VERMILLION, S.D. - The Mavericks' incredible streak came to an end at nine straight wins tonight as they were bested late 91-87 by South Dakota.
This win streak goes down as being tied for the third longest in program history alongside the 1981-82 and 1982-83 squads and trailing only the 2004-05 (12) and 1983-84 (13) teams. The 1983-84 team also owns the longest conference win streak in program history at 12 in a row, five more than the current team's streak. The 2024-25 Mavericks seven consecutive wins to open conference play also goes down as the second longest streak in team history behind the 1983-84 team's 12-game streak.
Omaha will stay in first place in the Summit League despite suffering its first loss in conference play to end the night at 7-1 with a 13-10 overall record. This marks the first time in program history that the team is in first in the Summit at the midway point of conference play. Meanwhile, the Coyotes improve to 4-5 with a 13-10 record on the year.
Leaders for Omaha
Marquel Sutton tied his career high with 29 points tonight as he made a season-high 13 field goals (13-for-20). He also pulled down 12 rebounds to secure his fourth double-double of the season and eighth of his career.
Speaking of double-doubles,
JJ White had the first of his career as he scored 18 and recorded a career-high 10 assists.
Tony Osburn rounded out the trio of double-digit scorers tonight with 15, while
Isaac Ondekane had a career-best 12 rebounds.
Team Stats
Both teams were an even 50% on field goals today with Omaha at 33-for-66 and South Dakota at 32-for-64. Both teams were close from behind the arc as well, with the Mavericks shooting 7-for-21 (33.3%) and the Coyotes at 34.8% (8-for-23). Omaha did hold a decent lead at the line, shooting 70.0% (14-for-20) vs. 61.3% (19-for-31).
The Mavericks had a huge lead in rebounding at 45 to 33 tonight, but in terms of ball handling they turned it over 16 times while USD only did so eight times. Omaha's foul trouble also proved to be a difference maker as Ondekane fouled out while Sutton, White, and
Joshua Streit all had four.
Inside the First Half
Though the Coyotes were the first on the board tonight, it did not take long for the Mavericks to pull ahead and never trail again in the half. Down 0-2 early, a 7-0 Maverick run featuring five points from Sutton quickly put Omaha in front less than three minutes in. While USD did go on to tie it again at 9-9 a few minutes later, four more points from Sutton would give the lead back to the Mavericks for good.
With the game still relatively close halfway through the period with Omaha up by just five at 25-20, a 9-2 run that saw four different Mavericks record a bucket gave the team its largest lead yet at 34-22 with 7:29 to go. Despite another six points from Sutton to put him at 19 on the day heading into the final minute, the Coyotes had actually managed to outscore Omaha 15-10 during this stretch to cut the lead back down to seven. At 1:08, however, White drained his first three of the night to get the lead back to 10, before making it a 13-point game 40 seconds later when he spun around a Coyote defender and nailed the fade-away jumper for another triple.
Inside the Second Half
Both teams were about even in scoring through the first seven minutes of the second half, with Omaha holding a slight 18-17 edge to maintain a 14-point lead at 68-54. The rest of the half, though, would not be as even as the Coyotes took control of the game and held the Mavericks to just five points over seven and a half minutes while scoring 20 to retake the lead for the first time since the opening minute of the game at 74-73.
Two from the line from Streit at 5:14 would give the lead back to Omaha, only for USD to respond with another 10 points over the next two minutes to go up by three. Four more points each from White and Sutton, as well as a dunk from Ondekane, would ensure the Coyotes only led by one heading into the final minute. However, with 42 seconds left, a late three from USD's Quandre Bullock gave them a four-point lead which held through the final seconds.
Game Notes
- Sutton ends the night in 24th on the all-time scoring list with 1127 career points and 17th on the all-time rebounding list with 536 career boards.
- Omaha's +12 rebounding margin is tied for its largest of the season after topping St. Thomas 38 to 26 last week.
Up Next
Omaha begins a three-game homestand this weekend when they return home to host Denver on Saturday at 7 p.m. to open the second half of conference play.
