Omaha Rings In New Year With Summit League Opener
Dec 29, 2015 | Men's Basketball
This Week
The Omaha men's basketball team begins Summit League play this Friday, Jan. 1, welcoming Western Illinois to Baxter Arena at 1 p.m. Gary Sharp and Grant Nieland will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2, and fans can stream the audio on their smartphones by downloading NRG Media's app “1620 The Zone.” A link to live video, audio and stats will be available on OMavs.com.
Quick Hits
•Friday's league opener with Western Illinois is Omaha's first New Year's Day game of the modern era.
•Omaha hit the century mark for the fourth time this season with its 108-104 overtime win at GCU on Dec. 13. Over the 11-year Derrin Hansen era, the Mavericks are a perfect 17-0 when scoring 100 points or more in a game.
•The Mavericks' 108 points at GCU were the most since scoring 113 vs. Missouri Southern on Feb. 25, 2010.
•UNO returns nine letterwinners from its 2014-15 team, including three starters in senior guards Marcus Tyus and Devin Patterson and sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman. Tyus, who suffered a season-ending knee injury last February, will redshirt this season.
•Senior forward Jake White leads the team in scoring (16.2 ppg), while Thurman is first for rebounding (7.6 rpg).
•Four Mavericks average double-figure scoring: White (16.2 ppg), Thurman (14.4 ppg), senior guard Devin Patterson (15.9 ppg) and junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins (10.5 ppg).
•Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is the nation's leader in both steals (57) and steals per game (4.1).
•Eleven different Mavericks have had at least one double-figure scoring performance this season.
•UNO's top scorer off the bench is senior guard Tim Smallwood, who averages 6.1 points per game.
•According to kenpom.com, UNO is fifth nationally with an adjusted tempo of 78.5, which estimates of the possessions per 40 minutes a team would have against a team that wants to play at an average Division I tempo.
•Omaha was picked seventh in the Summit League's preseason poll.
Scouting the Western Illinois Leathernecks
Western Illinois brings a record of 7-4 (0-0 Summit League) into Friday's matchup with Omaha. The Leathernecks last played Dec. 21, falling 72-67 at Loyola in Chicago. Garret Covington finished with a game-high 19 points, while Jabari Sandifer had 12 points and a game-leading eight assists.
Head coach Billy Wright is in his second season at WIU with a career record of 15-24. Friday marks the 15th meeting between Omaha and Western Illinois, with the Leathernecks leading 9-5. UNO won the last meeting, 77-58, on Feb. 14, 2015 at Ralston Arena, its second straight when facing WIU in Omaha.
Last Time Out: Mavs Drop Southern at Global Sports Classic, 74-53
Omaha won the visitors' bracket final of the Global Sports Classic on Dec. 22, defeating Southern 74-53 at Cox Pavilion. UNO finished the Global Sports Classic with a record of 3-1.
Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins scored a game-leading and season-high 21 points, hitting 8-of-11 shots from the field while going 4-for-4 at the line. The Omaha Central product added five rebounds, five assists, five steals and a block.
Senior forward Jake White chipped in 16 points and six rebounds, and senior guard Devin Patterson had 15 points with two rebounds, two steals and an assist. Senior guard Kyler Erickson pulled down a team-leading seven rebounds, which was also a career high.
Omaha shot 46 percent (29-of-63) from the floor, 29 percent (4-of-14) from long range and 75 percent (12-of-16) at the stripe. Southern finished at a 37 percent (19-of-51) clip from the field, 25 percent (3-of-12) from 3-point range and 46 percent (12-of-26) at the line. The Mavericks held the edge in rebounding (43-31), assists (14-5), blocks (3-1) and steals (9-5).
Summit League Openers
UNO is 1-2 in Summit League openers since joining the conference in 2012-13. Last season, the Mavericks started league play with an 86-77 win at South Dakota. In the previous two seasons, they dropped their first conference game, 79-72 in overtime at Western Illinois in 2013-14, and 95-51 at North Dakota State in 2012-13.
Man of Steal
Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the nation in both total steals (57) and steals per game (4.1). Driven by his efforts on defense, Omaha as a team is also first in the country for total steals and ninth for steals per game.
Hollins has long been regarded for his defensive prowess and is no stranger to pacing the nation in steals, as he led the all players in the NJCAA with 4.1 swipes per game while playing at Central CC in 2013-14.
White Earns Spot on Global Sports Classic All-Tournament Team
Senior forward Jake White was named to the Global Sports Classic All-Tournament Team for his play over the four tournament games, Dec. 13-22. White averaged 19.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game, shooting 62 percent (26-of-42) from the field and 77 percent (23-of-30) at the line. He scored in double figures in every contest, including 23 points at Grand Canyon on Dec. 13 and 20 points vs. Eastern Illinois on Dec. 21.
Close Calls
Omaha's six losses have come by an average margin of just 4.0 points this year. The Mavericks have fallen by one (vs. UC Santa Barbara, at Wyoming), three (at Minnesota), five (at Colorado) and seven (vs. Eastern Michigan, at Missouri).
#euromavs: A Maverick Adventure to Italy
Omaha embarked on its first overseas training trip August 12-22 of this year with a tour of Italy, spending 11 days in three cities with four games against foreign competition. The Mavericks won all four contests, defeating All Star Varese 85-43, Stellazzurra 75-39, Isernia 107-31 and Luiss University 81-41. Sophomore forward Daniel Meyer (11.5 points per game), senior forward Jake White (10.0 ppg) and senior guard/forward Randy Reed II (10.0 ppg) all averaged double-figure scoring for the trip.
The team stayed in Milan, Florence and Rome, and sightseeing activities included a private boat tour at Lake Como, visits to the Duomo, the Accademia Museum, Ponte Vecchio, Santa Maria Novella, the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain and tours of the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Vatican.
League Leaders
Omaha leads the Summit League in nine statistical categories: points (1,204), points per game (86.0), field goals made per game (30.1), field goal attempts per game (65.3), free throws made per game (19.7), free throws attempted per game (27.2), offensive rebounds per game (12.5), total rebounds per game (40.3) and steals per game (9.9).
Individually, junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is first among all league players for assists (85) and steals (57), and senior forward Jake White owns the conference's top field goal percentage (.600).
The Terrific Trio
Senior guard Devin Patterson, senior forward Jake White and sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman are the highest-scoring trio in the Summit League this season. Their combined average of 46.5 points per game is over four points ahead of the scoring average for the next trio on the list, Oral Roberts' Obi Emegano, Jalen Bradley and Albert Owens (42.1).
White is sixth among conference scorers with 16.2 ppg, while Patterson is seventh (15.9 ppg) and Thurman is 11th (14.4 ppg).
Pitter Patterson
Senior guard Devin Patterson is known for his quickness, and the Portsmouth, Va., native led the Summit League in steals each of the last two seasons. In the middle of his senior season, he is ninth on the Omaha career steals list with 140 in two and a half seasons. Patterson's next hurdle is former teammate CJ Carter (2011-15), who had 149 steals for eighth.
Patterson also joined the top 20 in school history for career assists in the opening weekend, and his total has risen to 248 for 13th place. His next target is Caleb Steffensmeier (2010-14), who owned 246 helpers.
Additionally, Patterson has pushed his career scoring total to 862 points, which is the most of any active Maverick. Patterson needs 138 points to become Omaha's 36th 1,000-point scorer.
Tracking Tre'Shawn
After 30 blocked shots to his credit as a freshman and 13 more this season, sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman entered the top 20 in school history for career blocks on Nov. 25. The Omaha Central product is now 17th on the list, and his next targets are Henry Riedel (1980-82) and Denny Johnston (2004-08), who each had 46 to tie for 15th place.
Thurman started all but three games in his freshman season, becoming the first UNO freshman to earn a start since CJ Carter in 2011-12. Thurman finished with 18 points and a career-best five blocks against Nevada last year, the most blocks by any Maverick since Gabe Zweiner tallied five against Nebraska-Kearney on Dec. 3, 2005.
Thurman followed his five blocks against the Wolf Pack with three at Kansas State, along with a career-high 19 points. He became the first player to have three or more blocks in back-to-back games since Jerry Bennett did so in 2007-08 with three apiece against North Dakota and Fort Lewis.
Thurman averaged 9.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game in his debut season, tallying 14 double-digit scoring efforts.
Picking Up the Pace
Omaha ranks sixth nationally in scoring with 86.0 points per game, up from 79.1 ppg at this point of the season last year. In its eight non-conference wins this season, UNO has averaged 93.4 points per contest, scoring 95 points or more in five of those games.
In their wins, the Mavs have also shot 49 percent from the field, 33 percent from long range and 76 percent at the line, compared to 42 percent, 26 percent and 68 percent, respectively, across their six losses.
Bouncing Back
Omaha has shown the ability to bounce back from losses this season, going 4-1 in games that follow a defeat.
White Out
In 2015-16, senior forward Jake White has taken a starting role and is one of three Mavericks averaging in double figures, credited for a team-leading 16.2 points per game. He has scored in double figures in six consecutive games, including a career-high 25 at Northern Colorado on Nov. 25. White owns four double-double performances this season: Dec. 1 vs. Eastern Michigan (14 points/12 rebounds), Dec. 9 at Missouri (18 points/10 rebounds), Dec. 16 vs. Simpson (17 points/11 rebounds) and Dec. 19 at Wyoming (17 points/career-high 13 rebounds).
Wiping Down the Offensive Glass
Omaha finished the 2014-15 season ranked second in the Summit League with 11.1 offensive boards per game, its highest average since head coach Derrin Hansen's first UNO team had 13.0 per game in 2005-06. Last year, the Mavericks tallied double-digit offensive rebounds in 62 percent (18 of 29) of their games, including a season-high 26 vs. Central Arkansas in the season opener.
This year, Omaha is up to 12.5 offensive boards per game, grabbing 10 or more in 10 out of 14 contests. The Mavericks have also averaged 13.6 second-chance points in that span.
Stacking Up Nationally
UNO leads the nation in team steals (138) and is second nationally for free throws made (276) and free throws attempted (381). The Mavericks are also fifth in total rebounds (564), ninth for steals per game (9.9), 13th for scoring (86.0 ppg) and 23rd for turnovers forced (16.54).
Individually, junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the nation in steals (57) and steals per game (4.1) and is ninth for assists (85). Senior forward Jake White is 25th with his .600 field goal percentage.
Compared to the Opposition
One of the nation's top teams in steals per game, Omaha has equaled or tallied more steals than its opponent in every game this year. Over 14 games UNO has:
•More or equal steals compared to its opponent 14 times
•Fewer or equal turnovers compared to its opponent 12 times
•More or equal free throws made compared to its opponent nine times
•More rebounds compared to its opponent eight times
•More or equal blocks compared to its opponent six times
•More or equal 3-point field goals made compared to its opponent six times
Hansen Guides Mavericks in 11th Season
Head coach Derrin Hansen is in his 11th season at the helm of the Omaha men's basketball program in 2015-16, boasting a career record of 169-144 over his head coaching career. He took the job after serving as an assistant coach for seven years with former Maverick head coaches Kevin McKenna and Kevin Lehman. Hansen has the second-most victories of any coach in program history, behind only Bob Hanson.
Hansen has coached or assisted teams that have earned five trips to the NCAA Division II Tournament, while also garnering two regular-season league titles and three tournament crowns. In 2007-08, his squad recorded a school-record 25 wins in its final season of North Central Conference play, and the Mavs won their final NCC Tournament to advance to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time since 2004-05. In 2009-10, UNO earned an NCAA Tournament berth by capturing the MIAA Tournament crown in just its second year as a member of the league.
As a player at Nebraska Wesleyan, Hansen's 1988 squad advanced to the NCAA Division III semifinals, and while serving as a student coach, the 1990 Plainsmen advanced to the final 16.
Hansen is assisted by assistant coaches Tyler Erwin, Pat Eberhart and James Miller.
2015-16 Slate Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
Omaha's 2015-16 schedule includes 30 games, and the team will play in 13 states against schools from 10 other Division I conferences. The schedule has two opponents from both the WAC and the Big Sky and one each from the Big West, Pac-12, Big Ten, MAC, SEC, Mountain West, OVC and SWAC or MEAC. Two opponents – Wyoming and defending Summit League champion North Dakota State – played in the 2015 NCAA Tournament.
Entering the season, the Mavericks had never faced six of their opponents: UC Santa Barbara, Saint Mary's (Minn.), Colorado, Eastern Michigan, Montana State and Southern. They hold a combined all-time record of 166-192-2 over all teams on the regular-season slate.
Next Up
Omaha returns to action Sunday, Jan. 3, hosting IUPUI. Tipoff is set for 4:30 p.m. at Baxter Arena, and Gary Sharp and Grant Nieland will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2. Fans can stream the audio on their smartphones by downloading NRG Media' app “1620 The Zone,” and links to stats and audio will be available on OMavs.com.
The Omaha men's basketball team begins Summit League play this Friday, Jan. 1, welcoming Western Illinois to Baxter Arena at 1 p.m. Gary Sharp and Grant Nieland will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2, and fans can stream the audio on their smartphones by downloading NRG Media's app “1620 The Zone.” A link to live video, audio and stats will be available on OMavs.com.
Quick Hits
•Friday's league opener with Western Illinois is Omaha's first New Year's Day game of the modern era.
•Omaha hit the century mark for the fourth time this season with its 108-104 overtime win at GCU on Dec. 13. Over the 11-year Derrin Hansen era, the Mavericks are a perfect 17-0 when scoring 100 points or more in a game.
•The Mavericks' 108 points at GCU were the most since scoring 113 vs. Missouri Southern on Feb. 25, 2010.
•UNO returns nine letterwinners from its 2014-15 team, including three starters in senior guards Marcus Tyus and Devin Patterson and sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman. Tyus, who suffered a season-ending knee injury last February, will redshirt this season.
•Senior forward Jake White leads the team in scoring (16.2 ppg), while Thurman is first for rebounding (7.6 rpg).
•Four Mavericks average double-figure scoring: White (16.2 ppg), Thurman (14.4 ppg), senior guard Devin Patterson (15.9 ppg) and junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins (10.5 ppg).
•Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is the nation's leader in both steals (57) and steals per game (4.1).
•Eleven different Mavericks have had at least one double-figure scoring performance this season.
•UNO's top scorer off the bench is senior guard Tim Smallwood, who averages 6.1 points per game.
•According to kenpom.com, UNO is fifth nationally with an adjusted tempo of 78.5, which estimates of the possessions per 40 minutes a team would have against a team that wants to play at an average Division I tempo.
•Omaha was picked seventh in the Summit League's preseason poll.
Scouting the Western Illinois Leathernecks
Western Illinois brings a record of 7-4 (0-0 Summit League) into Friday's matchup with Omaha. The Leathernecks last played Dec. 21, falling 72-67 at Loyola in Chicago. Garret Covington finished with a game-high 19 points, while Jabari Sandifer had 12 points and a game-leading eight assists.
Head coach Billy Wright is in his second season at WIU with a career record of 15-24. Friday marks the 15th meeting between Omaha and Western Illinois, with the Leathernecks leading 9-5. UNO won the last meeting, 77-58, on Feb. 14, 2015 at Ralston Arena, its second straight when facing WIU in Omaha.
Last Time Out: Mavs Drop Southern at Global Sports Classic, 74-53
Omaha won the visitors' bracket final of the Global Sports Classic on Dec. 22, defeating Southern 74-53 at Cox Pavilion. UNO finished the Global Sports Classic with a record of 3-1.
Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins scored a game-leading and season-high 21 points, hitting 8-of-11 shots from the field while going 4-for-4 at the line. The Omaha Central product added five rebounds, five assists, five steals and a block.
Senior forward Jake White chipped in 16 points and six rebounds, and senior guard Devin Patterson had 15 points with two rebounds, two steals and an assist. Senior guard Kyler Erickson pulled down a team-leading seven rebounds, which was also a career high.
Omaha shot 46 percent (29-of-63) from the floor, 29 percent (4-of-14) from long range and 75 percent (12-of-16) at the stripe. Southern finished at a 37 percent (19-of-51) clip from the field, 25 percent (3-of-12) from 3-point range and 46 percent (12-of-26) at the line. The Mavericks held the edge in rebounding (43-31), assists (14-5), blocks (3-1) and steals (9-5).
Summit League Openers
UNO is 1-2 in Summit League openers since joining the conference in 2012-13. Last season, the Mavericks started league play with an 86-77 win at South Dakota. In the previous two seasons, they dropped their first conference game, 79-72 in overtime at Western Illinois in 2013-14, and 95-51 at North Dakota State in 2012-13.
Man of Steal
Junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the nation in both total steals (57) and steals per game (4.1). Driven by his efforts on defense, Omaha as a team is also first in the country for total steals and ninth for steals per game.
Hollins has long been regarded for his defensive prowess and is no stranger to pacing the nation in steals, as he led the all players in the NJCAA with 4.1 swipes per game while playing at Central CC in 2013-14.
White Earns Spot on Global Sports Classic All-Tournament Team
Senior forward Jake White was named to the Global Sports Classic All-Tournament Team for his play over the four tournament games, Dec. 13-22. White averaged 19.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game, shooting 62 percent (26-of-42) from the field and 77 percent (23-of-30) at the line. He scored in double figures in every contest, including 23 points at Grand Canyon on Dec. 13 and 20 points vs. Eastern Illinois on Dec. 21.
Close Calls
Omaha's six losses have come by an average margin of just 4.0 points this year. The Mavericks have fallen by one (vs. UC Santa Barbara, at Wyoming), three (at Minnesota), five (at Colorado) and seven (vs. Eastern Michigan, at Missouri).
#euromavs: A Maverick Adventure to Italy
Omaha embarked on its first overseas training trip August 12-22 of this year with a tour of Italy, spending 11 days in three cities with four games against foreign competition. The Mavericks won all four contests, defeating All Star Varese 85-43, Stellazzurra 75-39, Isernia 107-31 and Luiss University 81-41. Sophomore forward Daniel Meyer (11.5 points per game), senior forward Jake White (10.0 ppg) and senior guard/forward Randy Reed II (10.0 ppg) all averaged double-figure scoring for the trip.
The team stayed in Milan, Florence and Rome, and sightseeing activities included a private boat tour at Lake Como, visits to the Duomo, the Accademia Museum, Ponte Vecchio, Santa Maria Novella, the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain and tours of the Colosseum, the Roman Forum and the Vatican.
League Leaders
Omaha leads the Summit League in nine statistical categories: points (1,204), points per game (86.0), field goals made per game (30.1), field goal attempts per game (65.3), free throws made per game (19.7), free throws attempted per game (27.2), offensive rebounds per game (12.5), total rebounds per game (40.3) and steals per game (9.9).
Individually, junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins is first among all league players for assists (85) and steals (57), and senior forward Jake White owns the conference's top field goal percentage (.600).
The Terrific Trio
Senior guard Devin Patterson, senior forward Jake White and sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman are the highest-scoring trio in the Summit League this season. Their combined average of 46.5 points per game is over four points ahead of the scoring average for the next trio on the list, Oral Roberts' Obi Emegano, Jalen Bradley and Albert Owens (42.1).
White is sixth among conference scorers with 16.2 ppg, while Patterson is seventh (15.9 ppg) and Thurman is 11th (14.4 ppg).
Pitter Patterson
Senior guard Devin Patterson is known for his quickness, and the Portsmouth, Va., native led the Summit League in steals each of the last two seasons. In the middle of his senior season, he is ninth on the Omaha career steals list with 140 in two and a half seasons. Patterson's next hurdle is former teammate CJ Carter (2011-15), who had 149 steals for eighth.
Patterson also joined the top 20 in school history for career assists in the opening weekend, and his total has risen to 248 for 13th place. His next target is Caleb Steffensmeier (2010-14), who owned 246 helpers.
Additionally, Patterson has pushed his career scoring total to 862 points, which is the most of any active Maverick. Patterson needs 138 points to become Omaha's 36th 1,000-point scorer.
Tracking Tre'Shawn
After 30 blocked shots to his credit as a freshman and 13 more this season, sophomore forward Tre'Shawn Thurman entered the top 20 in school history for career blocks on Nov. 25. The Omaha Central product is now 17th on the list, and his next targets are Henry Riedel (1980-82) and Denny Johnston (2004-08), who each had 46 to tie for 15th place.
Thurman started all but three games in his freshman season, becoming the first UNO freshman to earn a start since CJ Carter in 2011-12. Thurman finished with 18 points and a career-best five blocks against Nevada last year, the most blocks by any Maverick since Gabe Zweiner tallied five against Nebraska-Kearney on Dec. 3, 2005.
Thurman followed his five blocks against the Wolf Pack with three at Kansas State, along with a career-high 19 points. He became the first player to have three or more blocks in back-to-back games since Jerry Bennett did so in 2007-08 with three apiece against North Dakota and Fort Lewis.
Thurman averaged 9.5 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.0 blocks per game in his debut season, tallying 14 double-digit scoring efforts.
Picking Up the Pace
Omaha ranks sixth nationally in scoring with 86.0 points per game, up from 79.1 ppg at this point of the season last year. In its eight non-conference wins this season, UNO has averaged 93.4 points per contest, scoring 95 points or more in five of those games.
In their wins, the Mavs have also shot 49 percent from the field, 33 percent from long range and 76 percent at the line, compared to 42 percent, 26 percent and 68 percent, respectively, across their six losses.
Bouncing Back
Omaha has shown the ability to bounce back from losses this season, going 4-1 in games that follow a defeat.
White Out
In 2015-16, senior forward Jake White has taken a starting role and is one of three Mavericks averaging in double figures, credited for a team-leading 16.2 points per game. He has scored in double figures in six consecutive games, including a career-high 25 at Northern Colorado on Nov. 25. White owns four double-double performances this season: Dec. 1 vs. Eastern Michigan (14 points/12 rebounds), Dec. 9 at Missouri (18 points/10 rebounds), Dec. 16 vs. Simpson (17 points/11 rebounds) and Dec. 19 at Wyoming (17 points/career-high 13 rebounds).
Wiping Down the Offensive Glass
Omaha finished the 2014-15 season ranked second in the Summit League with 11.1 offensive boards per game, its highest average since head coach Derrin Hansen's first UNO team had 13.0 per game in 2005-06. Last year, the Mavericks tallied double-digit offensive rebounds in 62 percent (18 of 29) of their games, including a season-high 26 vs. Central Arkansas in the season opener.
This year, Omaha is up to 12.5 offensive boards per game, grabbing 10 or more in 10 out of 14 contests. The Mavericks have also averaged 13.6 second-chance points in that span.
Stacking Up Nationally
UNO leads the nation in team steals (138) and is second nationally for free throws made (276) and free throws attempted (381). The Mavericks are also fifth in total rebounds (564), ninth for steals per game (9.9), 13th for scoring (86.0 ppg) and 23rd for turnovers forced (16.54).
Individually, junior guard Tra-Deon Hollins leads the nation in steals (57) and steals per game (4.1) and is ninth for assists (85). Senior forward Jake White is 25th with his .600 field goal percentage.
Compared to the Opposition
One of the nation's top teams in steals per game, Omaha has equaled or tallied more steals than its opponent in every game this year. Over 14 games UNO has:
•More or equal steals compared to its opponent 14 times
•Fewer or equal turnovers compared to its opponent 12 times
•More or equal free throws made compared to its opponent nine times
•More rebounds compared to its opponent eight times
•More or equal blocks compared to its opponent six times
•More or equal 3-point field goals made compared to its opponent six times
Hansen Guides Mavericks in 11th Season
Head coach Derrin Hansen is in his 11th season at the helm of the Omaha men's basketball program in 2015-16, boasting a career record of 169-144 over his head coaching career. He took the job after serving as an assistant coach for seven years with former Maverick head coaches Kevin McKenna and Kevin Lehman. Hansen has the second-most victories of any coach in program history, behind only Bob Hanson.
Hansen has coached or assisted teams that have earned five trips to the NCAA Division II Tournament, while also garnering two regular-season league titles and three tournament crowns. In 2007-08, his squad recorded a school-record 25 wins in its final season of North Central Conference play, and the Mavs won their final NCC Tournament to advance to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time since 2004-05. In 2009-10, UNO earned an NCAA Tournament berth by capturing the MIAA Tournament crown in just its second year as a member of the league.
As a player at Nebraska Wesleyan, Hansen's 1988 squad advanced to the NCAA Division III semifinals, and while serving as a student coach, the 1990 Plainsmen advanced to the final 16.
Hansen is assisted by assistant coaches Tyler Erwin, Pat Eberhart and James Miller.
2015-16 Slate Takes Mavericks Around the Nation
Omaha's 2015-16 schedule includes 30 games, and the team will play in 13 states against schools from 10 other Division I conferences. The schedule has two opponents from both the WAC and the Big Sky and one each from the Big West, Pac-12, Big Ten, MAC, SEC, Mountain West, OVC and SWAC or MEAC. Two opponents – Wyoming and defending Summit League champion North Dakota State – played in the 2015 NCAA Tournament.
Entering the season, the Mavericks had never faced six of their opponents: UC Santa Barbara, Saint Mary's (Minn.), Colorado, Eastern Michigan, Montana State and Southern. They hold a combined all-time record of 166-192-2 over all teams on the regular-season slate.
Next Up
Omaha returns to action Sunday, Jan. 3, hosting IUPUI. Tipoff is set for 4:30 p.m. at Baxter Arena, and Gary Sharp and Grant Nieland will have the radio call on 1180 Zone 2. Fans can stream the audio on their smartphones by downloading NRG Media' app “1620 The Zone,” and links to stats and audio will be available on OMavs.com.
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