COURT SESSION: INDIANS SET FOR GIB OVC HOME GAMES

As we head into the new year, I am very disappointed with our loss Sunday at Southern Illinois, but I am happy to be 7-2 in non-conference games this season and to be 1-0 in the Ohio Valley Conference as we begin OVC play in earnest Thursday night.

I think the long layoff, going from Dec. 22 to Jan. 2 without a game, really hurt us against SIU. I have to do a better job of scheduling next season so we do not have that long a layoff.

We were very rusty offensively at SIU and we simply turned the ball over too many times. You can't have 27 turnovers and expect to win.

I thought we had good effort, but we seemed to tire in the second half and that comes from not playing games. I thought our defense was excellent against a good SIU team.

Antonio Short returned after being out of action for 40 days with a broken wrist and I thought he played well considering how long he had been out. When he is in the game, he makes good things happen and he has the ability to make the players around him better.

Once Antonio is completely healthy and regains his game conditioning, we will be a better team. Overall, this team is continuing to get better and I think we will continue to improve throughout the season.

Our last three non-conference games should be good preparation for the tough OVC season, gaining a home game in the OVC Tournament and advancing to Nashville.

We beat a good Arkansas State team at home, beat the pre-season Missouri Valley favorite, Bradley, on the road and lost to a good SIU team on the road. That means we won two of three against good competition and, despite the SIU loss, I think this team is very confident heading into the OVC schedule.

It should be a very exciting OVC race. Murray State is certainly the favorite, but the Racers have lost four non-conference games and I think there are five or six teams who have a chance to win the title.

Austin Peay, Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky and Tennessee Tech are all capable of putting together enough wins to claim the title, and I certainly think we have a shot at the title.

In order for us to have a chance to win the OVC, we have to win the close games and we must protect our home court.

The protection of our home court begins this week with Tennessee State Thursday night at 7:30 and Austin Peay Saturday afternoon at 3.

Tennessee State is just 1-9, but the Tigers have good athletes who are capable of beating anybody on a given night. Monday night, they lost by just eight points at Wright State and Wright State just beat Michigan State.

Tennessee State has two of the top scorers in the OVC and we have to be ready to play Thursday night.

Austin Peay has an outstanding team that is 7-3 and just won a tournament at Wisconsin-Green Bay. The Governors have a legitimate chance to win the OVC, so it is vital that we protect our home court against them.

Next week, we go on the road for three OVC games, so you can see how important this week's home games are. I hope you will be at the Show Me Center Thursday and Saturday to help us out.

Gary Garner is the head men's basketball coach at Southeast Missouri State University