Omaha men’s basketball had its ups and downs in the first half of the season, but the Mavericks finished 2024 in style.
The Omaha Mavericks defeated visiting Mount Marty 81-51 in their last game of the calendar year.
While 11 Mavericks scored in the blowout win, Marquel Sutton and Lance Waddles led Omaha’s offense with 39 points combined. Sutton finished with 20 points and eight rebounds in 24 minutes, while Waddles had 19 points and seven rebounds.
The Mavericks were not particularly dominant on the boards, but they handily outscored Mount Marty from the field. Omaha shot 43.3 percent from the field while restricting the Lancers to 33.3%, including a 27.6 percent to 11.1% advantage from beyond the arc.
Omaha won’t complain about a great win to cap the year, but the Mavericks won’t be satisfied with their free-throw shooting. Omaha made only 15 of 28 free throw tries.
At 6-9 overall, the Mavericks will turn their attention to a conference schedule that begins on Jan. 2 at North Dakota. They will then play three more games over the next nine days, two of which will be held at Baxter Arena.