By CONOR NICHOLL

cnicholl@dailynews.net

In head coach Mark Johnson's eyes, the 2009-10 Fort Hays State University men's basketball team constructed a 23-7 season and a top-25 ranking in NCAA Division II this winter through two facets. First, the team had plenty of talented players, including two all-Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association selections that helped the Tigers score 77.2 points per game, most in the program since 2003-04. Secondly, Fort Hays had plenty of high-character athletes.

"We have really good guys," Johnson said. "They get along well. They want to see each other succeed. They have been a great group to coach and you wish it was like this every year."

The Tigers, who climbed as high as No. 3 in the national polls, finished 14th in the country. They won an NCAA, Divison II tournament game for the second time in the nine-year Johnson era, first time since 2005-06. Fort Hays, with an eight-man rotation, was second in the MIAA with a 16-4 record, the best showing by any FHSU squad since the school switched conferences four years ago. Johnson earned conference co-coach of the year, while junior guard Dominique Jones finished with first team all-MIAA and second team all-South Central District. Junior Corbin Kuntzsch was second team all-conference. Senior forward Tim Peintner called this winter "by far" the most fun he has had in a single season.

"Just tells you the type of recruiting the coaches are doing," Peintner said. "They are getting guys in here with a lot of character. We have got a good record, the guys are fun to be around."

Offensively, the Tigers will return three of its top four scorers and 63.1 percent of its total offense. Jones, who led the Tigers with 13 points and 3.9 assists a contest, will be back, along with Kuntzsch, a three-year starter, who scored 12.5 points and led Fort Hays with 6.4 rebounds and 32.2 minutes played. In addition, Kuntzsch, known for his intelligence on the court, is a solid defensive player who held University of Central Oklahoma junior Dauntae Williams, a first team all-region player, under his season average in a first round NCAA tournament victory Friday.

"Corbin, he is a great all-around player for them," UCO head coach Terry Evans said. "He can rebound. He just fills the stat sheet for them. He is also a great defender. He pushed and shoved Dauntae to death (Friday) and kind of kept him out of his spot in the post. They did a good job. They were physical."

Junior forward Ken Bowman picked up 9.6 points per contest in his first year with the Tigers, while junior forward Dijon Smith, another transfer, added 8.7 points a game and shot 64.1 percent from the field, the highest average by a Tiger since Dennis Edwards shot 66.2 percent in 1994-95. Overall, Fort Hays, on pace to set a school record for 3-point percentage, finished at 39.8 percent, just outside the top-5 in school history.

At times, rebounding was a struggle for the Tigers. Fort Hays ranked sixth in the eight-team South Central Regional field in offensive rebounding percentage. They will lose two of their top five rebounders in Peintner and senior forward Ryan Herrman.

"That's something we kind of struggled with this year," Peintner said. "Last year, we were a lot better on the offensive glass."

Overall, though, Fort Hays enjoyed back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time in six years and had one of the best years in the nine-year Johnson era.

"Tremendous group," Johnson said. "We have some good players coming back and we are going to miss those seniors."