COLLEGE BASKETBALL: SE ENGINE RATTLES IN 5-2 START

Tuesday night's 87-84 victory over Southern Illinois was exactly the kind of game Southeast Missouri State University men's basketball coach Gary Garner was looking for out of the Indians, who were coming off a disappointing loss at Mississippi Valley State less than a week earlier.

But Garner knows that, even though Southeast turned in by far its most impressive performance to date against SIU, all is not totally well in the Indians' camp. He realizes that some problems that have plagued the Indians so far this season have not suddenly disappeared.

One of the more glaring weaknesses for the 5-2 Indians has been rebounding. After SIU outrebounded Southeast by 11, the Indians are now losing the board battle by an average of four per game.

Rebounding will definitely be a continued point of emphasis for the Indians as they prepare for Saturday's OVC opener against 2-4 Tennessee Tech. The tipoff is set for 8 p.m. at the Show Me Center, with the later than normal start due to graduating ceremonies being held in the facility earlier in the day.

"Rebounding is definitely a concern. We have to get much better in that area," said Garner. "We got beat by 13 on the boards in the second half against Southern Illinois. I think we've been outrebounded in the second half every game so far."

Another concern for Garner is a lack of inside scoring. Southeast's true inside players accounted for just 11 of the Indians' 87 points against SIU, but the perimeter players picked up the slack as Emmanuel McCuthison, Michael Stokes, Antonio Short and Amory Sanders combined for 75 points (reserve guard Joel Shelton had the other point).

"Emmanuel, Michael, Antonio and Amory all played great, but we have to find a way to get better balance in our scoring," Garner said.

Garner is still waiting on senior center Nyah Jones to emerge as a force inside. The 6-foot-11 Jones showed plenty of potential last year coming off the bench and he was being counted on for big things this season, especially after putting on about 20 pounds in the offseason and shining in the two exhibition games.

But Jones has struggled ever since the regular season started and his confidence is visibly shaken right now. He's averaging only 5.7 points and less than four rebounds per game and did not start for the first time all season against SIU as Terry Rogers began the game in the middle. Rogers is also expected to start Saturday, although Jones will again see plenty of action.

"I still have a lot of confidence in Nyah and I still think he'll have a good year for us," said Garner.

Free-throw shooting has also been something of a problem so far. The Indians are hitting just 66 percent from the foul line (about 70 percent is generally considered to be acceptable) and they made just 29 of 44 against SIU, which helped keep the Salukis in the game down the stretch.

The outside guns

McCuthison, a 6-4 senior swingman who was a solid but not spectacular player off the bench last year, continues to shine this season.

His 29-point outburst against SIU has boosted his team-leading scoring average to 16.4 points per game and he has scored in double figures in all seven contests.

McCuthison is shooting 50.6 percent from the field, 47.6 percent from 3-point range and 75 percent from the free-throw line.

"Emmanuel is just having a tremendous season so far," Garner said.

Sanders has provided a major lift off the bench, averaging 10.7 points and shooting a sizzling 57.6 percent from 3-point range (19 of 33), which is tied for second in the OVC.

Thanks in large part to Sanders and McCuthison, who have taken the majority of Southeast's 3-pointers, the Indians lead the OVC in 3-point shooting at 45 percent.

The Indians' other two double-figure scorers on the season are Short (12.8 ppg) and Stokes (11 ppg).

Eagles where 2-4 disguise

Tennessee Tech is no doubt much better than its 2-4 record indicates.

The Eagles, picked to finish fourth in the nine-team OVC, have had only one home game so far. Among their five road games, they beat South Carolina and led nationally ranked Iowa State by 18 points Tuesday night before losing 89-74.

"They've just had a murderous schedule so far," said Garner. "They're definitely a really good team, a lot better than their record."