Fort Hays State (9-2, 9-2 MIAA) at
Nebraska-Kearney (12-0, 12-0 MIAA)
Thursday, January 28 • 5:30 p.m.
Kearney, Nebraska • UNK Health & Sports Center
Radio: KJLS (103.3-FM)
LISTEN LIVE
After snow pushed back an already postponed game two more days, the Fort Hays State women's basketball team will play fourth-ranked Nebraska-Kearney twice in three days beginning Thursday. Tipoff in the women's only contest is set for 5:30 p.m. inside the UNK Health & Sports Center.
Thursday's game was initially scheduled for December 5 but was postponed due to COVID-19 protocol. The teams will play their regularly-scheduled contest in Hays on Saturday with the doubleheader set to begin at 2 p.m.
Tickets are available for purchase via the following link. The Health & Sports Center will be limited to 25 percent capacity. Ticket sales will only be available in advance, no tickets will be available at the gate.
This is the 95th meeting all-time between the Tigers and Lopers. Fort Hays State holds a 56-38 in the series, while the Lopers hold a slim 24-22 edge in games played in Kearney. The Tigers have played and defeated UNK more than any other program, including wins in 17 of the last 20 meetings. The teams have split the last six meetings 3-3, with the Lopers riding a two-game winning streak in the series. FHSU is 17-4 against the Lopers under head coach Tony Hobson and 9-1 in games played in Kearney.
The Tigers last played the same team in back-to-back games during the 2014-15 season when they wrapped up the regular season at Northeastern State before battling the RiverHawks in the quarterfinals of the MIAA Championship Tournament. The Tigers won both of those contests.
The Tigers have not played the same team in back-to-back regular season contests since the 1992-93 season. FHSU played Washburn on November 21 and 27, 1992 as well as playing Wayne State in consecutive games on January 9 and January 16, 1993.
Fort Hays State leads the MIAA in scoring (75.8 ppg), shooting percentage (45.7 percent) and shooting from behind the arc (36.4 percent), while the Lopers lead the country and are among the best in the nation on defense. The Lopers are holding opponents to an average of 48.3 points per game, fourth-best in Division II. Their defense has allowed a 32.0 shooting percentage and a 20.8 percent effort from behind the arc, eighth-best and third-best in the country, respectively.
The Tigers are coming off a historical shooting performance after hitting 62.1 percent from the floor Saturday at Pittsburg State. It was their best shooting effort in an MIAA game since joining the league in 2006 and the third-best shooting game in the Hobson era.
Seniors Jaden Hobbs and Whitney Randall have both scored in double figures in 10 out of 11 games so far this season. Hobbs leads the team with an average of 17.1 points per game, including an average of 19.5 points per game on the road. Randall scores 15.7 points per game, giving the Tigers two of the top eight scorers in the league.
After dishing out 12 assists alongside 26 points Saturday at Pittsburg State, Hobbs raised her season average to 5.7 assists per game, on pace to eclipse the program record of 5.4 assists per game set by Maisha Prewitt in the 1998-99 season.
The Tigers are 12-3 when playing in coach Hobson's home state of Nebraska since he took over in 2008, including an 11-1 mark in Kearney.
Nebraska-Kearney is 12-0 and ranked No. 4 in the country thanks to one of the top defenses in the nation. Reigning MIAA Athlete of the Week Elisa Backes leads the Lopers with 10.4 points per game, with Klaire Kirsch grabbing an average of 9.6 rebounds per contest.