No. 13 Tigers win sixth straight
By NICK McQUEEN
After a 12-day layoff, Fort Hays State University junior guard Dominique Jones and the rest of the Tigers knew they might be a little sluggish.
It showed, but only a bit in Wednesday's Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association game with I-70 rival Washburn at Gross Memorial Coliseum, and not until a short dry spell in the second half.
It allowed the Ichabods to stick around, but Jones put a quick end to that, leading the No. 13 ranked Tigers to their sixth straight victory, 68-55,to remain unbeaten in MIAA play.
"We wanted to take care of business and get stuff done, especially after the break we had," said Jones, who scored a season-best 21 points, hitting four second-half 3-pointers.
"Everyone was a little rusty, first game back," he added.
On paper, the Tigers (10-1, 4-0 MIAA) outplayed the Ichabods (7-5, 1-4), but never could mount a comfortable lead, despite shooting better than 50 percent from the floor for the game, notching an 8-rebound advantage on the boards, and turning the ball over just 12 times (five in the first half).
"In the first half, we shot almost 54 percent, they shot 37 percent and we only had five turnovers," said Tiger coach Mark Johnson, who moved to 7-2 against Washburn in his 9-year tenure. "We felt like we should have been up bigger, because we played pretty well."
Washburn junior guard/forward De'Andre Washington, who Johnson called the most difficult matchup in the MIAA, provided some problems early for Fort Hays. Washington scored 14 of his team-high 18 points in the first half, but the Tigers methodically pulled away with a balanced attack for a double-digit lead before the break.
"Washington is just a tough match up, because he can score inside and hit some 3s," Johnson said. "Probably what hurts you the most is his ability to penetrate and be a good passer.
"We probably over-helped at times, and let some guys get loose," Johnson added.
Still, the Tigers had a 10-point lead at the break and held on for their 10th double-digit victory of the season.
Washburn got a trey to start the second half from Nate Wallace and hung around the single-digit mark for a little more than 10 minutes.
"The second half, we just struggled, turned it over, made some silly plays, and just didn't get great ball movement," Johnson said.
Then Jones took over. His first of four 3s came at the 10:35 mark, and he scored 16 of the Tigers' final 20 points, helping the Tigers maintain the edge and keep Washburn from mounting any type of upset bid.
"I knew we were a little sluggish, and I just did what I could to help the team," Jones said.
"When games get tight, I can put the ball in the basket if I have to."
Jones finished 7-for-13 from the floor, 5-for-6 from 3-point range in his Tiger career best. Junior forward Ken Bowman added 13 points and 10 rebounds for the double-double, going 6-for-7 from the floor. Junior guard Corbin Kuntzsch tacked on 11 points.
The Tigers did however suffer a scare at the 13-minute mark of the second half, as senior forward Tim Peintner hit the ground after going for a rebound on the Washburn end. Initially, it looked as though Peintner was favoring his knee, but it turned out to be an ankle.
"When a guy goes down, first reaction is everyone is concerned for Tim, when he went down," Johnson said. "The second reaction is they know he's a good player, and we're going to have to make some adjustments."
Johnson was not sure after the game how long Peintner will be out, but he likely won't be available for this weekend's road trip.
"The good news is it's not a knee, it's an ankle, but sometimes an ankle can be pretty bad," Johnson said. "It's never a good time to lose a guy with Tim's ability. This is a tough stretch."
The Tigers have just one day of practice then travel east to take on Truman State University (3-9, 1-4) in Kirksville, Mo. on Saturday. Then, Fort Hays will be in Warrenburg, Mo. to take on No. 1 ranked Central Missouri (11-0, 4-0) on Monday night.
"We're just looking at taking one gmae at a time," Jones said. "We have to get past Truman first, then we can look at Central. We're looking forward to the next game. "