By GERARD WELLBROCK
Hays Post

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fort Hays State built a 13-point second half lead then missed their next six shots and saw their lead trimmed to two but Rob Davis drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 0:43 to play and the Tigers held off Central Oklahoma 67-61 in the quarterfinals of the MIAA Tournament at Municipal Auditorium.

With the win, the Tigers (20-9) advance to Saturday’s semifinals where they’ll face regular season champ Northwest Missouri State who beat Lindenwood 62-57.

FHSU Postgame Press Conference

Game Highlights

UCO (16-14) opened the game with a 7-0 run but the Tigers answered with a 16-2 run to go up seven. They led by as many as eight in the first half only to see the Bronchos battle back to within one at halftime.

Davis led the Tigers with 18 points, Jake Stoppel and Craig Nicholson both added 11. Dom Samac was held to four but pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.

Central Oklahoma, who a season-high four-game win streak snapped, was led by Jarred Bairstow who scored 17.