UNO Men fall to Oral Roberts

UNO Men fall to Oral Roberts
January 27th, 2022 | omavs.com

OMAHA, Neb. – It was a tough battle between the Mavericks and Golden Eagles Thursday night. Despite five Omaha players reaching double-figures, Oral Roberts eked out a 100-88 win.

With the loss, Omaha falls to 3-18 overall and 2-8 in league play.

Leaders for Omaha
Nick Ferrarini led the Mavericks with 20 points Thursday night. He shot 50 percent from the field. Felix Lemetti scored another 17 points on 6-of-12 from the field. He hit four from long range for nearly half of Omaha’s points from the arc. Darrius Hughes added 16 points off the bench, while Frankie Fidler added 14.

Akol Arop notched his first career double-double with 10 points and 13 boards, eight of which were on the offensive glass. He also finished with a block and steal. Lemetti led Omaha with five assists.

Leaders for Oral Roberts
Max Abmas led all-scorers with 28 points on 10-of-20 from the field. He connected on six shots from three-point range. Isaac McBride also found success from deep. He was 4-of-7 from the arc and finished with seven made field goals for 18 points. Elijah Lufile and DeShang Weaver scored 13 apiece.

Weaver completed the double-double with 10 boards. Francis Lacis also grabbed 10 rebounds.

Team Stats
Omaha shot 42.9 percent from the field, while ORU hit 51.9 percent of their attempts. Both teams shot over 40 percent from deep. The Mavericks finished 9-of-22, while the Golden Eagles were 14-of-30.

ORU held a small advantage in points in the paint (48-40), second chance points (17-13), and bench points (39-36). Omaha outscored ORU on turnovers (12-7) and on the fast break (16-9).

Inside the First Half
The first half got off to a slow start Thursday night with a 5-5 draw at the first media timeout of the game. The Golden Eagles found their groove the next minute pulling ahead 11-5 after a three-point play from Kareem Thompson. Fidler and Lemetti kept the Mavericks within four under the 15-minute mark. Hughes and Ferrarini then provided a spark off the bench for Omaha. Hughes scored on back-to-back buckets for the Mavericks near the midway point. Ferrarini then capped the 6-0 run with a jumper to cut the ORU lead, 18-16.

Two minutes later, Ferrarini’s jumper with 9:05 left in the half earned the Mavericks their first lead of the half with a one-point edge. Abmas responded with a three on the other end to recapture the lead for ORU. The lead remained in the single-digits and would get cut back down to three following a monster dunk off an in-bound play by Arop. Smith hit a fast break jumper on the next trip down the court to bring Omaha within one with 5:13 on the clock, while Lemetti knotted things at 31-31 with a three-pointer with four and a half left to play. ORU used a 9-0 run to pull back away from Omaha, but Ferrarini scored the final five Omaha points of the half to trail, 42-36 at the break.

Inside the Second Half
Dylan Brougham tipped off the second half trading baskets with Weaver and Lacis to keep Omaha within seven early. It didn’t take long for ORU to extend their lead on an 8-0 run sparked by a three-pointer from Jurgens with 17:24 on the clock. Arop snapped the run with a put-back dunk, but it was matched on the other end with an Abmas three. Abmas and Lufile led ORU to their largest lead yet at 20 points at the 13:21 mark. The Golden Eagles kept the lead at 20 with just over 10 left to play on another Lufile layup and took their largest lead of the game at 23 points at the 7:41 mark on a McBride three pointer. 

The Mavericks didn’t give up and began to chip away at the ORU lead. Lemetti connected from deep at the 6:36 mark sparking the Omaha offense. Fidler hit two big shots, including a three at the 5:01 mark to cut the lead down to 15. It was then Ferrarini’s turn to find success from the arc. He tallied the next five Omaha points with just under three to play bringing Omaha within 11. Lemetti then drove in for a layup cutting the lead back to single digits, 91-82, at the 2:43 mark. A Thompson three-point play and McBride three-pointer bought the Golden Eagles some security, and they held on for the 100-88 win.

Noting Tonight’s Game
-Arop recorded his first career double-double with 10 points and 13 rebounds. 
-His 13 rebounds also marked a new career-best for the sophomore forward.
-Tonight marked the second time this season Ferrarini scored 20 or more points.
-It was also the third time five or more Mavericks have scored double-figures.

Up Next
Omaha hosts Kansas City Saturday at 7 p.m. It is the final Saturday home game of the year and will wrap up Coaches vs. Cancer Suits & Sneakers Week.

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