Saturday, December 21
Omaha, Neb.
8:05 p.m.
Omaha
vs
Cal Poly
Photo by: Mary Pritchard
Mavericks Begin Final Homestand of 2024 vs.Cal Poly
Dec 20, 2024 | Men's Basketball
The Basics
With the final non-conference road trip in the rear window, the Mavericks play their penultimate home game of 2024 vs. Cal Poly on Saturday at 8 p.m.
Gary Sharp will have the call on 1290 KOIL and links to live stats, audio, and video can be found at OMavs.com.
Quick Hits
• The Mavericks played arguably their two toughest opponents of the season last week when they began their final road trip of 2024 with a 78-58 loss at a Northern Iowa squad that has received votes in the Mid Major poll all season, before falling 83-51 to No. 3 Iowa State, the highest ranked opponent Omaha has ever faced.
• In both games, the Mavericks led for much of the first half, leading UNI 23-21 with less than four minutes to go and holding a 19-18 lead over ISU with under eight minutes remaining.
• JJ White was the team's top performer last week, scoring 21 points and going 5-for-9 (.556) from behind the arc. Since rejoining the starting lineup at Saramento State on December 7, he has scored 30 points, shot 12-for-25 (.480) from the field, and totaled nine assists.
• Tony Osburn passed a major career milestone on Sunday vs. the Cyclones as his second three-pointer of the game put him at 100 in his career. In doing so, he became the 10th Maverick to play exclusively in the Division I era to reach the century mark.
• Marquel Sutton continued his quest to become the 44th Maverick in history to join the 1000-Point Club as he ended last week with 923. He is also closing in on 500 career rebounds, coming into this week with 457. If he reaches both milestones he will be just the 15th Mavericks all-time and fourth who spent their whole career in the Division I era to do so.
• Sutton earned his first career Summit League Preseason honor after being named Second Team All-Preseason in October. In 2023-24, he was second on the team with 12.3 PPG (406 total) and led all Mavericks with 6.3 RPG (208 total boards).
• Lance Waddles (NDSU), Joshua Streit (NDSU), and Isaac Ondekane (Lindenwood) headline the Mavericks' top transfers this year with the trio coming to Omaha with a combined six seasons of Division I basketball under their belts. Also new this year are top JUCO transfers Kamryn Thomas (2024 NJCAA Third Team All-American), Khamani Cooper (465 points as a freshman in 2024), and Valentino Simon (965 career points from 2022-24).
• Omaha has three captains this year: Marquel Sutton, Tony Osburn, and Lance Waddles.
• Head Coach Chris Crutchfield has a 38-59 career record. This season marks his fourth year as a head coach and third with the Mavericks.
Scouting the Cal Poly Mustangs
The Mustangs snapped a three-game skid on Tuesday when they bested Denver 95-94 in overtime to move to 6-7 on the year. As a team, Cal Poly is scoring 84.1 ppg and shooting just under .500 from the field at .475 (388-for-816).
Four Mustangs are averaging double-digit points on the season, paced by graduate student guard Owen Koonce whose 18.4 ppg ranks third in the Big West while his 239 total points lead the entire league. He comes into this week with seven-straight double-digit scoring games, including a pair of 30-point performances against Stanford and San Jose State. Koonce is also sporting a .548 FG% (86-for-157), .889 FT% (40-for-45), and a team-high 5.5 rpg (71 total).
Fellow graduate student guard Jarred Hyder is right behind Koonce with 15.5 ppg and 171 points, as well as being second on the team in assists with 34 behind another fifth-year guard, Mac Riniker (36). Riniker's 11 blocks also pace the Mustangs.
After 23 years coaching at the Division III and II levels, Mike DeGeorge is in his first year as a Division I head coach after joining Cal Poly this past offseason.
All-Time Against Cal Poly
Omaha and Cal Poly are an even 1-1 against each other. In the first part of this home and home series last year, the Mavericks were narrowly edged out 56-53 in San Luis Obispo, California. Before that, the first ever meeting between the two teams came on November 30, 1990, when Omaha triumphed 93-83.
With the final non-conference road trip in the rear window, the Mavericks play their penultimate home game of 2024 vs. Cal Poly on Saturday at 8 p.m.
Gary Sharp will have the call on 1290 KOIL and links to live stats, audio, and video can be found at OMavs.com.
Quick Hits
• The Mavericks played arguably their two toughest opponents of the season last week when they began their final road trip of 2024 with a 78-58 loss at a Northern Iowa squad that has received votes in the Mid Major poll all season, before falling 83-51 to No. 3 Iowa State, the highest ranked opponent Omaha has ever faced.
• In both games, the Mavericks led for much of the first half, leading UNI 23-21 with less than four minutes to go and holding a 19-18 lead over ISU with under eight minutes remaining.
• JJ White was the team's top performer last week, scoring 21 points and going 5-for-9 (.556) from behind the arc. Since rejoining the starting lineup at Saramento State on December 7, he has scored 30 points, shot 12-for-25 (.480) from the field, and totaled nine assists.
• Tony Osburn passed a major career milestone on Sunday vs. the Cyclones as his second three-pointer of the game put him at 100 in his career. In doing so, he became the 10th Maverick to play exclusively in the Division I era to reach the century mark.
• Marquel Sutton continued his quest to become the 44th Maverick in history to join the 1000-Point Club as he ended last week with 923. He is also closing in on 500 career rebounds, coming into this week with 457. If he reaches both milestones he will be just the 15th Mavericks all-time and fourth who spent their whole career in the Division I era to do so.
• Sutton earned his first career Summit League Preseason honor after being named Second Team All-Preseason in October. In 2023-24, he was second on the team with 12.3 PPG (406 total) and led all Mavericks with 6.3 RPG (208 total boards).
• Lance Waddles (NDSU), Joshua Streit (NDSU), and Isaac Ondekane (Lindenwood) headline the Mavericks' top transfers this year with the trio coming to Omaha with a combined six seasons of Division I basketball under their belts. Also new this year are top JUCO transfers Kamryn Thomas (2024 NJCAA Third Team All-American), Khamani Cooper (465 points as a freshman in 2024), and Valentino Simon (965 career points from 2022-24).
• Omaha has three captains this year: Marquel Sutton, Tony Osburn, and Lance Waddles.
• Head Coach Chris Crutchfield has a 38-59 career record. This season marks his fourth year as a head coach and third with the Mavericks.
Scouting the Cal Poly Mustangs
The Mustangs snapped a three-game skid on Tuesday when they bested Denver 95-94 in overtime to move to 6-7 on the year. As a team, Cal Poly is scoring 84.1 ppg and shooting just under .500 from the field at .475 (388-for-816).
Four Mustangs are averaging double-digit points on the season, paced by graduate student guard Owen Koonce whose 18.4 ppg ranks third in the Big West while his 239 total points lead the entire league. He comes into this week with seven-straight double-digit scoring games, including a pair of 30-point performances against Stanford and San Jose State. Koonce is also sporting a .548 FG% (86-for-157), .889 FT% (40-for-45), and a team-high 5.5 rpg (71 total).
Fellow graduate student guard Jarred Hyder is right behind Koonce with 15.5 ppg and 171 points, as well as being second on the team in assists with 34 behind another fifth-year guard, Mac Riniker (36). Riniker's 11 blocks also pace the Mustangs.
After 23 years coaching at the Division III and II levels, Mike DeGeorge is in his first year as a Division I head coach after joining Cal Poly this past offseason.
All-Time Against Cal Poly
Omaha and Cal Poly are an even 1-1 against each other. In the first part of this home and home series last year, the Mavericks were narrowly edged out 56-53 in San Luis Obispo, California. Before that, the first ever meeting between the two teams came on November 30, 1990, when Omaha triumphed 93-83.
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