The Omaha Mavericks and the South Dakota State Jackrabbits meet Saturday in Summit League Tournament college basketball action from Denny Sanford Premier Center. Omaha is currently 9-22 overall. The Mavericks beat Kansas City in their Friday tournament game. As for South Dakota State, they’re sitting at 18-12 on the year. The Jackrabbits lost to Oral Roberts last weekend in their most recent appearance. Check back all season long for free college basketball picks at Sports Chat Place.
Omaha Mavericks
Omaha managed a 7-16 record by the 23-game mark this year and didn’t finish strong either. The Mavericks lost to St. Thomas MN, Western Illinois, North Dakota State, North Dakota, South Dakota State and Denver in their last final seven outings of the regular season.
In the Friday tournament matchup versus Kansas City, Omaha was up 45-22 by halftime. The Mavericks were outscored 39-28 in the second but held on for the win 73-61. Leading team scorer Frankie Fidler put up 21 points with three rebounds and three assists.
South Dakota State Jackrabbits
Over on the South Dakota State side, they opened the year on a .500 run with an 11-11 record through 22 games. The Jackrabbits beat Kansas City, North Dakota, North Dakota State, South Dakota, Denver, Omaha and Kansas City again before a loss to Oral Roberts.
Last Saturday in the Oral Roberts game, the Jackrabbits were down 40-31 going into the break. South Dakota State hit a 34-29 run in the second but still lost 69-65. Matt Dentlinger put up 23 points and Zeke Mayo added 20 points with 12 boards.
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’ll probably stick with South Dakota State in this one. The Jackrabbits had a nice seven-game win streak going before last weekend’s loss to Oral Roberts. They’d posted 67 or more points in eight straight games prior to that. These teams have met twice already this year with the Jackrabbits winning both times. First came an 84-61 result at Frost Arena on January 19, then a 91-70 result on February 18 at Baxter Arena. Omaha has been scoring quite well over their last five games with 70 or more points scored in four of them, but I don’t think they’ll keep much of a pace here.