INDIANS FLASH OWN DREAMS; SE USES DREAM BUILDERS TO OPEN GARNER ERA WITH WIN

It won't count on their record. And there were some rough spots, particularly early.

But Southeast Missouri State University's basketball Indians opened the Gary Garner era Monday night with a victory, beating Dream Builders 97-80 in an exhibition game.

A Show Me Center crowd of 3,722 saw the Indians struggle early before pulling away from Dream Builders, a squad made up primarily of former players from Drake and Iowa State.

Afterward, Garner -- the Indians' first-year head coach -- spoke in generally positive terms about his first Southeast squad's initial performance against outside competition.

"We did a lot of things well and a lot of things not so good," said Garner. "But we played hard and very unselfishly. You put those things together and good things happen."

As Garner scanned the official box score from the game, he was particularly pleased with the Indians' assist-to-turnover ratio. Southeast had nearly twice as many assists (23) as turnovers (12).

"That's impressive," Garner said. "We really ask two things out of our players, that they play hard and they play together, which means unselfishly. If they do that, everything else falls into place."

The five Indians who started Monday's game all scored in double figures, led by 6-foot-10 senior center Bud Eley with 20 points. Eley had two early fouls and played just three first-half minutes. But he held his composure and came back to dominate in the second half.

"I was really proud of Bud, not because of the 20 points but because he came back in the second half and played under control," said Garner. "He didn't get frustrated. Not a lot of players can do that."

Eley, the Indians' all-Ohio Valley Conference performer last season, also showed an improved touch at the free-throw line. A 53-percent foul shooter as a junior, Eley was six of seven Monday.

Calvert White, a 6-4 forward who is also a returning starter, had 18 points and six assists. He had all of Southeast's four dunks.

The Indians' third returning starter, 6-8 junior forward David Montgomery, scored 10 points.

Two newcomers made their presence felt.

Kahn Cotton, a highly-touted 5-10 junior point guard who sat out last year after transferring from Idaho State, displayed he was as quick and nifty as advertised with 13 points, eight assists and only two turnovers.

"Kahn is a talented player," said Garner. "He's quick, he sees the floor and he makes plays."

Cory Johnson, a 6-foot junior guard who is the all-time 3-point record-holder at Three Rivers Community College, displayed his marksmanship by hitting five of seven 3-pointers and scoring 17 points.

"I never saw Cory play in junior college, but talking to people, he'll consistently shoot the ball," Garner said. "And Dewayne Saulsberry can also shoot it. So can Nathan Owen."

Said Johnson with a grin, "That's mainly why I'm here, to shoot the three. When I'm open, I can knock it down."

The other Indians also did their share of good things. Senior forward Travis Smith, a returning player, had six points and six rebounds. Owen, a freshman out of Cape Girardeau Central High, had five points, as did Demetrius Watson, a juco transfer who also added four assists.

Saulsberry, like Johnson a highly-touted three-point shooter in junior college, didn't shoot much but added three points.

Former Drake player Rod Chamble led Dream Builders, who are now 0-6 in exhibitions, with 19 points.

Southeast started slowly and trailed 15-4 early. But the Indians rallied for a 40-40 halftime tie and pretty well controlled the second half by shooting 57 percent. They wound up at 51 percent for the game.

"We came out kind of tight, but once everybody got going, it was good," said White. "Cory hit the outside shots and that opened up the inside for Bud."

Added Garner, "We're just starting to scratch the surface. We're going to get a lot better and we'll have to get a lot better."

Garner will get another look at the Indians in game action Friday when Albacomp of Hungary comes to the Show Me Center for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff that will be Southeast's second and final exhibition contest.

INDIAN NOTES: Senior point guard Lakeo Keller, another returning players from last year, did not dress out Monday.

Keller will be held out of drills the next two weeks because his knee has responded slowly after minor surgery earlier this fall. He will likely miss the Indians' first few games of the season, which opens Sunday night at Colorado.