By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
INDIANAPOLIS – Fort Hays State remained fifth in the final edition of the NCAA Central Region Rankings, released on Wednesday (March 6). The top five remained unchanged, while there was some movement in the No. 6 through No. 9 rankings.
No. 1 ranked Minnesota State has already punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament by winning the NSIC Tournament on Tuesday evening. The Mavericks have been No. 1 in each of the region ranking editions that assigned rankings to teams.
The shift in the rankings this week occurred below the Tigers in the rankings. Minot State dropped from No. 6 to No. 8 this week after falling in the quarterfinals of the NSIC Tournament. Southwest Minnesota State and Winona State moved up one spot each to No. 6 and No. 7 respectively after making the semifinals of the NSIC Tournament. Pittsburg State was introduced to the rankings for the first time this week, replacing Augustana at the No. 9 position. Southeastern Oklahoma State remained in the No. 10 position.
Fort Hays State remains in good shape, sitting at 22-6 overall. In the formula used for the NCAA Region Rankings, the Tigers are 19-6 overall since their three games against NAIA opponents are not factored in.
According to the report for the Central Region linked at the bottom of the region rankings page on NCAA.com, Fort Hays State has the sixth-best In-Region RPI and fifth in Division II Performance Indicator values in the Central Region. The Tigers have the sixth-best In-Region and Overall Division II record among the Central Region and rank 10th among the 41 teams in the Central Region in strength of schedule.
The Tigers are seeking their first appearance in the NCAA Tournament since the 2015-16 season after nearly missing an at-large selection each of the last two years when they won 23 and 21 games respectively.
Eight teams from the Central Region will be selected to compete in the Central Regional of the NCAA Tournament following the conclusion of conference tournaments. The region consists of teams from the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference, and Great American Conference. Champions from each of the three conference tournaments within the region will receive automatic bids to the NCAA Tournament.
The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) has six teams listed in the region rankings, while FHSU, Northwest Missouri State, and Pittsburg State represent the MIAA and Southeastern Oklahoma State represents the Great American Conference (GAC).
Below are the region rankings for March 6, 2024.
| Rank | School | Overall DII Record | In-Region Record |
| 1 | Minnesota State | 24-2 | 24-2 |
| 2 | Northwest Missouri State | 23-4 | 23-3 |
| 3 | MSU Moorhead | 24-5 | 24-5 |
| 4 | Minnesota Duluth | 24-5 | 24-5 |
| 5 | Fort Hays State (Kan.) | 19-6 | 19-6 |
| 6 | Southwest Minnesota State | 19-11 | 19-11 |
| 7 | Winona State (Minn.) | 20-9 | 20-9 |
| 8 | Minot State (N.D.) | 18-9 | 18-9 |
| 9 | Pittsburg State (Kan.) | 18-9 | 18-9 |
| 10 | Southeastern Oklahoma State | 20-8 | 19-8 |
Women’s rankings
The Fort Hays State women’s basketball team held steady in third in the latest release of the NCAA Division II Central Region rankings, released Wednesday (March 6) by the NCAA office.
The Tigers (22-6) finished the regular season with a quality win against Nebraska-Kearney, a team that was listed as under consideration in the first rankings release two weeks ago.
There wasn’t much movement in the rankings this week, with the exception of Northwest Missouri State’s road win over Missouri Southern lifting the Bearcats from eighth to sixth and Minnesota State Mankato dipping from sixth to eighth as a result.
The MIAA still has six teams in the top 10, including five in the top eight. The Great American Conference has three teams listed, with the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference only represented by one school.
Minnesota State won the NSIC Tournament on Tuesday, securing an automatic bid into the 2024 NCAA DII Central Regional and all but guaranteeing that just one NSIC school will be in the field of eight. That leaves seven spots remaining for schools from the MIAA and the GAC, including two automatic bids and five at-large selections.
The Tigers have six wins against regionally ranked opponents, including two against Pittsburg State and one each against Missouri Southern, Northwest Missouri State, Minnesota State and Colorado Mesa, who are ranked second in the South Central Region.
Fort Hays State ranks in the top five in three primary categories used in selection, including DII strength of schedule, performance indicator and in-region RPI.
Official selections for the Regional Championship will be announced Sunday evening (March 10) at 9:30 p.m. on NCAA.com.
The Tigers will open the postseason Friday (March 8) when they take on Central Missouri in the quarterfinals of the 2024 MIAA Championship, presented by Southern Bank. First tip is slated for 2:15 p.m. inside historic Municipal Auditorium in downtown Kansas City, Mo.
2024 NCAA DII Central Region Rankings – February 28
School Overall DII Record In-Region Record
1. Southern Nazarene 27-1 27-1
2. Missouri Western 22-4 21-3
3. Fort Hays State 20-6 20-6
4. Missouri Southern State 20-8 19-7
5. Harding 24-4 24-4
6. Northwest Missouri State 21-6 21-6
7. Pittsburg State 20-7 20-7
8. Minnesota State Mankato 24-5 22-4
9. Central Missouri 20-7 18-7
10. Northwestern Oklahoma State 20-6 18-6