COURT SESSION; SHORT BREAK PUTS INDIANS BACK IN OLD PRACTICE MODE

It is good to have a few days this week without games so we can get back to the practice floor and work on some of the things we need to improve on. We've had so many games recently that we have spent most of our time just preparing for other teams.

I continually stress with our team that we have worked ourselves into an envious position being 14-3 overall and 7-1 in the Ohio Valley Conference, but that means everybody is shooting at us. We are no longer the hunters; we are the hunted.

Every team is going to give us their best shot for 40 minutes. That is one of the reasons we have struggled some in the second half of games after securing a big first-half lead. No team is just going to lay down in the second half. We have to maintain our intensity in order to really put teams away.

We again received votes this week in the USA Today/ESPN Top 25 poll and this brings us much needed national recognition and is a tremendous help in recruiting, but it is also another reason teams will give us their best shot. Morehead State coach Kyle Macy will preach to his players that they have the opportunity knock off one of the top 50 teams in the nation and they will be excited about playing us.

You know how we have gotten primed for the Murray State games over the past few years. Well, that is the way other teams are getting primed to play Southeast.

Our great crowds at the Show Me Center are a big motivation for our team, but opponents also like to play at the Show Me Center because they know they will play in front of a big and enthusiastic collegiate crowd. For many players, the game at the Show Me Center will be the biggest game of their career. Players get excited about a game at the Show Me Center and that means our fans are getting to see some outstanding individual efforts from some outstanding collegiate performers.

The fact that we had our one-millionth fan at last Saturday's game is a testimony to the way our fans support Southeast basketball. Congratulations to all our fans.

I've really been encouraged by the tremendous student turnout at our games since they came back from the holiday break. Students bring excitement. The band, cheerleaders, Sundancers, Red Men and everyone else involved is creating a great college basketball environment at the Show Me Center. Keep it up because we need to continue to protect our home court.

We have two more games this week at the Show Me Center and it is extremely important that we play one game at a time and that we continue to protect our home court.

Morehead State and Eastern Kentucky are both young teams with good talent. They have struggled at times this season but both are capable of beating any team in the OVC on a given night. Morehead State took Murray State to overtime on Saturday night and I know that will give them confidence as they head into Thursday night's game.

It should be fun! I'll see you at the Show Me Center.

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