The situation was nearly the same as it was a year ago.
UND was coming off of a loss against a quality opponent, with its next game against an opponent it was expected to beat.
Mayville State, however, ruined those expectations in mid-December of 2009, beating the Sioux by 12 points. The Comets came back to Betty Engelstad Sioux Center on Tuesday night, a couple of days after the Sioux lost at North Dakota State.
UND, however, had no letdown this time -- cruising past Mayville State 74-57 behind Jamal Webb's all-around play at point guard. His 15 points, nine rebounds and five assists kept the Sioux in front much of the way as they improved to 4-6.
Webb was at a prep school when Mayville stunned the Sioux a year ago. But he had heard enough from his teammates to know it shouldn't happen again.
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"No one talked about it a lot," Webb said. "But they did express it was an important game, especially after coming off a loss to our rival."
UND was in control much of the way behind the play of Webb, Aaron Anderson (15 points), Patrick Mitchell (10) and Troy Huff (10).
A 9-0 run midway through the first half gave the Sioux a 19-10 lead. Huff sparked the run with a steal and two-handed dunk.
"We had to come out and make a statement in this game," Mitchell said. "We came out with focus. And we did a great job of sharing the ball. Just through that, guys were able to get open looks at the basket."
The Sioux led 34-25 at halftime but pushed the lead to 14 points in the first five minutes of the second half behind Webb's overall play. All five of his assists came in the second half.
"Our guys learned a lesson from last year," UND coach Brian Jones said. "Last year, we were coming off a tough tournament at Drake. It was no different than the NDSU game. This could have been a trap game but our guys took a step forward in understanding that every game is important.
"You can't let the outside distractions of finals or coming off an emotional game against a rival bother you. Our guys did a good job of handling that."
Mayville was led by Shavontae Samuels' 26 points. Dalonte Gibson added 12, but only four other Comet players scored, none with more than seven points.
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UND received 39 points off its bench. But the Sioux were without two players, Mitch Wilmer and Nick Haugen. Wilmer, who had his best game against NDSU, injured his wrist against the Bison and his return is unknown.
UND shot the ball better than it has in the past few games, making 51 percent of its attempts.
A lot of that had to do with Webb's play at the point.
"As a young point guard, he did a nice job of running our team against their pressure," Jones said. "He got the ball down the lane and made easy plays for himself and his teammates."
UND 74, Mayville State 57
Key play: UND's 9-0 run for a 19-12 lead.
Key player: Jamal Webb, 15 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists.
