HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State Men's Basketball won its second-straight home contest on Thursday evening (Feb. 4) by edging Newman 69-64 at Gross Memorial Coliseum. The Tigers picked up the regular season sweep of the Jets and moved to 6-8 on the season. Newman dropped to 2-12.
 
Neither team led by more than six points the entire game. There were 11 ties and 11 lead changes throughout. Newman held its biggest lead by five points with 9:24 to go in the game, while FHSU held its biggest lead by six points with 16:13 remaining in the game. FHSU held a tight 37-36 advantage at halftime.
 
Newman held a slim two-point lead with five and half minutes remaining in the game, but a 3-point play by Jared Vitztum put the Tigers in front for good. The Tigers held a five-point lead three times the rest of the way, which turned out to be the final margin. Newman pulled back within two of the Tigers on a 3-point play with 25 seconds remaining, but Kaleb Hammeke put the game on ice by making two free throws five seconds later.
 
Vitztum finished with a team-best 25 points and 12 rebounds for his NCAA Division II-leading eighth double-double of the season. Alvin Thompson added 13 points and a team-high five assists. Gilbert Peters also reached double figures in scoring with 10.
 
Ian Lee was the top scorer for the Jets with 18 points. He did the majority of his damage in the first half with 16. Joel Boyce and Tyjil Hereford also reached double figures in scoring with 11 each, while Boyce led the Jets in rebounding with eight and Hereford led in assists with five.
 
The Tigers look to finish their current three-game homestand unblemished when they host Central Oklahoma on Saturday at 2 pm. The men will be playing their game before the women as a courtesy to Central Oklahoma, which plays a make-up game on Sunday afternoon at Missouri Western.