Home wins boost Redhawks' bid for OVC tourney

SIU Edwardsville and Eastern Illinois, not to be confused with two of the Ohio Valley Conference's top men's basketball teams, proved to be just what the doctor ordered for Southeast Missouri State.

The Redhawks broke out of a slump that had lasted for several weeks by beating SIUE 76-67 on Thursday and EIU 77-64 on Saturday. Both games were at the Show Me Center.

To say the Redhawks desperately needed those two victories would not be doing the situation justice. Lose to those squads at home, after recently falling to them on the road, and Southeast would have been in serious danger of missing the OVC tournament.

Now, with four OVC games remaining -- all on the road -- the Redhawks are in good shape to secure a tournament berth. An especially strong finish could even land them the No. 5 seed for the eight-team event. A coveted top-four seed is a longshot.

Southeast, 13-13 overall and 5-7 in OVC play, is sixth in the 12-team league among squads eligible for the tournament.

The Redhawks trail fifth-place Morehead State by just one-half game, but they lag three games behind fourth-place Tennessee State, and the Tigers own the tie-breaker because they beat Southeast in the squads' only regular-season meeting.

The top two tournament seeds earn double byes into the semifinals. The third and fourth seeds gain byes into the quarterfinals.

Southeast, which entered last week having lost three straight and seven of eight, can compile a three-game winning streak when it visits eighth-place Tennessee-Martin on Saturday. However, the Redhawks struggled to beat the Skyhawks 65-60 earlier this season in Cape Girardeau.

If the Redhawks can get by UTM, then their next order of business will be to finally beat a team with a winning record. All 13 of their wins have come against squads currently under .500, and UTM is also in that category.

The Redhawks will have an opportunity to change that because two of their final three OVC opponents are comfortably above .500 -- Murray State and Jacksonville State, the latter ineligible for the conference tournament because of academic sanctions.

*

Arguably the biggest game of the regular season for OVC men's basketball took place Thursday night in Murray, Ky., as a national television audience on ESPNU saw conference newcomer Belmont battle three-time defending league champion Murray State.

The Racers handed Belmont its first OVC loss, 79-74, in a thriller witnessed by more than 7,100 fans at the CFSB Center.

Belmont trailed by 15 points with under six minutes left but rallied for a 74-74 tie in the final minute.

Murray State answered with a 3-pointer by All-American guard Isaiah Canaan, the OVC's leading scorer, with 33 seconds remaining. Two free throws iced the victory.

Belmont (20-5, 11-1) and Murray State (18-5, 9-2) lead the OVC East and West Divisions, respectively, and likely will garner the top two seeds for the conference tournament.

*

Southeast men's basketball coach Dickey Nutt's weekly radio show at Dexter Barbecue in Cape Girardeau, which normally runs from noon to 1 p.m. each Monday, will take place from 5 to 6 p.m. today due to today's 11 a.m. Southeast women's basketball game at the Show Me Center against SIUE.

*

I had a great time, as usual, covering Friday's latest Southeast Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony at the Show Me Center.

It's always a thrill for me to mingle with some of the university's all-time top athletes, some of whom I had the honor of covering and some of whom I had never met.

Friday's individual inductees were Ron Hines (sports information, 1980 to 2009) -- his late wife Mary became an honorary member -- the late Jim Hamby (assistant football coach, 1958 to 1968), Galen McSpadden (baseball, 1971 to 1974), Christine (Ridenour) Vanatta (cross country/track & field, 1982 to 1984) and Beverly Slaughter (track & field, 1981).

Also inducted was the 1999-2000 men's basketball team that won the program's only OVC titles -- regular season and tournament -- and earned the program's only NCAA Division I tournament berth.

Coach Gary Garner couldn't make it because the Dakota State team he coaches had a game Saturday, but eight squad members and assistant Tom Schuberth attended.

Players on hand were Roderick Johnson, Mike Branson, Brian Bunche, Drew DeMond, Emmanuel McCuthison, Matt Morris, Tim Scheer and Damarcus Hence, who redshirted as a freshman that season.

I had as much fun covering that team as I have covering anything during my more than 28 years at the Southeast Missourian, and it was great to relive old times with the group.

Marty Mishow is a sports writer for the Southeast Missourian.