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No. 10 Tigers set to host No. 3 Mules
2/12/2010
By CONOR NICHOLL
cnicholl@dailynews.net
When Tim Peintner was a senior at Scott City Community High School, he had an opportunity to go to Gross Memorial Coliseum for several Fort Hays State University basketball games. That year, FHSU reached No. 1 in the nation and played in front of several large crowds, including a sellout versus rival University of Nebraska-Kearney.
Four years later, Peintner has seen an average of 3,000 to 3,500 fans per contest in his FHSU career. However, Saturday's home contest against University of Central Missouri is arguably the biggest home game of Peintner's tenure. After Thursday's win versus Truman State (Mo.) University, Peintner asked for a large crowd.
"Probably in my four years, this is one of the biggest games at home," he said. "I hope it gets sold out. I hope the crowd's loud. I hope it's crazy. That's one of the things you look for, especially coming here."
Central Missouri is 21-1 overall and 14-1 to lead the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. The Mules are ranked No. 3 in NCAA Division II and No. 2 in the South Central Regional poll. Fort Hays (19-3 overall, 13-2 MIAA), stands second in the conference, 10th in the nation and third in the South Central region. Game time is 2 p.m. for the women with the men's game at 4 p.m.
"Central has always been at the top," Peintner said. "Everybody has always been after them. They are one of the better programs steadily throughout the years, they are pretty consistent. It's a big game. I hope it's electric. I have the feeling it's going to be very electric. For my last year to go out, it's going to be a lot of fun."
A win keeps Fort Hays in the race for the conference championship; no FHSU squad in any sport has won an MIAA team title since the Tigers switched conferences four years ago. A Tiger loss drops Fort Hays two games behind Central Missouri with four games to play.
Central Missouri has senior forward Sanjay Watts, the conference's leading scorer at 21.9 points a contest, and senior Alex Moosmann, one of the nation's best point guards and the conference's leader in assist to turnover ratio.
"It is one of those games, on the defensive end, you have got to play at a high, high level," Tiger coach Mark Johnson said. "You can't have breakdowns. (Thursday night), we had breakdowns. ... Against a team like Central Missouri, you've got to have no breakdowns on the defensive end and I think offensively, we have to again execute at a higher rate than your everyday game."
On Jan. 4, Fort Hays gave Central Missouri its lone loss of the season, 81-71, ending the Mules' 27-game home winning streak. Central Missouri was then ranked No. 1 in the country and it marked the first time in school history a Tiger men's team had defeated the nation's top-ranked squad. Junior guard Dominique Jones had a then-career high 28 points and held Moosman to his worst game of the season (1-of-11 shooting, 4 points).
Since then, Central Missouri has rolled off nine straight victories. Saturday will mark the conference's lone team with a perfect home mark versus the MIAA's only squad with an undefeated road record.
"I think they are playing much better defense than the first time we played them," Johnson said. "We did a really good job on Moosmann, but at the same time, he is a really good shooter and he missed some shots that you probably can't count on him missing."
FHSU is 12-0 at home, while Central Missouri is 7-0 on the road. The Tigers, who were 6-4 in home MIAA contests last year, has won 13 straight at home.
"It's funny, at Gross, things just fall a certain way for you," Peintner said. 'There is a little mysteriousness to it here. It is a lot of fun playing here."
"We want to go undefeated at home," Johnson said.
This season, the Tigers have played in front of an average crowd of 2,500 fans, including a season-high of 4,189 versus University of Nebraska-Omaha on Jan. 27. FHSU has won home games by an average score of 82-57.
"Last year's team, I don't know how to explain it, we fed off being the underdogs on the road a little bit," Peintner said. "This year, we still do that. But this year, we like ... being at home. I will state this: The crowds have been great at home for all the games. I think maybe the turnout is even better this year than last year. The student section is electric this year. It wasn't like that last year."
"I don't know if we got some freshmen in or some transfers, but someone recruited some spirit this year," he added with a smile. "They are electric. They get it going. I think when you have the atmosphere, have that much electricity and making it that fun, everybody plays better."
| Scoreboard | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Sport | Date | Opponent | Score |
| 2/18 | SW Baptist | L 66-53 | |
| 12/1 | Oklahoma - Panhandle | L 66-60 (OT) | |