FHSU Men Hold Steady at No. 4 in Region Rankings

FHSU Sports Information Department

INDIANAPOLIS – With a pair of big wins at home, Fort Hays State remained No. 4 in the second release of the NCAA Central Region Rankings on Wednesday (Feb. 24). The Tigers remained on top of a cluster of teams battling for the final five spots in the Central Regional of the NCAA Tournament.

The Tigers hit the road for their final week of regular season play with games in Oklahoma at Northeastern State (Thursday) and Central Oklahoma (Saturday). The No. 1 through No. 3 ranked teams are in solid standing while there is plenty of volatility to the final seven teams ranked in the region. Augustana (S.D.) leads the way in the region, while Northwest Missouri State moved up to No. 2 this week from No. 3 last week, showing the strength of the MIAA as a conference.

Lindenwood, which lost twice last week, dropped all the way from No. 6 to No. 10 in the region. Nebraska-Kearney moved up to No. 6 this week and Pittsburg State is now inside the top eight at No. 8. East Central is the only team from the Great American Conference in the rankings at No. 7. The NSIC has three teams inside the top eight – Augustana, Minnesota State-Moorhead (No. 3), and Minnesota State-Mankato (No. 5).

The Tigers have a lot to play for this week, sitting alone in fourth place in the MIAA standings. If FHSU wins both games on the road, it will lock up a bye in the MIAA Tournament and advance to Kansas City without having to play in the opening round on Tuesday. Anything other than that and the Tigers will likely find themselves in a tie-breaking scenario for which seed they receive. Mathematically, the Tigers are clear of ninth place in the standings, but the top eight teams are all still alive for a first round bye heading into games on Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday.

Below are the NCAA Central Region Rankings for February 24, 2016.