Macomb, Ill. – A 22-game road losing streak came to an end Thursday for the Mavericks as they downed Western Illinois 78-74. Omaha was led by
Frankie Fidler who notched his second career double-double with 21 points and 10 boards.
With the win, the Mavericks improve to 6-10 overall, 2-2 in league play.
Leaders for Omaha
Fidler's 21 points and 10 rebounds were team-highs tonight. He also tallied a game-leading five assists. Fidler was 6-of-9 from the field and 9-of-10 from the foul line.
Marquel Sutton scored 13 points on 5-of-8 from the field, while
JJ White added 12 points. He shot 50 percent on the night and sunk a three-pointer.
Dylan Brougham was the final Maverick in double-figures with 10 points.
Leaders for Western Illinois
Vuk Stevanic matched Fidler's 21 points Thursday. He was 7-of-12 from the field. Trenton Massner added 19 points. He struggled from the field only shooting 3-of-14 on the night, but he was a perfect 11-of-11 at the line.
Alex Rosner and Elijah Farr scored 10 points each. Farr had a team-high five boards, while Rosner tallied four assists.
Team Stats
The Mavericks shot nearly 57 percent from the field and held the Leathernecks under 34 percent. Omaha also dominated inside outscoring Western Illinois 42-22 in the paint. The Leathernecks held an advantage on the fast break (12-5), on second chance points (16-6), and on points off turnovers (14-6).
Bench scoring was tied up at 15 each.
Inside the First Half
The Mavericks scored the first eight points of Thursday's game and took an 11-2 lead by the first media timeout at the 15:47 mark. Brougham, Fidler, Sutton, and Luedtke all contributed in the stretch. A three-point play by Fidler and a White bucket from deep kept the momentum going for a 17-6 lead at the 13:30 mark.
The Leathernecks struggled to find a stride with every basket being matched on the other end by the Mavericks. Midway through, Omaha put together another run outscoring WIU 8-3. The run was capped by back-to-back Jungers to Brougham feeds down low. It gave Omaha a 28-13 edge with just over nine to play. The Mavericks took their largest lead of the half at the 5:38 mark on a pair from the line by White. Omaha was up 16, but WIU was able to chip away and use a 5-2 run to end the half. The Mavericks led 44-32 heading into halftime.
Inside the Second Half
Omaha didn't take its foot off the gas pedal in the first five minutes of the second half opening it with a 10-4 run. Brougham got it started with a dunk off the feed from White, while Fidler capped it with a layup. The Leathernecks slowly got going over the next five minutes, and by the midway point, they started to get hot.
West and Massner led WIU on a 9-2 run over a two-minute stretch. Massner's three at 8:35 cut the maverick lead to 11. The Leathernecks didn't give up there and carried their momentum down the stretch. From the six-minute mark until 3:37 remained, WIU outscored Omaha 11-2 to get within four of the Mavericks. Fidler and Jungers stepped up in the final minutes keeping things in Omaha's favor, and for the first time since 2020-21, the Mavericks won on the road, 78-74.
Game Notes
-Fidler recorded his second career double-double.
-His 21 points marks the third time this season he's recorded at least 20 in a game.
-Fidler was one rebound shy of tying his career-high set vs. Idaho.
-He is now on a five-game double-figure scoring streak.
-Thursday's win marks the first road win since the 2020-21 season snapping a 22-game skid.
-This win also marks the first time the Mavericks have seen more than five wins in a season since that same year.
Up Next
The week's action closes Saturday at St. Thomas. The Mavericks and Tommies tipoff at 7 p.m. in St. Paul, Minnesota.
