OMAHA, Neb. -- A second-half surge powered the Omaha men's basketball team past Purdue Fort Wayne on Senior Day Saturday afternoon, as the Mavericks topped third-place Purdue Fort Wayne 74-71 at Baxter Arena. With its fourth straight win, Omaha improved to 16-9 (10-2 Summit League) and remains within a half-game of the league lead, while the Mastodons saw their five-game win streak come to an end and drop to 17-11 (9-4).
 
Leaders for Omaha
Zach Jackson tallied his first double-double of the season with game highs of 27 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 10-of-18 from the floor, including 4-of-5 from deep. The senior had 24 points and six boards in the second half alone, including 16 points in a crucial six-minute stretch.
 
Matt Pile shot 7-of-10 en route to 14 points and seven rebounds, and Mitch Hahn and JT Gibson added 11 points apiece. Hahn also pulled down six boards, and Gibson chipped in three rebounds with two assists.
 
Leaders for Purdue Fort Wayne
John Konchar led the way for the Mastodons with 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting with six rebounds, five assists and two blocks. Matt Holba (17), Kason Harrell (12) and Dylan Carl (10) also finished in double figures.
 
Team Stats
Omaha shot .449 (31-of-69) from the field to Purdue Fort Wayne's .456 (26-of-57). The Mavericks had the edge on the glass, 36-34, with 11 offensive rebounds spurring 17 second-chance points. For the night, they committed just seven turnovers, marking their fourth straight game with single-digit miscues.
 
Inside the First Half
Omaha shot .400 (14-of-35) in the opening 20 minutes, and Hahn led the Mavericks with 11 points. A back-and-forth half saw six ties and four lead changes, as the Mastodons broke through a 27-27 lock after the under-four timeout, and helped by a 9-0 run, held a 36-31 advantage at the break.
 
Inside the Second Half
Jackson turned it on in the second half, pouring in 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting. Purdue Fort Wayne had the lead until a Gibson three at 10:46 put the Mavericks in front 49-48, and a Wanjang Tut tip-in stretched it to 51-48. Jackson then caught fire, knocking down four straight treys in a span of 2:16, and another triple from Tut made it 66-55 with just under seven to play.
 
Another Jackson bucket stretched the lead to 13 before the Mastodons started a rally of their own, going on a 16-2 run to erase Omaha's advantage and go up by one. But Pile answered immediately to put the Mavericks back on top, and after a Mastodon miss with 17 seconds left, a Gibson make on the fast break put it away.
 
Noting Today's Game
-JT Gibson remains the only Maverick with at least one 3-pointer in all 25 games this season.
-Zach Jackson now has five double-doubles in his career.
-Mitch Hahn extended his double-digit scoring streak to 15 games, the longest of any Maverick this season.
-Omaha has won three straight in the all-time series with Purdue Fort Wayne.
 
Up Next
Omaha welcomes Western Illinois for its final home game of the season on Wednesday, Feb. 20. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Baxter Arena, and Gary Sharp and former Maverick John Karhoff will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2. Links to live video, audio and stats will be available on OMavs.com.