MARSHALL, Minn. – Fort Hays State fell in its season opener on Friday (Nov. 9) by a score of 89-70 to the University of Sioux Falls in the MIAA/NSIC Challenge. The Tigers started out the shooting the ball well, but a dry spell late in the first half led to a 21-point deficit at halftime.
The Tigers led three times early on in the game, shooting over 80 percent from the field in the first five minutes. The last lead for FHSU occurred at the 14:18 mark when a Devin Davis jumper put the Tigers up 16-15. Marcus Cooper hit a 3-point field goal at the 8:25 mark of the first half to pull the Tigers within six at 27-21, but the Cougars went on a 17-2 run to close out the half and take a 44-23 lead at halftime. The Tigers went nearly six minutes without points until Davis ended the drought at the 2:46 mark with a two-point jumper. FHSU cooled to just 33.3 percent shooting from the field in the first half after the hot start.
The Tigers never pulled closer than 17 points in the second half. Sioux Falls enjoyed its largest lead of the game at the 7:46 mark of the second half, a 28-point margin. Sioux Falls finished the game at 58.9 percent shooting from the field, while FHSU shot just 44.6 percent for the game.
Aaron Nicholson and Jared Vitztum tied with high-point honors for the Tigers, each with 11. The pair combined for five of the team’s eight 3-point field goals in the game, Nicholson with three and Vitztum with two. Cooper also reached double figures with 10 points. Davis and Nyjee Wright each had nine points. Freddy Bitondo led the Tigers in rebounds with seven.
For the second straight year, Drew Guebert scored over 30 points against the Tigers, this time with a game-high 33. He was 12-of-18 from the field, hitting four 3-point field goals, and went 5-of-6 at the free-throw line. Two other Cougars reached double figures in scoring, Justin Taylor with 16 and Trevon Evans with 15. Guebert had a team-high seven rebounds. The Cougars outrebounded the Tigers by 14, 36-22.
The Tigers return to the floor on Saturday afternoon (Nov. 10) against No. 20 ranked Southwest Minnesota State at 4 pm.