FHSU Athletics
HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State moved to 8-3 overall with an 80-62 win over Regis University on Sunday at Gross Memorial Coliseum. The Tigers pulled away in the second half after leading by four at halftime. Regis dropped to 5-7 overall for the season.
A 24-point performance led the Tigers for the second-straight game, this time by Kaleb Hammeke. It was a new season high for him and the first time he reached the 20-point mark in a game this season. He added a team-high seven assists, while going 7-of-12 from the field and hitting five of his seven 3-point attempts. He was 5-of-6 at the free-throw line.
The first half was closely contested with eight lead changes and seven ties. The largest lead for either team was four points. A 6-2 burst by the Tigers in the final three minutes of the half put them on top 35-31 at the half.
A 10-2 run by the Tigers over about a two-minute span pushed the lead into double figures for the first time. Hammeke capped the run with a 3-point play at the 13:06 mark. A little later, a 7-0 run by the Tigers moved the lead from 11 to 18 with 8:47 remaining. FHSU reached its largest lead of 19 points twice inside the final four minutes before the final margin ended at 18. FHSU outscored Regis 45-31 in the second half.
Hammeke led four Tigers in double figures scoring. Shaun Riley had 15 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Kyle Grill scored all 13 of his points in the second half. Muhomed Kante provided the Tigers with a season-high 12 points off the bench, while Dan Makuna chipped in eight.
FHSU shot 50 percent overall from the field and 42.1 percent beyond the 3-point line. The Tigers were 80 percent at the free-throw line (12-of-15).
Chase Mayo Harmon led the Rangers with 22 points, while Eddy Egun also reached double figures with 10 points. FHSU held RU to just 42.9 percent shooting overall and just 33.3 percent beyond the 3-point line.
This is the fourth-straight season the Tigers recorded at least eight wins before the holiday break. FHSU will resume action on January 2 at Northwest Missouri State. The rest of the season will consist of conference games with 17 contests to go in MIAA play. FHSU's next home action will be on January 7.