Nebraska-Kearney (3-4, 0-2 MIAA) at
Fort Hays State (7-0, 2-0 MIAA)
Saturday, December 11 – 4 pm
Hays, Kan. – Gross Memorial Coliseum
 
Game Sponsor: Vyve Broadband
National Anthem: Trilogy
Promotions: Gold Rush - Wear your gold to the game!
Stuffed Animal Toss - Bring a stuffed animal or toy to donate for Toys for Tots and get a $5 general admission ticket. Stuffed animals will be tossed onto the court during halftime of the men's game.
Halftime Performance: Tiger Debs
 
Fort Hays State Men's Basketball returns to action at home on Saturday (Dec. 11) when it hosts Nebraska-Kearney in the first home conference contest of the season. Tipoff is set for 4 pm, which follows the women's contest at 2 pm. The Tigers enter at 7-0 overall and 2-0 in the MIAA, while the Lopers enter at 3-4 overall and 0-2 in the MIAA.
 
The Tigers are receiving votes in the latest NABC and D2SIDA Top 25 Polls. They are off to their best start to a season since 2013-14. The Tigers are looking for their first 8-0 start to a season since 2010-11, when they opened the season 9-0 and went on to win the MIAA Tournament Championship and made one of the seven appearances in the NCAA Tournament under head coach Mark Johnson.
 
Fort Hays State is coming off a 75-59 win over Avila back on Monday night. The Tigers have managed to win all but one of their games this season by 10 or more points. FHSU holds a scoring margin of +21.0 for the season, which ranks eighth in NCAA Division II.
 
The Tigers continue to lead NCAA Division II in scoring defense at 54.3 points allowed per game. FHSU has held all but one opponent under 60 points this season. The Tigers rank second nationally in field goal percentage defense and third nationally in 3-point field goal percentage defense. FHSU is allowing just a 36.2 percent shooting percentage overall and just a 25.2 percent success rate beyond the 3-point line.
 
Jared Vitztum leads the Tigers at 14.1 points and 10.6 rebounds per game. He leads the MIAA in rebounding and has three double-doubles to his credit this season. Kaleb Hammeke had a season-high 23 points in the win over Avila, upping his season scoring average to 13.1 per game. Nyjee Wright averages 12.1 points per game and leads the nation in assist/turnover ratio at +10.5. Both Wright and Hammeke are averaging 3.0 assists per game.
 
Nebraska-Kearney enters this contest on a three-game losing skid. The Lopers held leads at halftime in all three of their road losses last week, falling at Wayne State (Neb.), Emporia State, and Washburn. The Lopers have led at halftime in six of their seven contests this season. The Lopers have four players averaging double figures in scoring, led by David Simental at 15.3 points per game, and they lead the MIAA in field goal percentage overall (.499).