INDIANS DRIVE FOR ANOTHER BIG WIN; SOUTHEAST ENDS LAYOFF AT SOUTHWEST MISSOURI

SPRINGFIELD -- Southeast Missouri State University's basketball Indians have had some extremely big wins already this season.

The Indians have knocked off Tennessee State and Austin Peay -- picked to finish second and third in the Ohio Valley Conference -- on the road.

They've also knocked off defending Sun Belt Conference champion Arkansas State on the road.

But in order to notch yet another upset -- tonight against Southwest Missouri State's potent Bears at the Hammons Center (7:05 tipoff) -- Southeast coach Gary Garner believes the Indians will have to put together their best performance to date.

"I don't think there is any question that they are the best team we will have played," said Garner. "They beat Louisiana Tech by 26 points and everybody knows how good Louisiana Tech was when we played them (the Bulldogs beat the Indians by 12 points at the Show Me Center earlier in the season).

"We'll have to play better than we have all year to have a chance."

Southeast, 6-2 and riding a four-game winning streak, has not played since Dec. 10, when the Indians beat Eastern Kentucky.

"I don't ever like having that long of a break between games," said Garner. "But the last time we had a break about that same length we came back and beat Austin Peay on the road and we haven't lost since."

Southwest, 7-2, is picked as one of the favorites in the Missouri Valley Conference after reaching the league's tournament championship game last year.

The Bears are coming off a tough loss as they had a five-game winning streak snapped Saturday night when Texas Christian hit a layup at the buzzer to pull out a 71-69 victory at the Hammons Center.

Southwest erased a nine-point deficit in the final four minutes of play Saturday only to lose at the end in front of a standing room crowd of 9,114, largest for the Bears since a game against Purdue in December 1992. It was the 10th largest crowd in school history.

The Bears' only other loss this season came against nationally-ranked Stanford 76-51 in the Preseason NIT. Among Southwest's victories is a 72-69 triumph at Missouri.

Danny Moore, a 6-foot-11 senior center, is the Bears' top offensive threat as he averages nearly 20 points per game after scoring a game-high 26 in the loss to Texas Christian.

Moore, who also leads the Bears in rebounding with more than six per contest, is shooting just under 50 percent from the field and 86 percent from the free-throw line.

"He's a 6-11 player who can score inside and outside," Garner said of Moore. "He's really a good player."

William Fontleroy, a 6-3 junior guard, is next in scoring at 12 points per contest.

"He's a tremendous athlete," said Garner of Fontleroy. "He's had some spectacular dunks."

The Bears' other main offensive threat is 6-3 junior guard Kevin Ault, who averages just under 11 points per game. Ault is Southwest's top outside shooter, hitting just under 37 percent from 3-point range.

"He's a great outside shooter," said Garner of Ault. "He's a bigger version of (Southeast sharpshooter) Cory Johnson. He can really shoot it deep."

Added Garner, "Those are three players that you really have to concentrate on. But they've got some other very good players and their bench has been playing well. They've got guys other than just those three who can hurt you."

No other starter for the Bears averages more than six points per game. Southwest's fourth-leading scorer is 6-5 junior Allen Phillips, who comes off the bench to score about eight points per game.

"He's a good player," Garner said of Phillips. "We tried to recruit him last year (out of Southwest Missouri State-West Plains Junior College)."

Southeast has been getting balanced scoring, particularly during its stretch of four straight wins.

Senior center Bud Eley leads the way (14.8 ppg), followed by junior forward Roderick Johnson (12.4 ppg), senior guard Cory Johnson (11 ppg) and junior forward Mike Branson (10.6 ppg).

Eley leads the way in rebounding with nearly eight a game and in blocked shots with 19. He is shooting 61 percent from the field while R. Johnson is shooting 65 percent.

"It's going to be an extremely big challenge for us to beat them on the road," said Garner. "Our guys have really been doing a good job, but this should be our toughest test yet."

Although the Bears and Indians have a long history against each other, tonight will mark the first meeting between the teams since 1982, when Southwest moved to Division I. The Bears lead the all-time series 85 to 52.

SEMO Southwest Missouri

7:05 p.m., Hammons Center, Springfield, Mo.

Probable Starters

SEMO (6-2)

Player Pos. Yr. Ht. Avg.

Mike Branson F Jr. 6-6 10.6

Roderick Johnson F Jr. 6-6 12.4

Bud Eley C Sr. 6-10 14.8

Cory Johnson G Sr. 6-0 11.0

Kahn Cotton G Sr. 5-10 8.3

SWMO (7-2)

Player Pos. Yr. Ht. Avg.

Ken Stringer F Sr. 6-4 5.1

Ron Bruton F Jr. 6-6 4.2

Danny Moore C Sr. 6-11 19.8

William Fontleroy G Jr. 6-3 12.0

Kevin Ault G Jr. 6-3 10.7

Series: SWMO leads 85-52

Last meeting: SWMO won 79-65 in 1982

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