Hays, Kan. –  The Missouri Southern men's basketball team closed the first half on a 31-12 run to lead by six at the break, but Fort Hays State outscored the Lions (45-32) in the second half en route to a 76-69 win tonight inside Gross Memorial Coliseum.
 
Southern (2-4, 0-1 MIAA) was led by CJ Carr with 16 points as four Lions scored in double-figures. LJ Ross scored 12 points and added five rebounds, while Braelon Walker and Ralph Bellamy both scored ten points off the bench.
 
Hays (5-2, 1-0 MIAA) was led by Hadley Gillum's 30-point effort.
 
The Lions scored the first basket of the game on a hook shot from LJ Ross. The Tigers, however, went on a 15-0 run to lead 15-2 with 14:30 remaining in the first half. A three-pointer from Walker stopped the run, but Hays would eventually lead 19-6 with 11:43 left in the half.
 
That's when the Lions went to work. A jumper from Bellamy started the run, and a three from Elyjah Clark put the Lions on top 24-23 with just under seven minutes left. The game was tied at 28, but a pair of freebies from Walker put the Lions on top, giving Southern a lead they would take into the halftime break. The run reached 31-12 as the Lions led 37-31 at the break.
 
A three-point play from Ross gave the Lions a 42-34 lead with 18:49 left in the second half, but the Tigers would tie the game at 45 with 13:15 left in the game on a free throw from Payton Stephens.
 
Back-to-back buckets from Clark and Carr put the Lions up 49-45 and a bucket from Enis Memic at 11:20 gave the Lions a 51-47 advantage. A layup from Bellamy made the score 53-47 and forced a Fort Hays timeout.
 
A layup from Ross just beat the shot clock to put the Lions up 63-59 with five minutes to go, but a bucket from the Tigers the next trip down cut the lead back to two. A pair of free throws from Gillum put the Tigers up 66-65 and a three for FHSU gave the Tigers a 69-65 lead with 1:33 to go.
 
Two more freebies from Gillum pushed the Tigers' lead to six (71-65) with 45 seconds left. Carr hit a pair of freebies to cut the lead to four (71-67) the next trip down, but Hays would make its free throws down the stretch to secure the win. The Lions went the final 3:24 without a field goal.
 
Southern shot 41 percent from the field and 84 percent from the free throw line, while Hays shot 46 percent from the field and 77 percent from the charity stripe. The Lions out rebounded FHSU 36-29 and the Southern bench outscored the Tigers' 28-22.
 
Southern will be back in action on Saturday afternoon as the Lions will travel to Nebraska-Kearney for a 4 pm tipoff.