After playing at home for the entire month of December, the fifth-ranked Fort Hays State women's basketball team will head out on the road for the first time in 39 days Thursday (Jan. 3) when the Tigers travel to Warrensburg, Mo. to take on No. 15 Central Missouri. First tip between the Tigers and Jennies is set for 5:30 p.m. from the UCM Multipurpose Building.

In just its second true road game this season, Fort Hays State will look for revenge against Central Missouri after the Jennies ended FHSU's run in the regional semifinals last season, 66-59. The Jennies went on to win the national title, winning all five other postseason contests by 10 or more points.

The win gave UCM a 15-12 lead in the all-time series with Fort Hays State. The home team has dominated the series, with the Tigers winning just three of 11 games in Warrensburg (3-8) while winning eight of 10 in Hays (8-2). The Tigers are 10-10 against UCM under Hobson, including a 2-5 mark on the road. UCM has won two straight against FHSU, one shy of its longest winning streak in series history.

The Tigers rank first in Division II with just 9.8 turnovers per game while compiling a turnover margin of +11.7 so far this season, second-best in the country. they rank in the top 10 nationally in eight other categories, including assist/turnover ratio (1.55, second), blocked shots per game (5.5, eighth), fewest turnovers (108, third), free throw attempts (309, sixth), free throw makes (227, third), personal fouls per game (13.1, ninth), scoring margin (29.9, fourth) and win percentage (10 undefeated teams remaining).

A win Thursday would be Tony Hobson's 217th career victory at Fort Hays State University, tying him with Helen Miles for the most coaching wins as a Tiger in program history.

Fort Hays State is 35-36 in games played in Missouri under Hobson. This is the first Thursday contest for the Tigers this season. Fort Hays State is 35-14 on Thursdays under Hobson.

Tatyana Legette is averaging a double-double in league play through two MIAA contests this season, putting up 19.0 points and 11.5 rebounds per contest against No. 24 Emporia State and Nebraska-Kearney last month. Kacey Kennett has scored in double figures all three times she has laced them up against Central Missouri, averaging 14.7 ppg against the Jennies. After scoring in double figures just once in her first 39 games as a Tiger, Whitney Randall has scored 10 or more points in four consecutive contests, tied for the longest stretch of double-digit performances for any Tiger this season (Kennett).

The defending National Champions returned three All-MIAA performers, including the league player of the year and a first team All-American in leading scorer Paige Redmond. The Jennies are in the middle of the pack in the MIAA in scoring average this season, totaling 73.4 points per contest, while ranking second-to-last with 66.5 points against each night. UCM drills 9.2 three-pointers per game, ranking second in the conference. The UCM offense is very reliant on the five starters, with all five averaging at least 8.5 points per contest and the bench chipping in just 10.1 points each night. Redmond ranks in the top five in the MIAA in both scoring (16.1 ppg) and assists (4.0 apg), while both Morgan Fleming (15.0 ppg) and Megan Skaggs (14.4 ppg) also sit in the top 10 in the league in scoring.