HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State shot 66.7 percent from the field in the first half to open up a 30-point lead by halftime over McPherson College on Saturday afternoon (Dec. 30). The Tigers went on to win 87-62, improving to 10-3 overall.
 
Fort Hays State shot 20-of-30 from the field in the opening half, building a 55-25 lead by halftime. Hadley Gillum paced the first-half effort with a perfect shooting performance, 6-of-6 from the field and 3-of-3 at the free-throw line for 15 points. Marcus Cooper (3-of-3) and Trey O'Neil (2-of-2) were also perfect from the field in the first half. The Tigers never trailed in the game from start to finish.
 
After scoring 10 points in the first half, Brady Werth went on to lead the Tigers in scoring for the game with 18 points. He was 6-of-11 from the field and a perfect 6-of-6 at the free-throw line. Gillum was right behind, finishing with 17 points, along with a team-high six rebounds and five assists. Cooper and O'Neil each finished with 11, giving the Tigers four scorers in double figures.
 
As a team, FHSU finished at 54.1 percent shooting for the game. The Tigers canned 11 3-point field goals overall. All 12 Tigers scored with Aaron Nicholson was the top contributor off the bench with nine points.
 
Aaron Bachura led McPherson in scoring with 16 points, followed by Garrett Owen with 10 points. Owen led the Bulldogs with seven rebounds and six assists. McPherson shot 35.5 percent from the field.
 
FHSU returns to conference play next Thursday (Jan. 4) at Central Missouri. The game tips off at 7:30 pm in Warrensburg. FHSU currently sits at 3-1 in MIAA play.