Winans trades points for wins

Derek Winans has gladly relinquished his team scoring title to experience by far the most success he's had since putting on a Southeast Missouri State uniform.

"I'm just happy that we're finally winning," a beaming Winans said. "I'll sacrifice all my points to win all the games we've been winning."

Winans and the Redhawks (12-10, 7-4 Ohio Valley Conference) hope the winning continues tonight when Tennessee State (11-14, 6-5) visits the Show Me Center for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff.

Southeast has strung together six straight victories to match the program's longest streak on the Division I level. The Redhawks are in a four-way tie for third place in the 11-team OVC, and the top four finishers earn home games for the first round of the league tournament.

"Getting a home game in the tournament would be huge," Winans said. "But we're going to have to keep playing really good, because we've got so many tough games left, and Tennessee State is really tough."

Winans, a former standout at Shawnee (Ill.) High School and a native of East Cape Girardeau, Ill. -- just across the river -- was Southeast's leading scorer each of the past three seasons, averaging 14.9 points per game as a freshman, 15.3 as a sophomore and 14.5 last year as a junior.

But Southeast went just 28-57 during that time and finished toward the bottom of the OVC all three seasons, including a tie for last place a year ago.

So Winans -- a 6-foot-2 senior guard who ranks fifth in Southeast history with 1,433 career points and was the school's first-ever basketball Academic All-American last year -- is more than happy to be averaging just 9.9 points per game this season, fifth-best on the squad.

"Before this year, I'd never won more than two games in a row here," said Winans, who missed this season's first four games with a stress fracture that kept him at less than 100 percent for quite some time. "So this has been awesome.

"I'm just trying to fill my role on the team. We have so many scorers already, I don't have to score as much. I just try to do whatever it takes to help the team out."

And he has definitely been doing that, according to Southeast coach Gary Garner.

"Derek might be playing the best basketball of his career, even though he's not scoring as much," Garner said. "He's just really playing well in all phases of the game."

Winans might have a little extra incentive to do well tonight because, prior to the game, he will be honored on the court by a group representing Shawnee High School.

"A lot of people from my area, my high school, are going to be there," Winans said. "It'll be pretty exciting, a good honor, but I'm just trying to stay focused and keep the winning streak going."

Winans knows that won't be easy to do against a talented Tennessee State team that was picked second in the OVC's preseason poll and rallied from an 18-point second-half deficit to beat Southeast 105-101 in double-overtime on Jan. 13 in Nashville, Tenn.

"They're really talented, and they're going to be hard to beat," Winans said.

Garner knows that as well. He believes the Tigers -- featuring three transfers who formerly played at big-time programs and also several key returning players -- have some of the OVC's top talent.

"They've probably got the most talented starting five in the league," Garner said.

Sophomore guard Bruce Price, last season's OVC freshman of the year, leads the Tigers in scoring at 14.1 points per game. Also having a strong season is Cincinnati transfer Rod Flowers, a 6-foot-9 center averaging 13 points and 8.2 rebounds.

"We should have beaten them down there after getting the big lead, but they are very good and will be really tough to beat," Garner said.

Southeast counters with the OVC's leading scorer in senior forward Dainmon Gonner, who also ranks 16th nationally at 20.5 points per game. Gonner also leads the league in steals (58).

Senior forward Reggie Golson is first in the OVC in rebounding (9.0) and blocked shots (54), while averaging 16.4 points. And sophomore guard Terrick Willoughby, averaging 19 points over his last five games, leads the league in 3-point shooting (46.2 percent).

"We're just playing so well together right now, and everybody is accepting their roles," Garner said.