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Upset special: Tigers win in Warrensburg
1/5/2010
By CONOR NICHOLL
cnicholl@dailynews.net
WARRENSBURG, Mo. -- Junior guard Dominique Jones heard the scouting report from the Fort Hays State University coaches. University of Central Missouri, undefeated and ranked No. 1 in NCAA Division II, had two All-American candidates, including senior point guard Alex Moosmann. Jones, in his first year with the Tigers, wanted to prove himself against the nation's best.
"Not a lot of people know about me yet," Jones said. "It's that time of the season to put yourself on that pedestal, to put the team on that pedestal."
Jones delivered a career-high 28 points as Fort Hays defeated top-ranked Central Missouri 81-71 on Monday night at the UCM Multipurpose Building. Tiger coach Mark Johnson labeled Jones' performance "unbelievable," as FHSU beat the nation's No. 1 team for the first time in school history. In 2003-04, the Tigers lost to Metropolitan State College of Denver 97-82, the only other time FHSU had faced a No. 1 team while a member of the NCAA.
"This is a big game for us, this is a big game for me," Jones said.
Fort Hays came back from two double-digit deficits, including a 10-point margin with 121âÑ2 left. The Tigers won at Central Missouri for the first time in school history.
In addition, Fort Hays ended the Mules' 27-game home-court winning streak, third-longest in the nation. FHSU took over first place in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association with a 12-1 record, 6-0 in conference play. Central Missouri dropped to 12-1, 5-1.
"You don't get a chance to do that very often," Johnson said. "We feel great about it, but at the same time you don't want to get too high because we don't feel like this was an upset. I think our guys felt like we could come in and win the game. We showed a tremendous effort."
Jones, a junior college transfer from New York's Fashion Institute of Technology, finished 10-of-15 from the field, 3-of-3 from beyond the arc and 5-of-5 from the free-throw line.
He had 16 points at intermission and finished with more than 20 points for the second time in three games. He tied his career high with seven assists and five rebounds.
"He is very skilled," Johnson said. "He can shoot the ball. He can handle the ball. He is a good passer. He is very deceiving. He is only (5-9) and I wouldn't categorize him as super-quick. He is just quick enough. The game is just natural for him. He knows how to get angles and beat guys and make plays. The first half, he made shots. The second half, he made some, but he made some great passes."
The Tigers, who played their second straight game without senior all-conference forward Tim Peintner (ankle injury), had four players in double figures, including 16 points from junior forward Ken Bowman, 14 by senior guard Willie Hassell and 13 from junior guard Corbin Kuntzsch. Hassell hit two critical second-half 3s, including one to tie the game at 55. Later, he stole a pass at midcourt and converted a layup.
"I call him (Willie) instant offense, because any time he gets on the floor, he can light it up," Bowman said.
Bowman collected two second-half dunks off Jones' passes, including one that gave FHSU a 72-67 lead with three minutes left.
"Oh man, I think that was everything, that was the real turning point of the second half for us, honestly," Bowman said. "That got us hyped and let us know that we could pretty much win the game from there."
Entering the contest, Fort Hays didn't feel overwhelmed by Central Missouri's success or home court. FHSU had already played road games at University of Kansas and Kansas State University, venues with more than 12,000 fans.
"When you play in front of 16,000 and 12,000, you get a crowd that is not on your side," Bowman said. "We know how to play against top teams like that, so it is a real big boost for us."
"There is no reason to come in here and be scared," Johnson said. "We have been in the big games this year."
Central Missouri took a 34-33 halftime lead as senior forward Sanjay Watts, the second UCM All-American candidate, scored 17 points. Jones, perpetually guarded by Moosmann, had 16 at the break. He scored in a variety of ways, including a 3-pointer, a reverse layup off a steal, and a layup over Moosmann. Before the contest, Johnson said Moosmann, among the nation's leaders in several statistical categories, "might be the best point guard in the country."
"Just have fun," Jones said. "A lot of players don't like to have fun when they are playing, but I have fun when I am playing. As long as I am having fun when I am playing, the shots are going to come easy. I don't like to think too much about the shots and what I take and that's been a big thing the last couple of games."
In the first 71âÑ2 minutes after intermission, Johnson picked up a technical foul and Central Missouri extended its lead to 53-43. Then, the Tigers went on a 15-2 run.
"I felt like we needed a jolt," Johnson said. "To be quite honest, I think Willie Hassell hitting a couple of 3s in that stretch probably kick-started us and led us on to victory."
Defensively, Bowman, junior forward Dijon Smith and senior forward Ryan Herrman held Watts (team-high 23) to six second-half points.
'Second half, I thought they did a good job of coming over and doubling him," Central Missouri coach Kim Anderson said.
Jones finished his night with a 3-pointer that broke a 55-55 tie at the 8:20 mark. He added another basket where he drove past Moosmann and made an up-and-under layup. Jones picked up three assists for dunks and sank two late free throws that provided the final margin.
"(Moosmann), that's the best we got," Anderson said. "We just felt like that was our best chance. We zoned a little bit. That works for a while, but for a while, it didn't work as good as it should. You slow down his penetration, but then they start making outside shots."
The Tigers will return home Saturday against 11th-ranked Southwest Baptist (Mo.) University, which is 13-2 overall, 4-1 in conference. Game time is set for 4 p.m. at Gross Memorial Coliseum.
| Scoreboard | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport | Date | Opponent | Score |
| 2/18 | SW Baptist | L 66-53 | |
| 12/1 | Oklahoma - Panhandle | L 66-60 (OT) | |