Fort Hays State Men's Basketball opens MIAA play at Missouri Southern on Thursday (Dec. 1). Tipoff is set for 7:30 pm at the Leggett and Platt Center. Both the Tigers and Lions enter the game at 4-2 overall.
Fort Hays State won the last three meetings with Missouri Southern, including both meetings last year by just a combined four points, and will have a solid test once again. The Lions are the top scoring team in the conference so far at 88.5 points per game. They are led by point guard CJ Carr, who ranks third in the MIAA in scoring at 24 points per game and first in assists at 6.2 per game.
The Lions won their first four games of the year, including an upset of preseason No. 17 ranked Minnesota State, before dropping their last two against Missouri S&T and Drury. In the latest national rankings, Drury is rated No. 15. All six of Missouri Southern's games have been against Division II competition.
The Tigers are coming off a 29-point win over Sterling College this past weekend. Earlier in the week FHSU won at Newman, so it enters Thursday on a two-game win streak.
Rob Davis has been tremendous so far, averaging 24.7 points per game to rank second in the MIAA. He ranks fourth in the MIAA in field goal percentage (.560), second in 3-point field goal percentage (.583), and third in free-throw percentage (.926).
Hadley Gillum is also averaging double figures in scoring at 14.8 points per game.
JaQuan Smith is the top rebounder for FHSU at 7.7 per game, while
Kyler Kinnamon is dishing out a team-best 3.0 assists per game.
