FHSU Athletics
HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State took its first home loss of the season on Thursday night by a score of 67-63 to Pittsburg State. The No. 14/25 ranked Tigers moved to 20-6 overall and 15-5 in the MIAA with the loss, while the Gorillas improved to 16-9 overall and 12-7 in the MIAA.
On a tough night offensively, the Tigers fought an uphill battle all game and inched their way into the lead briefly in the second half before having to chip away again late to have a chance. FHSU had a possession to potentially tie or take the lead in the final seconds, but missed and Pitt State secured its win with a pair of free throws.
The Tigers led only one time in the first half when Bjarni Jonsson hit a 3-point shot, making the score 5-4. The Gorillas followed that with a 9-0 run to take an eight-point lead and the uphill battle had begun. The Gorillas led by as many as 14 in the first half before taking a nine-point lead into the locker room. Pitt State was hot from the field in the first half, hitting 56 percent from the field, while FHSU struggled to just 31.3 percent.
Out of halftime, Pitt State's lead reached 10 twice before the Tigers made their first surge of the second half. The Tigers turned up the defensive pressure and went on a 12-0 run to take a 44-42 lead with 13 minutes to play. However, the Gorillas turned out lucky when the Tigers poked the ball free once more and what looked like the run possibly continuing turned into a scrambling 3-point field goal that the Gorillas hit to take the lead once more. That started a 9-0 run for the Gorillas to put them back up seven with just over 10 minutes to play.
The Tigers trimmed the lead back to three twice before the Gorillas got their lead back to nine with 1:10 to play. A frantic defensive scramble in the final minute allowed the Tigers to have a chance. R.J. Crawford made a layup just inside a minute to trim the lead to seven, the Tigers got a steal and Elijah Nnanabu hit a 3-pointer to make it four with 47 seconds to play. The Tigers created another steal and eventually Kaleb Hammeke got fouled with 17 seconds and hit two free throws to make it a two-point game. Pitt State fumbled the ball away once again on a fast-break opportunity, giving the Tigers a chance with 10 seconds to go. Unfortunately, the Tigers struggled to get a play ran correctly out of a timeout and missed a frantic shot with a second remaining. The Gorillas sealed the game with a pair of free throws.
FHSU had three players reach double figures in scoring, led by Elijah Nnanabu with 15. Jonsson and Traejon Davis each had 10. Nnanabu led the Tigers in rebounds with eight, followed by Jonsson with seven. Kaleb Hammeke dished out a team-high five assists. FHSU finished at just 33.9 percent shooting from the field, it's lowest percentage of the season.
R.J. Forney led four Gorillas in double figures with 17 points. Max Alexander had 16, Jeramy Shaw had 13, and Deshaun English II had a double-double of 11 points and 10 rebounds. Pitt State hit 11 3-point field goals in the game. In all four games the Tigers have surrendered 10 or more 3-point field goals this season, the have lost.
Fort Hays State looks to rebound on Saturday when it plays host to Missouri Southern at 4 p.m.