OMAHA, Neb. -- The Omaha men's basketball team used a strong second half to power past Midland Thursday afternoon, 72-53, in its home opener at Baxter Arena.
 
Leaders for Omaha
Ayo Akinwole toyed with triple-double territory to lead the Mavericks, finishing a rebound shy as he posted 17 points and career highs of nine boards and 10 assists. Akinwole was a perfect 8-of-8 from the field en route to his first career double-double.
 
Matt Pile led all scorers with a career-high 22 points on 10-of-13 shooting while grabbing nine rebounds and four blocks.
 
JT Gibson also scored in double figures with 11 points off a trio of 3-pointers, adding two rebounds, four assists and a steal.
 
Leaders for Midland
Ryan Williams had 16 points to lead the Warriors, and Jacob Lenagh had 10 points and eight rebounds. Kylan Smallwood matched Lenagh on the glass with eight more boards.
 
Team Stats
Omaha shot 50.0% (32-of-64) as a team while holding Midland to 31.8% (21-of-66). The two teams were even on the glass, 39-39.
 
Inside the First Half
Though Omaha led most of the way, Midland cut it to a three-point game with 5:11 to go in the first half when Ryan Williams' triple made it 22-19. An 8-2 closing run bookended by two Gibson threes put Omaha up 30-21 at the halfway point.
 
Inside the Second Half
Seven straight points to open the second half extended the run to 15-2 and created a 16-point margin. The Mavericks, who shot 58.1% in the final 20 minutes, were 9-of-12 to start the second stanza, with a Pile layup stretching the advantage to 49-32 with just under 12 to play. Their largest lead came on a Darrius Hughes layup at 61-36 with 7:47 left.
 
Noting Today's Game
-The Mavericks improved to 1-1 on the season, while the Warriors, for whom the game counted as an exhibition, remained 2-2.
-Omaha now leads the all-time series with Midland 25-4 and has won 12 straight games against the Warriors.
-The Mavericks are 12-3 in home openers in the Derrin Hansen era, including 7-2 since reclassifying to Division I.
 
Up Next
Omaha plays host to Bethune-Cookman on Monday, Nov. 11, with tipoff set for 7:30 p.m. at Baxter Arena. Gary Sharp and Kyler Erickson will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2, and links to live video, audio and stats will be available on OMavs.com.