Leading Off
The Omaha men's basketball team meets South Dakota for a neutral-site matchup this Thursday, Feb. 7 at the Sanford Pentagon at 7 p.m. in Sioux Falls, S.D. Jay Elsen and Brad Newitt will have the call on YurView Cox Channel 1013, ESPN+ and Midco, 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
• Omaha sits in second place in the Summit League standings, behind only South Dakota State's 9-1 mark.
• The Mavericks' 6-1 start to league play before a loss at South Dakota State on Jan. 26 matched its previous best set by the 2015-16 team.
• Omaha has won 10 of its last 12 games. It won five straight decisions on the road from Dec. 15 - Jan. 24, the most since seven straight from Jan. 2 - Feb. 19, 2011.
• The Mavericks have outrebounded six of their last seven opponents.
• Omaha is the only team in the league to have all five starters averaging double figures:
Zach Jackson (18.0 ppg),
JT Gibson (14.4 ppg),
Mitch Hahn (12.1 ppg),
KJ Robinson (11.3 ppg) at
Matt Pile (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.
• The Mavericks, who rank 18th nationally and lead the Summit League for fewest turnovers per game, have had single-digit turnovers in nine of the last 13 games.
• Omaha is two 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 South Dakota Coyotes
South Dakota is 9-13 (3-6 Summit League) on the season after their second straight loss, 102-71 at Purdue Fort Wayne last Wednesday. Stanley Umude scored 32 points on 10-of-16 shooting, and Triston Simpson added 14 points with five assists and seven rebounds.
USD, which finished 26-9 (11-3 Summit League) a year ago, was voted second in the Summit League's preseason poll. Trey Burch-Manning was named to the Preseason All-Summit First Team, and Tyler Hagedorn was a second-team selection.
Head coach Todd Lee is 9-13 in his first season at South Dakota and carries a career mark of 163-94 over nine years.
All-Time Against South Dakota
Thursday marks the 93rd meeting between Omaha and South Dakota, and the Coyotes lead the all-time series 47-45. In the Mavericks' Division I era, the series is tied 7-7. The two teams have met on a neutral floor once as members of the Summit League, with an 87-73 win for South Dakota on March 3, 2018 in the quarterfinals of the Summit League Tournament in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Omaha and USD met earlier this season on Jan. 20 at Baxter Arena, where the Mavericks won 75-68.
Zach Jackson led all scorers with 21 points, and
Matt Pile had a double-double on 12 points and 14 rebounds.
Last Time Out: Mavericks Top North Dakota at Home, 90-72
Omaha got back to its winning ways Sunday afternoon, picking up a 90-72 win over North Dakota at Baxter Arena. All five starters scored in double figures for the third time this year, led by a game-high 22 points from
Zach Jackson. The senior hit 9-of-12 from the field and 4-of-5 from the line, adding a team-high five rebounds, two assists and two steals.
JT Gibson joined him with 20 points on 9-of-14 shooting and a pair of threes alongside five boards and a game-high four steals.
Mitch Hahn and
KJ Robinson followed with 16 points apiece. Robinson shot 6-of-9 with two 3-pointers and collected three rebounds, a team-best four assists and three steals. Hahn finished 7-of-11 from the floor and grabbed four boards with a steal.
Matt Pile rounded it out with 12 points, five rebounds, a steal and two blocks.
Omaha shot .565 (39-of-69) to North Dakota's .456 (26-of-57), despite hitting just four 3-pointers for the day. The Mavericks won the rebounding battle 31-29 and had a 52-26 advantage in the paint. They also committed a season-low six turnovers while forcing 16, collecting 28 points off miscues.
Scoring Notables
• Over the last five games,
Zach Jackson has averaged 19.0 points per game and has at least 20 points in four of them: 22 at Western Illinois (Jan. 17), 21 vs. South Dakota (Jan. 20), 25 at Purdue Fort Wayne (Jan. 24) and 22 vs. North Dakota (Feb. 3).
• Over the last five games,
Mitch Hahn (10),
Zach Jackson (nine),
JT Gibson (11) and
KJ Robinson (11) have combined for 41 of Omaha's 43 threes.
• Five Mavericks have made at least four triples in a single game this season: Gibson (eight times), Jackson and Hahn (three times each),
KJ Robinson (twice) and
Ayo Akinwole (once).
• Omaha has had five double-figure scorers seven times, most recently vs. North Dakota State (Jan. 2). All five starters have scored in double figures on three occasions.
• The Mavericks have shot .500 or better as a team on nine occasions, including seven of the last 11 games. They are undefeated when shooting at least .500.
Threes, Please
Omaha ranks 18th nationally with a .390 shooting percentage from distance and 68th nationally as a team with 200 3-pointers made.
JT Gibson has been a major factor from long range, and the junior is 65th in the country for 3-point percentage (.401).
The Mavericks have 10 games with double-digit triples this season.
League Leaders
Through the first half of league play, Omaha ranks in the top third of the Summit League for scoring (third at 84.4), field goal percentage (third at .498), field goals made per game (third at 31.8), 3-point percentage (second at .410), free throw percentage (.765), offensive rebounds per game (second at 9.2), steals per game (third at 6.8) and fewest turnovers per game (second at 9.4).
Action Jackson
Over 22 games in his senior campaign,
Zach Jackson has a team-best 18.0 points with 3.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.9 steals per game. He ranks 101st nationally for scoring and 109th for total points (395), is the fourth-best scorer in the Summit League and also ranks third among league players for free throws made (85). Jackson had 10 straight games in double figures from Nov. 6 to Dec. 8, and he had another nine-game streak from Dec. 19 to Jan. 24.
JT's Junior Year
JT Gibson has scored in double figures in all but two games this season, including his current 10-game streak in place since Dec. 21. He has scored 15 or more points in a night on nine 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 eight games with four or more 3-pointers, led by a five-triple efforts at Oregon (Dec. 8) and vs. Denver (Dec. 28). He ranks fourth in the Summit League for 3-pointers made (55) and fifth for steals (27). In league play, he has averaged 15.7 points per game.
Gibson, who has scored in 54 straight contests, is Omaha's active career leader for threes made and assists (155).
JT for Three
JT Gibson is the only Omaha player to hit a three in all 22 games this season. The streak is the longest of his career, surpassing his previous best of 19 straight games from Nov. 20, 2017 to Jan. 25, 2018.
With a team-high 57 treys, he ranks fifth 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 (149).
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 last Saturday moved up to a tie for seventh all-time for scoring with 1,387 points. He needs 71 points to pass Phil Cartwright (1988-92), whose 1,457 points occupy the sixth spot.
Jackson also has 480 rebounds over his career, needing 20 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 11th with 467 made. He moved into 20th for career steals (101) last Sunday vs. North Dakota.
Feelin' Hahn, Hahn, Hahn
Mitch Hahn has been a major factor in Omaha's success of late, as the senior has averaged 16.2 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game with .525 shooting over the last 12 games. He has scored in double figures in each one, marking the longest double-figure streak of any Maverick this season. 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 four double-doubles on the year: at Rice (Dec. 21) with 18 points/11 rebounds, at North Dakota (Jan. 10) with 17 points and 11 rebounds, at Purdue Fort Wayne (Jan. 24) with 23 points/15 rebounds and at South Dakota State (Jan. 26) with 14 points/15 rebounds.
The Pile Driver
Matt Pile is shooting at a .595 clip in his sophomore campaign, ranking second among Summit League players. He also ranks third for offensive rebounds (59) and fifth for rebounds per game (7.3) and total rebounds (161). In league-only games, he is first for offensive boards (33).
The Goddard, Kan., native has scored in double digits 13 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 13 games, Pile has six double-doubles and has averaged 11.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists per contest.
Just a year and a half into his career, Pile's is Omaha's active career leader in for blocks (51). He joined the top 15 in school history with a season-best four-block performance Jan. 20 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 11.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game in the 14-game stretch. Robinson put up a season-best 23-point performance Jan. 26 at South Dakota State, canning four triples and adding five rebounds and four steals.
With a 2.8 assist-to-turnover ratio this year, he ranks 31st nationally.
The Evolution of Zach Jackson
Zach Jackson has been a four-year starter, averaging 12.0 points and 4.1 rebounds per game for his career. The Wichita, Kan., native has scored in 69 straight contests dating back to Jan. 7, 2017 and has 71 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 22 contests this season, Omaha has:
•More or equal field goals made compared to its opponent 14 times
•More or equal 3-point field goals made compared to its opponent 12 times
•More or equal free throws made compared to its opponent 10 times
•More or equal rebounds compared to its opponent 10 times
•More or equal assists compared to its opponent 10 times
•More or equal steals compared to its opponent 16 times
•Fewer or equal turnovers compared to its opponent 16 times
•More or equal blocks compared to its opponent 10 times
Two for 20+
Omaha had its fourth performance this season with two scorers registering at least 20 points Feb. 3 vs. North Dakota from
Zach Jackson (22) and
JT Gibson (20).
Up Next
Omaha welcomes league leader South Dakota State for a rematch on Thursday, Feb. 14. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. at Baxter Arena, and the game will be broadcast on YurView Cox Channel 1013, ESPN+ and Midco with Donny Baarns and former Maverick
Kyler Erickson on the call. Gary Sharp and former Maverick John Karhoff will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2, and links to live video, audio and stats will be available on OMavs.com.
