By RAEGAN NEUFELD
Tiger Media Network
Offense and defense clicked together in just the right way for Fort Hays State on Saturday, leading the Tigers to a 67-62 victory over Emporia State.
The Tigers started hot offensively and led for much of the first half – leading by as many as nine points – but the Hornets pushed back and chipped away at the deficit until they eventually took a one-point lead at halftime, 36-35.
“We were giving them too many offensive rebounds and weren’t getting enough stops in the first half,” junior Kaleb Hammeke said. “What works for us every night is our defense, so we knew we had to step that up. Once we got that going and once we got some stops, we knocked down some shots.”
FHSU (15-4, 10-3) held the Hornets to just 26 points in the second half while still producing the points they needed on the offensive end. They stole the ball seven times and scored 11 points off turnovers. Then, up 65-62 with just over 30 seconds to go, the Tigers needed one last defensive stop.
They got what they needed. ESU (13-8, 6-7) was unable to find anything and turned the ball over when Bjarni Jonsson snagged his seventh steal, good for a career high. He was then fouled and made both free throws in a one-and-one situation to seal the game.
“Basketball is about runs,” senior Elijah Nnanabu said. “You might miss a couple, they might make a couple, but it’s all about how you respond and the next play. Are you going to be down on yourself? Or know that you could get back on the other side on the run? That’s what we did. We just kept our head down and kept working. That’s what we do.”
Nnanabu led the Tigers in scoring for the second game in a row with 16 points, as well as pulling down a game-high 10 rebounds.
“It’s just about confidence,” Nnanabu said of his shooting. “Some injuries have set me back but I’m definitely feeling good. It’s definitely looking good for us and every game gets more important so we definitely have to be locked in from now on.”
Hammeke finished with 15 points and seven rebounds, while Jonsson tallied nine points and his game-high seven steals.
As a team, the Tigers shot 41.8% overall, 35.7% from 3-point range and made 80% of their free throws. ESU also shot 35.7% from beyond the arc, shot 48.1% overall but only made 53.8% of their free throws.
The Hornets were led by Alijah Comithier, who also led all scorers with 21 points. Ativan Butler and Owen Long also finished in double figures with 12 each.
“Obviously, Emporia is a very talented team,” FHSU Head Coach Mark Johnson said. “They’re offensively gifted. I’m really proud of how we finished the last five minutes. Our guys showed great toughness and got the stops we needed.”
The Tigers’ defense has always done what it needed to do. After Saturday, and their 71-58 win against Washburn University on Thursday, it seems that the offense is getting to where they need it to be.
“You know, basketball is not complicated,” Johnson said. “If the ball goes in, it makes you look like you’re running better offense. If you miss, it looks like you’re running bad offense. I feel like we’re starting to make some of the shots we were missing earlier and hopefully that continues.”
FHSU is on the road next week to play Missouri Western and Northwest Missouri. They return to Gross Memorial Coliseum on Feb. 8 to take on Newman at 7:30 p.m.
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