Fort Hays State plays its final road contest of the regular season on Wednesday (Feb. 19) at Washburn in Topeka, Kan. Fort Hays State enters the game at 20-4 overall, 11-4 in the MIAA, while Washburn is 15-8, 8-8 in the MIAA.
Fort Hays State defeated Washburn earlier this year in thrilling fashion, 87-85 in overtime.
Dwayne Brunson hit a jumper from the top of the key with 0.3 seconds remaining to break the 85-85 tie. Washburn put together a huge second half comeback, down by 17 at one point, to get the game tied and force overtime. FHSU led that game by 14 points at halftime.
Fort Hays State will find out where it sits in the first set of NCAA Regional Rankings a couple hours before the game on Wednesday night. The first set of rankings are due to come out Wednesday afternoon.
The Tigers are currently tied for third in the MIAA standings with Missouri Southern at 11-4. The Tigers are only 1.5 games clear of Central Oklahoma in the standings, which hosts Northeastern State on Saturday. Central Oklahoma has just three regular season games left, including a match-up with the Tigers in Hays next Wednesday (Feb. 26). The Tigers are fighting to stay clear of the UCO for one of the first-round byes in the MIAA Tournament. The top four teams in the conference receive byes.
Craig Nicholson leads FHSU in scoring and assists, averaging 17.7 points and 7.7 assists per game. He ranks third in the nation in assists per game.
Dwayne Brunson is right behind Nicholson in scoring at 17.6 points per game and leads the team in rebounds with 7.8 per game.
Carson Konrade also averages double figures in scoring at 13.3 points per game.
James Fleming, who matched his season-high 20 points in the last game, is the top scorer off the bench at 9.5 per game.
