Junior forward Mike Daum and the South Dakota State men’s basketball team swept the season series against the Omaha Mavericks Tuesday at Frost Arena. The Jacks clenched the victory.
SDSU outplayed the Mavericks from the opening tip, leading the entire game and finishing 80-60.
Coming into the game, it was announced the Mavericks 6’9 forward, Lamar Wofford-Humphrey, would be out.
Omaha would instead play a smaller lineup, allowing a one-on-one matchup against Daum all night. It didn’t go well.
Daum led the way for SDSU with 35 points, connecting on just one 3-pointer, and relentlessly attacked the paint as he scored 15 times from inside the arc.
Daum continued to show his improvement on the glass. He finished with 18 rebounds and is now averaging 13 in Summit League play, compared to his average of eight last year.
“I feel like I have done a better job putting myself in a position to grab boards,” Daum said. “I think it’s definitely one thing I have improved on.”
As a team, the Jacks shot 46 percent from the field and 35 percent from beyond the arc.
Junior guard Tevin King contributed 14 points to the offensive charge and four rebounds. Senior guard Skyler Flatten had 12 points, connecting on two of his three attempts beyond the arc.
King did more for the Jacks other than being their second leading scorer. He also led the offensive and defensive charge. Last year, King was thought of as a defensive-first guard, but has since grown beyond that.
“He just commanded the whole game,” head coach T.J. Otzelberger said.
Omaha came into the game, averaging 77.5 points per game, but were held to much less Tuesday night.
Otzelberger said part of the reason the Jacks were so effective on defense, was their offensive possessions.
“For us, the best thing for our defense is to not turn the ball over and get great shots on offense,” head coach T.J. Otzelberger said. “Our guys did that tonight.”
SDSU forced Omaha to turn the ball over 12 times. Junior guard Brandon Key and King both had active hands against the Mavericks with two steals apiece.
Up next, the Jacks will turn their focus to the North Dakota State Bison.
The last meeting between the two squads, came Jan. 3 in Fargo. The Jacks were able to beat the Bison 87-80 at the Scheels Center.
Mike Daum led the way in that game with 37 points. Senior forward Reed Tellinghuisen also made an impact against the Bison, scoring 22 points.
As a team, the Jacks connected on seven three-pointers and outrebounded the Bison 30-26.
NDSU (12-10, 4-3) is led by senior guard, Paul Miller, who won Summit League Player of the Week.
Miller is averaging 19.5 points per game this season, and is coming off of a 26-point performance in a win against Western Illinois.
“He’s scoring it at such a high level and shooting the ball well. We just want to make him work for everything he gets and not give him anything in transition or any threes,” Otzelberger said of Miller.
Last time against the Bison, the Jacks were unable to contain Miller for a majority of the night, as he went off for 35 points.
Tip-off between NDSU and SDSU is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Thursday at Frost Arena.
