No. 5/6 Fort Hays State (26-3, 19-3 MIAA) vs.
Nebraska-Kearney (23-6, 17-5 MIAA)
Saturday, March 5 • 2:15 p.m.
Kansas City, Mo. • Municipal Auditorium
2022 MIAA Basketball Championship
presented by Citizen's Bank & Trust
Semifinals
Radio: KJLS (103.3-FM)
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The Fort Hays State women's basketball team, ranked fifth in the nation and first in the central region, will take on long-time rival Nebraska-Kearney in the semifinal round of the 2022 MIAA Basketball Championship presented by Citizen's Bank & Trust on Saturday (March 5). First tip between the No. 2 seed Tigers and the No. 3 seed Lopers is set for 2:15 p.m. inside historic Municipal Auditorium in downtown Kansas City, Mo.
This is the 100th all-time meeting between the Tigers and Lopers, and just the third to be played on a neutral floor. Fort Hays State leads the series handily, 59-40, but the Tigers hold a narrow 6-5 lead over the last 11 meetings.
Fort Hays State is playing in the semifinals for the fifth time in a row, the longest active streak in the MIAA. This is also the Tigers' ninth trip to the semifinal round over the last 10 tournaments, two more than any other school during that span (ESU 7, UCM 6, WU 3, PSU 3, LWU 3, UNK 3, MWSU 3, MSSU 1, UCO 1, SBU 1).
The Tigers and Lopers have met in the tournament twice, but never in Kansas City. The Lopers defeated FHSU in the finals last year in Gross Memorial Coliseum, while the Tigers ended UNK's season in the 2014 opening round.
Fort Hays State is now 23-16 in the month of March under head coach Tony Hobson and 57-41 in games played in the state of Missouri during the Hobson era. The Tigers are 1-0 as the No. 2 seed and 1-2 when playing the No. 3 seed.
Fort Hays State moved on to the semifinals with a hard-fought 71-63 win over Central Oklahoma, while the Lopers held on to beat Northwest Missouri State 52-47 in the quarterfinals on Friday.
The winner of Saturday's contest will move on to face off with either Missouri Southern or Missouri Western in the championship game Sunday afternoon at 1 p.m.