FHSU Athletics
Fort Hays State (18-9, 10-8 MIAA)
vs. Nebraska-Kearney (13-16, 6-12 MIAA)
Thursday, February 26 • 7:30 p.m.
Hays, Kan. • Gross Memorial Coliseum
Radio: KJLS (103.3) CLICK HERE TO LISTEN
Video: MIAA Network: CLICK HERE TO WATCH ($)
Game Sponsor: Nex-Tech
National Anthem: New Beginnings Preschool
Promotions: 50/50 Raffle / 2 Blanket Giveaways / Hays Regional Airport Drawing / Student-Loyalty Program Winners (Women's Game)
Fort Hays State will take on Nebraska-Kearney in the final game of the 2025-26 regular season on Thursday night at Gross Memorial Coliseum in Hays. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. FHSU enters at 18-9 overall and 10-8 in the MIAA, while the Lopers are 13-16 overall and 6-12 in the MIAA.
The Tigers are looking to elevate their position in the MIAA standings, hoping to grab a No. 4 through 6 seed in the MIAA Tournament next week in Kansas City. That depends on a Tiger win and results of other games around the MIAA this week, which will wrap up on Saturday. The No. 3 through 6 seeds play their first tournament game Friday (Mar. 6) and would have to win three games to win the tournament, while the No. 7 through 10 seeds have to play Wednesday (Mar. 4) and would have to win four games to win the tournament. Fort Hays State is the defending MIAA Tournament Champion and has already locked up a spot in the conference tournament, now its just a matter of what seed they get.
Fort Hays State also seeks to improve its status in the NCAA Regional Rankings, which have the Tigers ranked No. 8 going into the final week of the regular season. There are six schools from the MIAA currently among the Top 10 in the region rankings. Eight teams will compete in the Central Regional of the NCAA Tournament and three bids automatically go to conference tournament champions, leaving five at-large bids.
Nebraska-Kearney on the other hand is on the bubble for getting into the MIAA Tournament. The Lopers enter this game in 11th place in the MIAA standings, a half-game behind Northwest Missouri State and one-game ahead of Northeastern State and Emporia State. Those four teams are battling for the 10th and final spot in the MIAA Tournament this week. UNK has lost its last two games.
The Lopers claimed a tight one-point win over the Tigers in Kearney earlier this season by a score of 68-67. UNK has won the last two meetings with FHSU, both in Kearney, which is on the heels of FHSU winning eight-straight games in the series history. FHSU has eight-straight wins over UNK in Hays, which includes a 79-57 win last year.
Fort Hays State owns the sixth-best scoring defense in NCAA Division II, allowing 62.7 points per game. Virginia Union is the national leader at 59.8 per game. The Tigers rank seventh in 3-point field goal percentage defense, allowing just 28.5 percent shooting beyond the 3-point line. They are ninth in overall field goal percentage defense, allowing a 39.5 percent success rate.
Dan Mukuna leads the Tigers at 16.9 points and 7.4 rebounds per game. Kyle Grill follows at 13 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Jahvari Martino adds 11.6 points per game. Lucas Hammeke leads the Tigers in assists and steals, averaging 3.4 and 2.1 per game respectively.
The Lopers are led by Ja'Bryant Hill who averages 17.5 points and 4.9 assists per game. Kendrick Gilbert (13.1) and Anthony Swift (13.0) also average double figures in scoring.