Jackson leads Omaha past UC Santa Barbara 85-74

OMAHA, Neb. -- Zach Jackson scored 22 points to lead Omaha past UC Santa Barbara 85-74 on Wednesday night.

Jackson was 9 of 13 from the field for the Mavericks (5-7). Matt Pile added 13 points, 11 rebounds and five assists and Mitchell Hahn and KJ Robinson had 11 points apiece.

Omaha shot 55 percent from the field compared to 41 percent for UC Santa Barbara.

A Jackson 3-pointer capped a 16-8 start for the Mavericks and they held the lead, building to a 48-35 advantage at the break.

Pile opened the second half with a dunk, Jackson followed with a layup and Zach Thornhill drained a jumper to stretch Omaha's lead to 54-35. The Gauchos (8-3) got as close as 58-46 with 13:14 to play but were never able to crack into the Mavericks double-figure lead.

Ar'Mond Davis scored 26 points to lead the Gauchos. Devearl Ramsey added 10 points.