INDIANAPOLIS - The IUPUI basketball team had the opportunity to get back in the win column, but their multiple rallies against Omaha fell short in the end as the Jags lost their third game in a row, 79-71.
 
IUPUI (7-11, 1-3 Summit) yet again held a lead in the final ten minutes, but Omaha (9-9, 2-3 Summit) answered every punch, and eventually pulled away in the closing minutes. The Jaguars cut the lead to four with just over a minute to go, but could not capitalize on shots at the rim in the closing seconds. A rare cold shooting night on their home floor hindered the Jags as they went 29-of-71 from the floor, and just 5-of-19 from distance. Their 71-point total was their lowest output of the season at Coliseum.
 
A slow start to the game caused the Jags to play catch-up from the jump. After sophomore Evan Hall opened with two quick buckets, the Jags proceeded to miss their next 10 shots. A late Omaha run to end the first half put the Jags down 40-32 at the intermission. A lid was on the hoop as the Jags only shot 14-of-36 in the half.
 
"I think we came out a little flat to start the game tonight," Associate Head Coach Matt Crenshaw said after the game, "We can't have that, especially at home."
 
The Jags quickly erased the halftime deficit with a 13-5 run in the opening minutes of the second frame. From there, the two teams traded baskets back and forth as neither team could get much separation from the other until the closing minutes. The Jags had multiple opportunities to expand their leads, but the turnover bug came back to bite them in the end.
 
"I think some of the turnovers when we were making our runs hurt us." Crenshaw said, "We also have to understand personnel. A couple of their role players had big nights, and it's on us to know their strengths."
 
In a game of runs, the Jags couldn't quite string together enough stops on defense to slow the Mavericks attack. Omaha took a 67-60 with five minutes to go, and held off the Jaguars' multiple punches. The Jags chipped away at the margin, but couldn't close the deal on the defensive end.
 
"For us, we need to get stops. Our goal is to get seven 3-stops sequences in a row, and we didn't hit that goal."
 
"We really haven't put together a full game yet," senior Matt O'Leary said, "whether it's offensively or defensively, we have to be able to execute and get stops."
 
O'Leary was a major catalyst in the second half, scoring all 11 of his points after intermission. Hall had the best game of his Jaguar career, scoring a career-high 21 points and hauling down 11 rebounds for his second career double-double. Darell Combs added 13 points of his own, while Kellon Thomas and Ron Patterson each chipped in 10 to round out the Jags' scoring in double figures.
 
The loss gives the Jaguars their second three-game losing streak of the season, but opportunity awaits in the coming weeks. Three of their next four games come at home in the Coliseum.
 
"We're sick of losing and we know we're a lot better than we're playing." O'Leary said, "we just have to go out and get back on the right track."
 
"You can't hang your head and get down and mope. Next game we have to come out with energy and be locked in defensively." Crenshaw said looking forward, "That's really the mindset. You can't look at records, and you have to bring it every night in this conference."

Zach Jackson paced Omaha with 20 points as the Mavs improved to 7-2 all-time against the Jags. Junior Tre'Shawn Thurman added 16 points and nine boards and Mitch Hahn had a key 15 points off the bench, including hitting three threes. 

IUPUI will head back on the road on Saturday (Jan. 14) when the Jaguars take on Oral Roberts inside the Mabee Center at 3:00 p.m. Central (4 Eastern). That game will be broadcast on ESPN3 and can be heard in Central Indiana on 97.5 Fox Sports FM, 1260 WNDE and the iHeartRadio app as Morgan Adcock (pxp) is on the call.