The 24th-ranked Fort Hays State men's basketball team hosts Washburn on Saturday (Feb. 1) at Gross Memorial Coliseum in Hays. FHSU enters on a nine-game win streak at 17-3 overall, 8-3 in the MIAA, while Washburn enters at 14-4, 7-4 in the MIAA. Tipoff is set for 4 pm.
The Tigers are looking to snap a five-game losing streak to the Ichabods, which began in 2011-12. Washburn won all three meetings between the schools in 2011-12, including the MIAA Tournament, and both in 2012-13. Prior to that, FHSU held a five-game win streak on Washburn, so the teams have split the last 10 games played 5-5.
A win for the Tigers would give them two games of separation over Washburn in the conference standings and would give them at least one still over Emporia State, which they defeated on Thursday night in double overtime. If Emporia State loses at Nebraska-Kearney on Saturday, it would give the Tigers two games of separation over both ESU and WU if they defeat the Ichabods in Hays on Saturday.
The battle for position in the conference standings right now is critical to the teams on the west side of the conference, since three have emerged at the top of the conference standings from the east. The next team from the east in the standings is Missouri Western in ninth place at 4-7. The top four teams receive byes to Kansas City for the conference tournament at the end of the year. Seeds 5-12 will play opening round games at campus sites. Four of the seven teams from the west are jammed in the middle at 5 through 8 in the standings currently. Washburn and Emporia State, both 7-4, are currently tied for fifth just a game back of FHSU, which is tied with Central Missouri for third at 8-3. All the teams in the west play each other twice and play every team in the east just once this year, even though there are no divisional standings.
With a career-high 36 points on Thursday night in the double overtime win over Emporia State,
Craig Nicholson now leads the team in both scoring and assists. He averages 17.9 points and 8.0 assists per game. Nicholson ranks second in the nation in assists per game.
Dwayne Brunson is second in scoring at 17.5 points per game and he poured in 24 against ESU on Thursday.
Carson Konrade, the third-best 3-point shooter by percentage in the nation (52.3 percent), ranks third on the team in scoring at 13.9 points per game.
Achoki Moikobu stepped up off the bench on Thursday night to add 15 points in the Tiger win.
