By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
TOPEKA, Kan. – Fort Hays State held a seven-point advantage with six minutes remaining, but a rash of turnovers helped trigger a 20-6 run by Washburn that resulted in a loss for FHSU on Saturday (Jan. 19). The Ichabods escaped by a score of 80-73, remaining perfect on their home floor for the season. Washburn improved to 13-3 overall, 6-1 in the MIAA, while FHSU moved to 12-5 overall, 6-2 in the MIAA.
Both teams shot the ball well in the first half, Washburn at 63 percent and FHSU at a 50 percent clip. Washburn took a 38-34 lead into halftime.
The second half turned into a game of runs. Washburn pushed their four-point halftime lead to 12 with a 10-2 run in the first four minutes of the second half. However, Marcus Cooper went on a tear for FHSU scoring 13 points in an 18-5 run by the Tigers to take the lead, 54-53, with 11:05 remaining. After a free throw by Washburn tied the game, FHSU went on a 9-2 run to build a lead of 63-56 with 7:25 remaining. FHSU pushed the lead to seven two more times with the latest occurrence at 6:19 on the clock. The Tigers had a chance at pushing their lead to double figures, but a three-point attempt fell off the mark. After that, Washburn made its final push after seeing a 12-point lead turn into a seven-point deficit over nearly 10 minutes of action.
Poor ball security was a big reason in the comeback for the Ichabods. The Tigers turned the ball over four times in the final six minutes of the game, after having just five overall in the first 34 minutes. A turnover with just under five minutes on the clock turned into a two-point bucket for the Ichabods to whittle the lead down to four. Following an old-fashioned three-point play by David Salach of Washburn to cut the lead to one, the final turnover of the four ultimately gave the Ichabods the lead back, 68-67, on a layup by Javion Blake at the 3:10 mark. The rash of turnovers gave the Ichabods new life and they closed the game a perfect 3-of-3 from the field and 6-of-7 at the free-throw line over the final three minutes to keep the Tigers from forming a second comeback burst.
Washburn shot the ball well throughout the contest, hitting 55.8 percent of its attempts from the field. FHSU shot 43.9 percent from the field, but four more two-point makes from the field overall were the difference in the score. FHSU shot well at the free-throw line, canning 18-of-21 attempts, while Washburn almost matched it at 17-of-22.
Marcus Cooper and Brady Werth led the Tigers in scoring. Cooper had a team-high 21 points, with almost all of the damage after halftime with 19 second-half points. Werth was steady, chipping in 10 points each half for 20 overall. Nyjee Wright was a spark off the bench for FHSU, hitting 4-of-5 field goals and 2-of-3 free throws for 11 points.
David Salach produced a new career high of 24 points in the win for the Ichabods, hitting 9-of-14 field goal attempts and 5-of-5 free throws. Blake finished with 19 points and Will McKee added 13.
After a 1-1 road swing this week, the Tigers dropped back into a tie for third place in the MIAA. They return home on Thursday (Jan. 24) to take on Missouri Western. Game time is set for 7:30 pm at Gross Memorial Coliseum.