FHSU Athletics
HAYS, Kan. – Fort Hays State had a golden opportunity to hand the No. 1 team in the nation its first loss of the season, but it was not to be as Washburn rallied in the final minute of regulation to force overtime. The Ichabods did enough to get past the Tigers in the extra period by a score of 81-73. Washburn moved to 21-0 overall and 11-0 in the MIAA, while the Tigers moved to 15-5 overall and 7-4 in the MIAA.
Much like the game in Topeka, free throws were a decisive factor in the game. The Tigers had their opportunity to close out the Ichabods with 13 seconds remaining, but a pair of misses at the free throw line left the door open. In a scramble to get a shot off, Dillon Claussen was fouled with 0.9 seconds remaining and buried a pair of charity tosses in front of a fever pitch crowd to force overtime. The Tigers nearly won the game as Muhamed Kante's 3-quarter court shot was just a bit deep, online off the backboard, but with just a little too much on it to go in.
After shooting 20 free throws in the first half, the Ichabods finished with 39 attempts in the game. The Tigers shot 30 free tosses. Washburn outscored FHSU 28-21 at the line.
Washburn held the lead for the majority of the first half. The Ichabods led by as many as 10 with 1:34 to go before the break. They eventually took an eight-point, 36-28 lead into halftime.
Down 10 with 16 minutes to go in regulation, the Tigers dug their claws in defensively to trigger an 11-0 run over about a three-minute span that put them in the lead for the first time since the 10:57 mark of the first half. A Kyle Grill fast-break dunk, the second basket in the run, electrified the crowd of over 3,000 and fueled the Tiger push. Jahvari Martino put the Tigers on top 46-45 with a 3-point field goal at the top of the key.
After a bucket by Washburn to go back up by one, the Tigers continued their hot run and used a 9-0 burst to lead by eight, capped on a 3-pointer by Juju Ramirez with 5:41 to go. It was part of a 20-2 run overall by the Tigers to go from 10 down to eight up. FHSU led by eight one more time on a corner 3-point field goal by Dan Mukuna. The Tigers then led by seven with 1:23 to go, but a Brady Christiansen 3-point field goal kept Washburn alive and within striking distance late. A key turnover and fast-break bucket by Washburn really tightened the game in the final 30 seconds, and the Ichabods went on to find a way to get the game level.
Fort Hays State briefly held the lead early in overtime and kept getting within one point of Washburn all the way until a Jack Bachelor 3-point field goal with 39 seconds remaining. It was too much for the Tigers to overcome as the Ichabods survived to keep their unblemished record intact.
Mukuna led the Tigers with 19 points, while Grill added 13 and Martino had 11. Mukuna pulled down nine rebounds and was a perfect 8-of-8 at the free-throw line. Lucas Hammeke dished out five assists, while Kante had four and Grill had three. With the 69 total free throws shot between both teams in the game, FHSU had three players foul out, while WU had one foul out.
Christiansen led the Ichabods with 18 points, while Bachelor had 17, Bryson Smith had 16, and Jeremiah Jones had 14. Jones finished with a double-double, matching his scoring total in rebounds with 14.
Fort Hays State is the only team to hold Washburn under 40 percent shooting from the field this season, and its done it twice now despite the pair losses. The Ichabods came into the game as the national leader in field goal percentage.
The Tigers look to bounce back on Saturday (Jan. 31) as they now find themselves in a cluster of teams battling for second in the MIAA standings. They host Central Missouri (16-7, 7-4 MIAA), a team currently tied with FHSU in the standings, at 4 p.m. inside of Gross Memorial Coliseum.