Box Score
A red-hot first half helped the No. 7 ranked Tigers to a 94-72 win at Nebraska-Omaha on Wednesday evening (Jan. 26). The Tigers led by 23 at halftime, then kept the Mavericks from making big runs in the second half to win handily on the road for the second straight game. FHSU moved to 17-2 overall and 11-2 in the MIAA and more importantly back into a tie for first place in the MIAA standings.
The Tigers shot a scorching 60.7 percent from the field in the first half, including 61.5 percent (8-of-13) from beyond the 3-point line, compared to just 30.6 for UNO to build a 49-26 lead at the half. Despite some foul trouble by the Tigers in the second half, the Mavericks never pulled closer than 16. The Tigers finished 54.5 percent overall and 57.1 percent (12-of-21) beyond the 3-point line for the game. The Mavericks shot just 35.9 percent overall and 21.1 percent beyond the 3-point line.
The Tigers reached their largest lead of the first half (25 points) at the 4:57 mark with a 40-15 lead, a margin they reached two more times before the break. They held their largest lead of the game, 26 points, early in the second half, before the game teetered around a 20-point margin for the remainder of the evening.
Dominique Jones and Dijon Smith each had big offensive nights, tying with a game-high 25 points each. Jones was 7-of-13 from the field, which included five 3-point field goals, and went a perfect 6-of-6 at the free-throw line. Dijon Smith was 7-of-12 from the field in the return to his hometown of Omaha, and did a lot of damage from the free-throw line, where he was 11-of-14. Smith was just one rebound shy of a double-double with nine and his 25 points was a new career high.
Corbin Kuntzsch produced his third double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds. He is now alone in 14th on the all-time scoring list with 1,064 points. Moses Dayee also reached double figures, burying three first-half 3-pointers and a free-throw in the second half.
The win by the Tigers, coupled with a loss by Missouri Southern at Central Missouri on Wednesday night, creates a tie at the top of the MIAA standings once again. Fort Hays State and Missouri Southern are each currently two games clear of Washburn, the third place team, in the standings. Missouri Southern was just annointed the No. 1 team in the regional rankings earlier Wednesday evening, but now are even in the loss column with all of the top five teams in the region, which includes FHSU. The No. 3 and No. 4 teams in the region, Incarnate Word and West Texas A&M, survived close games on Wednesday night.
