Men's Basketball Drop two in Casper

Men's basketball return from Casper, Wyoming, where they competed in a tournement this last weekend. The Tigers lost their first game against the Casper College Thunderbirds, 74-99, on Friday, and then lost their second game, 87-94, against the Northwest College Trappers on Saturday.

Game vs. Casper College

The game got off to a slow start for both teams, with the score 5-13 in favor of Casper, eight minutes into the game. From there, Tech would quickly get their offense going, with a 10-2 run in only a couple minutes, tying the game 15-15. The Tigers would then take a narrow lead before the Thunderbirds took it back with a pair of back-to-back three-pointers, forcing Tech to call a timeout with about seven minutes left in the half. Tech continued to struggle as Casper's size continued to outmatch the Tigers in the paint, as they went into halftime with a score of 34-42.

The FHNW would come out swinging in the second half, going on an 8-0 run to tie the game only three minutes into the second half. The Thunderbirds would slowly regain their lead with the score at 46-53, seven minutes into the half. The Thunderbirds would continue to extend their lead from there as the Tigers continued to be outsized down low while heating up from beyond the arc, shooting 40% on the game. Casper would extend their lead out past 20 points as time would run out for the Tigers. 

Tech would have three players in double figures, with Kalik Sharpe leading the way while coming off the bench with 20 points. Overall, the team would shoot 39.2% from the field, 30% from the three-point line, and 77.8% from the free throw line.

Game vs. Northwest College

After some initial back-and-forth, FHSU got out to an early 10-5 lead five minutes into the game as they moved the ball around on offense. After some further back-and-forth, Northwest battled their way back to within one point with nine minutes left in the half. Northwest would tie the game 29-29 at the seven-minute mark before taking a narrow lead. Both teams would continue to battle, with Northwest pulling ahead in the final minutes of the half with the score at 49-45.

Not much would change in the second half, with both teams exchanging leads. Tech would pull ahead with a narrow lead, 65-63 at the eleven-minute mark. Both teams would exchange leads again, with the Tigers regaining the lead after a pair of triples from the transfer, Chase Harris, with 7:42 left in the game. Tech would maintain their lead just under the five-minute mark, 83-81. After exchanging leads again, Northwest would regain the lead again, 87-86, just under the two-minute mark. Tech would go to the free throw line, tying the game 87-87 with 54 seconds left in the game. Unfortantly, the Tigers would commit a foul on the rebound of the second free throw, sending the Trappers to the foul line, where they would retake the lead. Tech would proceed to turn over the ball two possessions in a row, forcing them to foul Northwest, sending them back to the free throw line, putting them ahead 91-87 with 27 seconds left. The Tigers would quickly drive down the court, where they would be called for a charge while driving to the bucket. Northwest would seal the game, 94-87, with two more sets of free throws.

FHNW would finish the game with four players in double figures, With Chase Harris leading the way with 29 points.

Fort Hays Tech Northwest's next competition will be on Thursday, November 21st, where they will have both their conference and home opener vs. Coffeyville Community College.