By MAYAN PAZ
Tiger Media Network
With a spot already guaranteed in the MIAA tournament in Kansas City, the FHSU men’s basketball team is looking to improve its position ahead of the tournament and finish the regular season strong with a win. The Tigers (18-9, 10-8) are currently sitting 6th in the conference and a loss against could possibly lead to falling to 8th place, whereas a win can bump the Tigers to 5th, depending on other results around the league.
The Tigers struggled against the MIAA 10th-ranked Lopers (13-16, 6-12) earlier this season on the road, losing 68-67. As the Tigers allow only 62.7 points per game, they will need to stop a smaller team looking to push the pace. UNK scores 78.2 points per game.
FHSU head coach Mark Johnson said defensive aggression is one of the main keys for the Tigers ahead of this matchup. Even though the Lopers are in the bottom half of the MIAA, they are still a significant challenge.
“These teams wouldn’t be at the bottom of the standings in other leagues. Kearney can really score because they spread you out. They’re a little bit undersized, and they really make it hard for us to guard,” Johnson said. “They scored as well as anybody we play in our conference, [and] it’ll be a really challenging game. We need to jump on them early and hopefully get good ball movement and make some shots.”
Last weekend, the Tigers dropped a close contest at MSSU 64-60, but bounced back with a road win against Pittsburg State. Lucas Hammeke, who’s averaging 9 points per game this season, exceeded his averages in the win against Pitt, contributing 11 points and 7 rebounds. Together with Dan Mukuna’s 14 points and Jahvari Martino’s 12 points, Hammeke was one of the main reasons the Tigers were able to win.
“We played well against both teams, we just didn’t rebound well enough against Southern to close things out and get the win,” Hammeke said. “But it’s tough to win on the road. Our conference is good too, so it was going to be difficult, but we got one of them, and now we have to play one more at home.”
Hammeke said that winning their final home game is important.
“We have to end on a win at home,” he said. “You’ve got to win every game at home, but for the last one, we need to go out with a win. So give everything you’ve got.”
Hammeke also spoke about the specific preparation for the Lopers, addressing their fast-paced game and the need for the Tigers to slow the Lopers’ offense as much as possible and draw them to a half-court positioning game.
“Just don’t let them get out and transition, because they like to play fast,” he said. “If we can get back and they have to play against our half-court defense the entire game, we should be able to throw them down.”
As this will be the Tigers’ final home game of the season, the seniors will say their final goodbyes to the Coliseum and the home fans. Hammeke stressed that this will be an important feature of the game tonight, ensuring the seniors leave the Coliseum for the final time with a victory.
“We want them to go out on a good note,” he said. “Obviously, we all want to win the game. Everyone wants to win. You want to win at home. But especially for them, their last time playing in the Colosseum, we want to get the win.”
The Tigers will host the Lopers tonight to close out the regular season upon the conclusion of the women’s game in the Gross Memorial Coliseum.