BROOKINGS, S.D. – The Omaha mens basketball team celebrated KJ Robinson reaching the 1,000 career points milestone Saturday afternoon but fell 81-64 to South Dakota State at Frost Arena.
Omaha is now 12-13 (5-5 Summit League), while the league-leading Jackrabbits improve to 18-8 (9-2) and extend their home win streak to 21 games.
Leaders for Omaha
Robinson, who became the 41st 1,000-point scorer in program history, led the Mavericks with 20 points, hitting three 3-pointers and going 7-of-8 at the line. The senior added two rebounds, three assists and a steal. Playing his 110th career game, he entered the day with 986 points and now sits at 38th all-time with 1,006.
Matt Pile recorded his ninth double-double of the season, scoring 10 points and bringing down 12 rebounds. Marlon Ruffin finished with 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting and a pair of threes.
Leaders for South Dakota State
Douglas Wilson led all scorers with 24 points alongside eight rebounds, five blocks, three assists and a steal. Matt Dentlinger added 19 points and seven boards while shooting 9-of-12, and Alex Arians also had 19 points. David Wingett rounded it out with another 10 along with eight rebounds and four assists.
Team Stats
SDSU shot 51.7% (30-of-58) to Omahas 36.7% (22-of-60) and had a 39-32 rebounding advantage.
Omaha was held to no fastbreak points for the day.
Inside the First Half
SDSU used a 16-1 run to take an early 21-8 lead, and Omaha was 3-of-13 from the field in the first eight minutes before a Ruffin jumper ended a 1-of-8 slump.
Omaha pulled within four when back-to-back Gibson threes cut SDSUs lead to 30-26, then saw Robinson drill back-to-back triples to tie the game at 33-33 with 2:56 left. But the Jacks finished the half on a 7-0 run, going up 40-33 at the midway point.
Inside the Second Half
Wanjang Tut poured one in to start the second half, but SDSU quickly regained a double-digit lead and maintained it the rest of the way.
Robinson finally hit his 1,000th point by hitting at pair at the stripe with 12:39 left.
Noting Todays Game
–KJ Robinson has had a 20-point scoring performance in five of his last six games — including three straight with todays effort — and has scored in double figures in eight straight contests.
-Omahas senior duo of Robinson and JT Gibson are both now in the record books as 1,000-point scorers. The last time the Mavericks counted two 1,000-point scorers on the roster was 2016-17 with Marcus Tyus and TreShawn Thurman.
Up Next
Omaha continues its road swing at Oral Roberts on Wednesday, Feb. 12, with tipoff set for 7 p.m. at the Mabee Center in Tulsa, Okla.
BROOKINGS, S.D. – The Omaha womens basketball program fell 69-59 on the road at South Dakota State Saturday afternoon at Frost Arena.
Omaha (6-17, 1-9) was plagued by a 21-6 second quarter in favor of the Jackrabbits (18-7, 10-1).
LEADERS FOR OMAHA
Mariah Murdie led the way with 15 points and four rebounds in 19 minutes of play. Freshman Akili Felici also posted with 15 points on a career-high 3-pointers made. Josie Filer nailed a trio of threes en route to nine points with six boards.
LEADERS FOR SOUTH DAKOTA STATE
Four Jackrabbits reached double-digits in scoring as Tagyn Larson led the way with 16 points and nine rebounds. Tylee Irwon followed with 13 points. The duo of Paiton Burckhard and Megan Bultsma notched 10 points apiece.
TEAM STATS
Omaha shot 23-for-55 from the floor (41.8%), 9-of-21 from three (42.9%) and 4-for-8 (50%) from the free throw line. South Dakota State was 28-of-65 from the field (43.1%), 5-for-15 from beyond the arc (33.3%) and 8-for-17 at the charity stripe (47.1%).
INSIDE THE FIRST HALF
Omaha led early on after back-to-back Murdie buckets, but the Jackrabbits regained the lead and built a 15-12 advantage after the first quarter. From there, South Dakota State went on a 10-0 run over the next 2:19 and forced an Omaha timeout with 6:20 to go in the second (25-14). The run extended to 18-0 over the next five minutes as the Jackrabbits built a 33-14 lead over Omaha. At the half, SDSU had a 36-18 lead over Omaha.
INSIDE THE SECOND HALF
The Jackrabbits opened the half with a 6-0 spurt and eventually built a 45-21 lead at the 5:52 mark in the third, which forced an Omaha timeout. Out of the break, Murdie notched five-straight points and cut the SDSU lead under 20 with less than five minutes to go in the frame. After three, Omaha trailed 55-34. Omaha cut the deficit to 14 (69-56) after a pair of threes from Felici and Filer – which capped off a 13-2 run. The lead was cut to 10 after Felici hit her fifth three of the game, but the Jackrabbits had the clock on their side as they pulled out the 69-59 decision.
LOOKING AHEAD
Omaha stays on the road with a Thursday, Feb. 13, game against Oral Roberts in Tulsa, Okla.
