Southeast attempts sweep of Racers

It's rare for Southeast Missouri State's men to beat Murray State even once in a season, let alone twice.

But the Redhawks have an opportunity to do just that tonight -- and it's a must if they want to remain in the running to play a home game in the first round of the Ohio Valley Conference tournament.

Southeast (13-12, 8-6) and the Racers (15-10, 9-5) square off at 7:30 p.m. at the Show Me Center in a game of huge importance for both squads as they jockey for position in the wild OVC standings.

The top four finishers in the 11-team conference earn home dates for the opening round of the eight-team league tournament.

Southeast is in sixth place, but just one game in the loss column out of second place. Eastern Kentucky (10-5), Samford (10-5) and Austin Peay (9-6) are all battling with the Redhawks and Racers for the three remaining home berths after Tennessee Tech (11-4), which has locked up at least a share of the title.

The Redhawks must beat both Murray State tonight and Tennessee-Martin (6-19, 3-11) at home Saturday night in their regular-season finale in order to have a legitimate shot at getting a first-round OVC tournament game at the Show Me Center.

But, if the Redhawks are able to win out this week, there appears to be a good chance they'll be at home Tuesday night when the league tourney tips off.

"We don't control our own destiny any more, so we really have no control over what the other teams in the league do," Southeast coach Gary Garner said. "We just have to win our last two games, then see where that puts us. But it looks like if we win out, we'll have a pretty good chance of getting a home game."

Winning the first leg of this final homestand certainly figures to be tough. The fourth-place Racers are in much the same position as Southeast -- they still have work to do in order to secure a tournament home game, and they are also still in the running to grab a share of the OVC regular-season title.

Throw in the fact that the Redhawks stunned the preseason OVC favorites 61-58 on Feb. 5 in Murray, Ky., and it all adds up to the Racers entering the Show Me Center tonight with loads of incentive.

"It was a really tough game over there, and it's a must win for both teams, so I look for another really tough game," Southeast senior guard Derek Winans said. "I think we'll have to play better than we did over there to beat them again."

When Southeast upset the Racers earlier, it marked just the second time that the Redhawks have won in Murray, Ky., since moving up to the Division I level in 1991-92. During that span, Southeast has beaten the Racers twice in the same season only once -- during the Redhawks' OVC championship campaign of 1999-00.

"They're always so talented, which makes them a really tough team to beat any time you play them," Garner said.

Sophomore guard Trey Pearson, a Mississippi transfer, leads the Racers in scoring at 15.6 points per game. Murray State is particularly strong on the boards, although Southeast outrebounded the Racers 33-28 in the earlier meeting.

Garner figures another solid rebounding effort will be vital if the Redhawks are to snap a two-game losing streak , which has come immediately after seven straight victories.

"We're going to have to play really well, but I think it will be a heck of a basketball game," he said. "I think it will be like it was down there, going to the wire, and whoever makes the plays at the end will win."

Noteworthy

* Senior guard Brett Hale, thought to be lost for the season after breaking his right (shooting) wrist on Jan. 7, recently had the cast removed and he could be available if the Redhawks advance to the OVC tournament semifinals on March 4 in Nashville, Tenn.

Hale, who played in 11 games, was averaging 10.3 points and leading the OVC in 3-point shooting (55 percent) at the time of the injury.