NASHVILLE, Tenn. - On the road for the first time in 20 days, the Mavericks dropped a 74-72 nail biter to Tennessee State on a couple of last-second free throws.
The Mavericks are back at .500 on the season at 3-3, while the Tigers similarly improve to 3-3.
Leaders For Omaha
For the second game in a row,
Aaliyah Stanley led the team in scoring, topping 20 points for the first time as a Maverick and matching her career high with 24. Half of her points came on three-pointers as she went a perfect 4-for-4 from behind the arc.
Meanwhile,
Elena Pilakouta dropped 14 points today, extending her streak of consecutive games in double-digits to six.
Grace Cave rounded out Omaha's double-digit scorers with 11, as well as leading the team with nine rebounds, four assists, and three steals.
Leaders for Tennessee State
Erica Haynes-Overton provided nearly half of TSU's total offensive output with 32 points, going 11-for-19 on field goals (.578) and 9-for-10 (.900) on free throws. She also led the Tigers with five steals.
Team Stats
Despite the loss, the Mavericks were significantly more accurate today, shooting 49% (25-for-51) vs. 41.9% (26-for-62) on field goals. Omaha also topped them in three-pointers (34.8%, 8-for-23 vs. 21.4%, 3-for-14) and free throws (93.3%, 14-for-15 vs. 86.4%, 19-for-22). The Mavericks also had more rebounds (35 vs. 29).
Tennessee State did have the edge in turnovers (18 vs. 27) and steals (17 vs. 7), giving them 33 points on turnovers while Omaha only had 17.
Inside the First Quarter
It was a high scoring first quarter today as both teams combined for 44 total points in the first 10 minutes.
After the Tigers initially went up 7-2 by the eight-minute mark, Stanley went an astounding 3-for-3 on three-pointers on her next three possessions, all within less than a minute of each other to give Omaha an 11-9 lead. Stanley would later add four more points to finish with 13 of Omaha's 21 points in the first period.
Inside the Second Quarter
Compared to the first quarter, the second was relatively tame in comparison with only half as many total points.
Jaylen Townsend got the Mavericks on the board with three free throws at 8:17, before Cave made a driving layup a couple minutes later to keep it a one-point game. Cave also had a huge block to deny Gia Adams of a three-pointer at 7:04. In the final three minutes both Stanley and
Ana Nikulochkina would score from downtown to help get Omaha even at 33-33 by the end of the half.
Inside the Third Quarter
After a jumper from Cave gave Omaha a 35-33 lead just 30 seconds in, both teams traded leads throughout the quarter. With eight lead changes and five ties, neither squad was willing to let up.
Cave and Pilakouta both had four points in the period, while
Kennedi Grant and Townsend each picked up a 3-PT FG. Down 52-50 with two minutes left, the Tigers would end up taking a four-point lead after scoring six unanswered to close out the quarter.
Inside the Fourth Quarter
The Tigers opened the final quarter with a couple of free throws to go up by six points. From there, however, the Mavericks would gradually chip away at the deficit, culminating in a 68-66 lead by 2:16. Pilakouta scored six points during this run, including four free throws and the go-ahead layup.
Sam Mitchell also had four points on a field goal and two free throws.
After TSU threatened to tie the game, Mitchell had another layup to give Omaha a 70-67 lead with just 1 minute to go. While the Tigers did end up tying things up at 70-70, Pilakouta had what seemed like the game-winning layup at 0:23 as Omaha pulled ahead 72-70. Unfortunately, in the final 20 seconds, Tennessee State would go 4-for-4 on free throws to ice the game at the last second.
Next Up
Omaha will continue their road trip later this week when they head to California for two games. The first stop is Malibu, where the Mavericks will take on Pepperdine on Thursday at 9 p.m.
