GAME 18:  OMAHA (11-6, 3-0 Summit) at SOUTH DAKOTA (9-8, 1-2 Summit)
When	Saturday, Jan. 9, 4 p.m.
Where	DakotaDome (10,000) | Vermillion, S.D.
Tickets	Tickets
Television	MidcoSN (Jay Elsen, Greg Stemen, Carla Metts)
Watch Online	FREE webcast | ESPN3
Radio	Coyote Sports Network (Joe Van Goor)
Live Stats	USD Live Stats
South Dakota Links	Game Notes | Roster | Schedule | Stats
Omaha Links	Game Notes | Roster | Schedule | Stats
Social Media	Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

The Game
Old NCC rivals South Dakota and Omaha meet for the fourth season as Summit League foes and the series history has been relatively balanced since then with both teams scoring a win in each season. Omaha won 86-77 in Vermillion last year and South Dakota won 74-73 in Omaha thanks in part to an Eric Robertson tip-in with eight seconds remaining.

Omaha (3-0) and Fort Wayne (2-0) are the lone unbeaten teams in Summit League play. The Mavericks are coming off a 91-82 win at North Dakota State just two days ago. The Coyotes (1-2) dropped an 85-65 deicision at Fort Wayne on Wednesday. Four of the last five meetings in the series between USD and UNO have been decided by five points or less.

The Series
South Dakota leads the all-time series 53-44. The teams first met as North Central Conference foes back in the 1934-35 season and the teams stayed conference rivals until 2008. Both teams won on the other's home court last season.

The Mavs
First-place Omaha earned its fifth-straight win Thursday against North Dakota State in Fargo. Devin Patterson scored 32 points on 11 of 14 shooting. He is the Summit League's second-leading scorer at 17.8 points per game. Omaha is the 10th-leading scoring team in the nation at 85 points a contest. The Mavs lead the nation with 168 steals and rank second in free throws attempted (463) and free throws made (338). Omaha is eligible for postseason play at the Division I level for the first time this season.

The Coyotes
Junior guard Shy McClelland scored 19 points in Wednesday's loss at Fort Wayne, but was the only Coyote to score in double figures. Five reached double figures, including McClelland, in last Sunday's win at Oral Roberts. South Dakota had a season-high 14 steals in the win, but had zero at Fort Wayne.

South Dakota is playing at home for just the fifth time this season. Only 19 Division I teams have played fewer home games than the Coyotes. Senior guard Tre Burnette continues to lead the team in both scoring (14.6 ppg) and rebounding (6.3 rpg)

One Final Note
South Dakota senior guard Casey Kasperbauer has made 27 consecutive free throws dating back to late November. Kasperbauer leads the Summit League and ranks third nationally at 95 percent. He is the best free-throw shooter in program history at 90 percent.