Guard Drew sizzles behind 3-point arc in Redhawks' loss

~ Anna-Jonesboro graduate scored a career-high 19 points.

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. -- A career performance Tuesday night got Jimmy Drew's confidence going.

That feeling carried over into Friday's Chicago Invitational Challenge game against Coppin State.

Drew, a sophomore guard from Anna-Jonesboro (Ill.) High School, led the Redhawks with a career-high 19 points as they suffered a 102-99 double-overtime loss.

"He played by far his best game," Southeast coach Scott Edgar said.

Drew hit 6-of-8 3-pointers, including 4-of-4 in the first half as Southeast opened up a 47-38 lead.

Drew made his fifth straight 3-pointer early in the second half as the Redhawks built a 52-38 advantage that they could not hold.

Still, it was an impressive showing for Drew, who during Tuesday's win over Evansville reached career highs with 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

"That gave me a lot of confidence," said Drew, who added five rebounds and three assists Friday while playing a team-high 36 minutes. "And they [Coppin State] played zone, so I got a lot of open looks."

Drew, who averaged just 1.7 points in limited action last year, has started the last three games for the Redhawks. He has 31 points in the past two contests, during which he has hit 8 of 12 3-pointers.

For the season, Drew is 11-of-20 from beyond the arc. He was 11-of-36 a year ago, when he averaged just 7.6 minutes per game.

Lack of atmosphere

The 10,000-seat Sears Centre in suburban Chicago is an impressive facility that opened last year.

Several thousand people attended Friday's night session of the Chicago Invitational Challenge that included a matchup between nationally ranked Indiana and Illinois State.

But for the two early session games, attendance was sparse.

There were probably about 200 fans in the stands when Southeast and Coppin State tipped off at 2:30 p.m. in the second contest.

"It's different," Drew said. "It almost seems like an exhibition game or something."

Trying to bounce back

Southeast (2-3) will try to salvage a win in the eight-team event when the Redhawks play Longwood at 11:30 a.m. today.

Longwood (2-4) has, like Southeast, lost its first three tournament games, including two on the road.

In Friday's opener at the Sears Centre, first-year Division I member Longwood was defeated by North Carolina-Wilmington 80-65.

Junior forward Kirk Williams led the Lancers with 26 points. He leads the Virginia university with a 19.3 scoring average on the season.

"The key now is to leave here .500," Edgar said.