Omaha outshot South Dakota .509 (28-of-55) to .463 (25-of-54) from the field and .833 (10-of-12) to .778 (7-of-9) at the line. The Mavericks, who outrebounded their opponent for the fourth straight game, had a 34-22 advantage on the glass and also outscored USD 30-20 in the paint.
Scoring Notables
• Over the last five games,
JT Gibson (12),
Zach Jackson (11),
Mitch Hahn (10) and
KJ Robinson (eight) have combined for 41 of Omaha's 49 threes.
• Five Mavericks have made at least four triples in a single game this season:
JT Gibson (seven times),
Zach Jackson (three times), Hahn and
KJ Robinson (twice each) and
Ayo Akinwole (once).
• Omaha has had five double-figure scorers six times, most recently vs. North Dakota State (Jan. 2). All five starters have scored in double figures on two occasions.
• The Mavericks have shot .500 or better as a team on eight occasions, including six of the last eight games. They are undefeated when shooting at least .500.
• Omaha has twice had two players with 20 or more points on the same night: Gibson (21) and Jackson (20) at Bethune-Cookman (Nov. 20) and Jackson (33) and Akinwole (20) vs. Montana State (Nov. 24).
Threes, Please
Omaha ranks eighth nationally with a .398 shooting percentage from distance and 42nd nationally as a team with 176 3-pointers made.
JT Gibson has been a major factor from long range, and the junior is 57th in the country for 3-point percentage (.410).
The Mavericks have nine games with double-digit triples this season.
League Leaders
Through the first six games of league play, Omaha ranks in the top third of the Summit League for scoring (first at 85.3), field goal percentage (first at .508), field goals made per game (first at 31.2), 3-point percentage (first at .448), free throw percentage (second at .772), free throws made per game (third at 13.0), offensive rebounds per game (second at 9.0), assists per game (second at 15.3) and fewest turnovers per game (first at 9.5).
Action Jackson
Over 19 games in his senior campaign,
Zach Jackson has a team-best 18.1 points with 3.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 0.8 steals per game. He is the fourth-best scorer in the Summit League and also ranks third among league players for free throws made (71) and fifth for 3-point percentage (.452). Jackson's 10 straight games in double figures from Nov. 6 to Dec. 8 is the longest of any Omaha player this season, and he carries an eight-game double-figure streak into Thursday's game at Purdue Fort Wayne.
JT's Junior Year
JT Gibson has scored in double figures in all but two games this season, including a nine-game streak from Nov. 14 - Dec. 15 and his current seven-game stretch. He has scored 15 or more points in a night on eight occasions, highlighted by a career-high 22 points with three rebounds, three assists and a steal vs. Denver (Dec. 28), followed by 21 points, three boards, a career-high eight assists and three steals vs. Oral Roberts (Dec. 30).
Gibson has seven games with four or more 3-pointers, led by a five-triple efforts at Oregon (Dec. 8) and vs. Denver (Dec. 28). He ranks sixth in the Summit League for 3-pointers made (50) and fifth for steals (24). In league play, he carries a league-best 3.8 assist-to-turnover ratio and has averaged 16.0 points per game.
Gibson, who has scored in 51 straight contests, is Omaha's active career leader for threes made and assists (151).
JT for Three
JT Gibson is the only Omaha player to hit a three in all 19 games this season. The streak matches the longest of his career set last year, when he knocked one down in 19 straight games from Nov. 20, 2017 to Jan. 25, 2018.
With a team-high 50 treys, he ranks sixth among Summit League players. The Brooklyn Park, Minn., native broke into Omaha's top 15 for career triples Dec. 6 at Seattle and now ranks 11th (142).
Milestones in the Making for Jackson
Zach Jackson came into his final season on the brink of with two major milestones. Nov. 9 at Minnesota, he became the 39th 1,000-point scorer in program history and is now 11th all-time for scoring with 1,335 points. He needs just 14 points to pass John Karhoff (2010-14), whose 1,348 points occupy the 10th spot on the list.
Jackson also has 467 rebounds over his career, needing 33 to become the 12th player in school history with at least 1,000 points and 500 boards.
On Jan. 2, Jackson joined the top 20 in school history for career field goals and is now 14th with 449 made.
Feelin' Hahn, Hahn, Hahn
Mitch Hahn has been a major factor in Omaha's success of late, as the senior has averaged 15.7 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game with .519 shooting over the last nine games, scoring in double figures in each one. The numbers are up from his previous 10 games, during which he had 7.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game and shot .308 from the floor and .229 from three.
The Fremont, Neb., native also owns three games with at least three 3-pointers, hitting three apiece against Minnesota (Nov. 6) and Northern Arizona (Nov. 14) and a season-best four at Idaho (Dec. 15) and vs. North Dakota State (Jan. 2). He has two double-doubles on the year: the first at Rice (Dec. 21) with 18 points/11 rebounds and the second at North Dakota (Jan. 10) with 17 points and 11 rebounds.
The Pile Driver
Matt Pile is shooting at a .606 clip in his sophomore campaign, ranking second among Summit League players. He also ranks fourth for offensive rebounds (52) and fifth for rebounds per game (7.5) and total rebounds (143). In league-only games, he is first for offensive boards (26).
The Goddard, Kan., native has scored in double digits 12 times this year. He delivered back-to-back double-doubles vs. North Dakota State (Jan. 2) with 19 points/12 rebounds and at North Dakota (Jan. 10) with a career-best 20 points/10 rebounds. Over the last 11 games, Pile has six double-doubles and has averaged 11.6 points, 8.6 rebounds and 2.0 assists per contest.
Just a year and a half into his career, Pile's is Omaha's active career leader in for blocks (49) and double-doubles (eight). He joined the top 15 in school history with a season-best four-block performance Sunday vs. South Dakota.
Here's to You, Mr. Robinson
KJ Robinson returned to the Mavericks' starting five Dec. 6 at Seattle, playing his first game since Nov. 20. He hit five 3-pointers en route to 17 points that night and has since averaged 10.7 points, 1.8 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game in the 11-game stretch. Robinson put up a season-best 18-point performance Jan. 17 at Western Illinois.
With a 3.1 assist-to-turnover ratio this year, he ranks 17th nationally.
A native of Blue Springs, Mo., Robinson had a career performance vs. Tennessee Tech last season, going off for a career-high 25 points while hitting seven 3-pointers and adding five rebounds, five assists and a block. It was the most threes in a game by any Maverick since
Marcus Tyus had eight at South Dakota State (Jan, 7, 2017).
The Evolution of Zach Jackson
Zach Jackson has been a four-year starter, averaging 11.8 points and 4.1 rebounds per game for his career. The Wichita, Kan., native has scored in 66 straight contests dating back to Jan. 7, 2017 and has 68 consecutive starts since Dec. 29, 2016.
From his freshman campaign to his junior year, Jackson evolved into an all-league player and last year became the sixth Maverick in the Division I era to score 500+ points in a single season.
Compared to the Opposition
Over its 19 contests this season, Omaha has:
•More or equal field goals made compared to its opponent 12 times
•More or equal 3-point field goals made compared to its opponent 11 times
•More or equal free throws made compared to its opponent eight times
•More or equal rebounds compared to its opponent eight times
•More or equal assists compared to its opponent 10 times
•More or equal steals compared to its opponent 13 times
•Fewer or equal turnovers compared to its opponent 14 times
•More or equal blocks compared to its opponent nine times
Up Next
Omaha travels to South Dakota State on Saturday, Jan. 26, with tipoff set for 4:15 p.m. at Frost Arena in Brookings, S.D. The game will be broadcast on YurView Cox Channel 1013, ESPN3 and Midco, and Gary Sharp will have the radio call on 1290 KOIL. Links to live video, audio and stats will be available on OMavs.com.
