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The No. 3 ranked FHSU men's basketball team hosts Pittsburg State on Saturday (Jan. 15) in Hays. Game time is set for 4 pm. The Tigers enter at 13-2 overall and 7-2 in the MIAA, while the Gorillas are 9-4 overall and 5-4 in the MIAA. 

Pittsburg State has experienced a huge turnaround this year under first year head coach Kevin Muff. Muff came to PSU from Cloud County (Kan.) Community College, where he was head coach for 12 years. He has the Gorillas in the thick of the conference race early on, after the Gorillas failed to make the MIAA Tournament the previous two seasons. Pittsburg State has the only win over conference frontrunner and No. 22 ranked Missouri Southern this year, a two-point victory in Joplin. The Gorillas are coming off a loss at Washburn on Wednesday, which pushed them back into a tie for fifth in the MIAA standings.

The Tigers moved up in the national rankings this week to No. 3 from their previous spot of No. 5 after three wins last week. The loss at Missouri Southern on Monday did not count in the rankings, since the poll reflects results through the Sunday prior to the release of the poll. The Tigers will likely move back down in the national rankings regardless of the outcome Saturday, but every game in the conference race is crucial now as the Tigers are one game back of Missouri Southern.

The most important rankings in the end of the year are the regional rankings, with the first release coming on January 26. Currently six teams are in the hunt for the top spot in the South Central Region. Even though the Tigers are the highest ranked team nationally in the region, they might not be the top team in the regional rankings if they started today. There are no remaining unbeatens in the South Central Region after No. 19 West Texas A&M lost on Wednesday at No. 12 Incarnate Word. Both of those teams, along with No. 22 Missouri Southern, have just one loss this year. No. 3 Fort Hays State joins No. 15 Central Oklahoma as the only two teams with two losses overall in the region, and No. 23 Midwestern State, last year's regional host, suffered its third loss of the year on Wednesday.

Dominique Jones continues to lead the Tigers in scoring at 17.5 points per game. He recorded his fourth game of at least 20 points this year at Missouri Southern. He leads the team and MIAA in assists per game (6.1).

Dijon Smith had a solid two-game road trip to up his second-best scoring average on the team, now at 13.3 points per game. He ranks second in the MIAA in shooting percentage (67.2 percent). Ken Bowman complements Smith in the post, averaging 11.7 points per game (third-best on the team). He is second on the team in shooting percentage (64.1 percent).

Corbin Kuntzsch is the only other Tiger averaging double figures in scoring at 10.9 points per game. He now has 1,022 points in his career at FHSU, good for 16th on the all-time list. He is 29 points away from passing Bud Moeckel for 15th on the list. Kuntzsch is the team leader in 3-point field goal percentage (46.2 percent).

Moses Dayee is the top 3-point shooting threat on the team and ranks fifth on the team in scoring. He is averaging 9.1 points per game this year, with a team-high 34 3-point field goals. He is shooting 43 percent beyond the arc.

Karron McKenzie ranks sixth on the team in scoring and leads the team in free-throw percentage (87 percent, 40-of-46). He ranks second in the MIAA in free-throw percentage. McKenzie averages 8.4 points per game.

Matt Simmons is the top rebounder on the team, averaging 6.5 boards per game. He ranks 10th in the MIAA in that category. He owns four double-figure rebounding games this year, reaching a season-high 16 twice.