Fort Hays State fought an uphill battle all night in a 66-57 loss Monday (Mar. 2) at Washburn in the MIAA Tournament First Round. FHSU scored the first bucket of the game, but Washburn took the lead immediately after and never trailed the rest of the way. FHSU closed its season at 16-13 overall.

Fort Hays State trailed by as many as 10 points in the first half at the 8:30 mark, but used 8-0 and 5-0 runs to cut the lead down to just two. The teams traded points the remainder of the half and FHSU trailed by two at the break 33-31. FHSU shot 44 percent in the first half and held the Ichabods to 36.7 percent, but Washburn outscored FHSU 14-0 off turnovers up to the break.

FHSU finally pulled even with Washburn at the 14:09 mark of the second half, 42-42, on a Jake Stoppel layup. However, Washburn quickly countered with a 9-0 run to take control once again at the 11:35 mark. FHSU would not pull closer than seven points the rest of the way.

Washburn shot the ball well in the second half, hitting at a 56.3 percent rate from the field. The Ichabods were rock solid from the free-throw line throughout the night, hitting their first 16 attempts before Algie Key missed a pair late in the second half. WU finished 19-of-23 at the line overall.

FHSU shot 40.4 percent as a team from the field, but struggled behind the 3-point line at just 28.6 percent (4-of-14). Achoki Moikobu led the Tigers with 22 points, followed by Jake Stoppel with 12. Stoppel finished with a double-double, his fourth of the year, adding 12 rebounds. James Fleming dished out a team-high four assists.

Alex North led Washburn with 18 points, followed by Kyle Wiggins with 13. North led the Ichabods in rebounds as well with nine. Washburn moves on to face the tournament's top seed, Northwest Missouri State, in the quarterfinals of the MIAA Tournament in Kansas City.