Game Notes I Watch Live I Listen Live I Live Stats
The Fort Hays State men's basketball jumped eight spots in the national rankings this week to No. 6 from No. 14, but that ranking will definitely be put to the test by two very difficult road tests this week. Fort Hays State (8-0, 2-0 MIAA) plays at Washburn (5-1, 2-0 MIAA) on Wednesday night at 7:30 pm, following the women's contest at 5:30 pm.
This will be the first conference road test for the Tigers after winning home games over Lincoln and Nebraska-Omaha to open conference play last week. The Tigers are off to their first 8-0 start since 1996-97.
This will be a match-up of the top two shooting teams in the MIAA. Fort Hays State leads the MIAA in field goal percentage at .537, with Washburn just behind at .528. FHSU and Washburn are the only two schools currently shooting over 50 percent from the field for the season. Fort Hays State is the highest scoring team in the conference at 91.4 points per game, while Washburn is third at 83.5. The teams are very similar in the amount of points surrendered this year, with Washburn allowing 66.7 points and Fort Hays State 67.2 points per game. However, the Tigers are allowing the lowest field goal percentage (.388) and 3-point field goal percentage (.266) to opponents in the conference, while Washburn is 10th in overall field goal percentage allowed (.448) and last in 3-point field goal percentage allowed (.434).
Dominique Jones continues to lead FHSU in scoring at 18.3 points per game. He had a double-double of 11 points and 10 assists in the win over Nebraska-Omaha this past Friday. He has scored in double figures every game this year. Jones ranks seventh in the MIAA in scoring and leads the conference in assists, averaging 6.3 per game.
The post tandem of
Ken Bowman and
Dijon Smith continue to scorch the nets, shooting a combined 38-of-44 from the field (86.4 percent) over the last three games. Bowman is 19-of-21 (90.5 percent) in the last three games. The two are tied for second on the team in scoring at 13.1 points per game a piece. They are ranked second and third in the MIAA in blocked shots, with Smith averaging 1.5 and Bowman averaging 1.4 per game. Bowman leads the team and ranks sixth in the MIAA in rebounding, averaging 7.1 per game.
Corbin Kuntzsch continues his steady play, averaging 11.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game. He is the team leader in 3-point field goal percentage (.421) and is second on the team in free-throw percentage (.844). He is one of four players on the team shooting above 80 percent at the free-throw line, which includes team-leader
Karron McKenzie at 87 percent,
Ben Congiusta (.833) and
Dominique Jones (.821).
Moses Dayee continues to be the top scorer off the bench for the Tigers at 9.3 points per game. He hit four 3-point field goals against Nebraska-Omaha last week and leads the team in 3-point field goals made (17).
Washburn also has several offensive weapons, led by senior post player Logan Stutz who leads the conference in scoring at 22.5 points per game. He is shooting a conference-best 78.6 percent from the field. Redshirt-freshman Jeff Reid, transfer from St. Louis University, is very dangerous from beyond the 3-point line, shooting 57.1 percent from long range, which is second in the MIAA. Senior forward De'Andre Washington can create match-up problems for teams on the perimeter with his ability to play both inside and outside. He is second in the MIAA in assists per game (5.7).
