INDIANS LOOK FOR RARE OVC ROAD SWEEP

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- When Southeast Missouri State University's basketball team left for its two-game road trip to open the Ohio Valley Conference season, coach Gary Garner figured a split would put the Indians in good shape.

Well, now the Indians have a chance to finish the trip in great shape.

"I thought going in that if we split we'd be in pretty good shape and if we swept we'd really be in good shape," said Garner. "Now that we got the first one, we have a chance to make it a really great trip."

That's all because of Thursday night's 74-65 win over Austin Peay in Clarksville, Tenn. That victory came over the team picked for third in the OVC's preseason poll.

In order to come back to Cape Girardeau with a 2-0 OVC record, Southeast will have to knock off the preseason No. 2 squad in the OVC -- Tennessee State. The Indians and Tigers will square off at 7:45 tonight at the Gentry Center.

"Winning (Thursday night) should certainly be a big confidence builder for us," said Garner, whose team is the preseason No. 5 pick in the OVC. "We'll go in there and give it everything we've got."

The Indians, 3-2 overall, used an extremely balanced offensive attack to upend Austin Peay.

Cory Johnson led the way with 20 points. Bud Eley scored 12, Kahn Cotton had 11 and Roderick Johnson and Mike Branson added 10 apiece.

"We knew it would be tough to win both of these games," said C. Johnson. "We knew if we didn't play well that we could lose them both. But winning that first one was so big. Now we really feel like we can go in there and win the second."

Tennessee State, also 3-2 overall, won its OVC opener Thursday night, beating visiting Eastern Illinois 67-59.

The Tigers boast the OVC's top scorer in 6-foot-3 sophomore guard Jamie Roberts, who is averaging 22.4 points per game.

DeMario Jones, a 6-7 forward, is scoring 14.6 points per game while 6-8 forward Jason Johnson is at 12.2 points a contest and is one of the league's best rebounders with an average of 11.6 per game.

As a team, the Tigers have been among the nation's top rebounding squads so far as they are grabbing an average of 14.6 rebounds more than the opposition per contest.

"Tennessee State is very talented," said Garner. "They go 6-10, 255 (pounds); 6-8, 230; and 6-7, 210; And Roberts is their best player. He's leading the league in scoring and he's just really good.

"Their rebounding really concerns me. To be getting almost 15 more rebounds per game than the opponent is amazing."

Tennessee State also recently added a talented guard in Leon Murray -- who is coming off a football season for the Tigers that saw him earn OVC Offensive Player of the Year honors.

But the Tigers did suffer two severe blows when brothers Keith and Kevin Samuel, two of last year's top scorers, were ruled academically ineligible for at least the first semester.

"I'm sure playing without them (the Samuels) has hurt, but they've got a lot of depth," said Garner. "Outside of Murray State, they're probably the most talented team in the league."

The Indians figure to enter the Gentry Center tonight with plenty of confidence after their big win over Austin Peay.

Southeast, leading 28-27 at halftime, fell behind early in the second half but quickly regained the lead and never trailed again.

Cotton's three free throws with 7:29 left broke a 50-50 tie. And his foul shots started a streak of 20 consecutive made free throws by the Indians, who fought off every charge by the Governors.

"We really showed a lot of composure," Garner said. "We got our offense going in the second half. Kahn coming back (from knee problems) really makes a difference for us."

SEMO at Tennessee State

7:45 p.m., Nashville, Tenn.

Probable Starters

SEMO (3-2, 1-0 OVC)

Player Pos. Yr. Ht. Avg.

Mike Branson F Jr. 6-6 11.2

Roderick Johnson F Jr. 6-6 12.2

Bud Eley C Sr. 6-10 14.2

Cory Johnson G Sr. 6-0 11.0

Jeramy Biles G So. 5-11 4.6

TSU (3-2, 1-0 OVC)

Player Pos. Yr. Ht. Avg.

Jason Johnson F Sr. 6-8 11.2

Corey Williams F Jr. 6-7 8.2

Julian Bankston C Jr. 6-10 6.5

Brian Williams G Sr. 6-0 5.0

Jamie Roberts G So. 6-3 24.2

Series: TSU leads 8-6

Last meeting: SEMO won 60-59 in 1997-98

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