ESPN: EXPOSURE FOR SOUTHEAST PROGRAM WAS NICE TO GET; HEARTBREAK HAS SILVER LINING

As much as Sunday's heartbreaking loss hurt, there is no question the performance Southeast Missouri State University gave before a national television audience on ESPN can do nothing but enhance the image of Indians' basketball.

Southeast and Murray State put on some kind of show in the championship game of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament in Nashville, Tenn., with the Racers squeezing out a 62-61 victory to advance to the NCAA Tournament.

The late-game heroics turned in by both teams drew rave reviews from ESPN game announcers Ron Franklin and Jon Sundvold and also received plenty of attention later that night on ESPN's SportsCenter highlight show.

"There's no question the exposure we got by playing on national television was tremendous," said Southeast coach Gary Garner. "And to have the entire country get to see such a great game certainly helps not only us but also our conference in general.

"Nothing helps recruiting as much as making the NCAA playoffs. But I've got to believe that kind of game sure can't hurt us."

About the only thing a Southeast fan -- and Garner -- could probably find fault in with Sunday's contest was the outcome. After a somewhat shaky start that featured four turnovers on their first five possessions, the Indians played extremely well and even brilliant at times. They had only eight total turnovers for the game and just two in the second half.

"We were kind of shaky early, but after we settled down it was really a well-played game. And I thought it was a very well-officiated game," said Garner. "Our players did everything we asked them to do and that's what makes it so disappointing. But he (Aubrey Reese) hit a great shot and you just have to give him credit. He's a great player."

Reese's tough running one-hander from about 15 feet that swished through the basket as the buzzer sounded lifted the Racers (27-5) into the NCAA Tournament for the third straight season.

Murray State's junior guard, who also hit a last-second shot to beat Southeast by a point in January, had given the Racers a 60-58 lead when he hit a tough shot with 15 seconds remaining.

But Southeast's Kahn Cotton drilled a 25-foot 3-pointer with 5.1 seconds left to give put the Indians back on top 61-60.

Reese then went the length of the court with Southeast defenders shadowing his every move. First he zipped past Cotton and drove to the right of the free-throw line, with Southeast's 6-foot-10 center Bud Eley right on him. Reese, off balance, lofted the shot high over Eley's outstretched right hand. Eley appeared to miss the block by a narrow margin.

"Looking back on it, if we played them again tonight, and there's 5.1 seconds on the clock, I would play it the same way," Garner said. "I don't know what else we could have done. He (Reese) just hit an incredible shot and he deserves a lot of credit."

But, as Garner was quick to point out, the Indians -- who had their best Division I season ever at 20-9 -- deserve plenty of credit as well.

"That's the way this game goes and that's what makes basketball such a great game," he said. "And that's why this is such an exciting time of the year in college basketball, especially with the smaller conferences. That's what gives the NCAA Tournament some of its real flavor.

"Every night, you watch these (tournament) championship games and something like this can happen, and probably will happen quite a few times."

Garner just wished it hadn't happened to the Indians. He said the way Sunday's game ended is the kind of thing that sticks around for a long time.

"When you come so close like that, it's a lot harder to swallow than if you had lost by 15 or 20 points," he said. "This loss will really hang around for a while. I'm sure I'll be thinking about if for years."

Garner said he was much more disappointed for his players than himself.

"I've said all along that making the NCAA Tournament is what college basketball is all about," he said. "I feel really bad for our four seniors, who won't be able to experience that."