INDIANS READY FOR TENNESSEE TECH; SEMO BEGINS BIG TWO-GAME HOMESTAND TONIGHT

The Frank Harrell Farewell Tour around the Ohio Valley Conference has hit a serious snag for Tennessee Tech's Golden Eagles.

Southeast Missouri State University's Indians hope to keep that trend going tonight when the teams meet in a 7:05 tipoff at the Show Me Center.

Harrell, Tech's veteran coach, is calling it quits after this season, his 10th at the helm of the Golden Eagles. He will turn his full attentions to his position as the compliance officer for Tech's athletic department, which he has been juggling with his coaching duties.

So far, the Golden Eagles have not exactly been racking up the victories for Harrell in his final season. Tech, hurt seriously by graduation after last season, is 4-10 overall and 0-3 in OVC play.

But Southeast coach Gary Garner knows his team cannot afford to take Tech -- or anybody else for that matter -- lightly.

"The most important thing for us is to take it one game at a time," said Garner. "I know all coaches say that, but it really is true. You have to play every game as it comes and you can't take anybody lightly."

Garner also realizes that the Indians (6-6 overall, 2-2 OVC) don't have enough sheer talent to beat most teams if they're not playing well. And he knows the OVC is a balanced enough conference that quite a few squads are extremely close in talent.

"I think the kind of games you've seen in the league the first few weeks are what will happen most of the year," he said. "There are a lot of teams that are pretty equal and it just depends on who plays better that night.

"We've already had so many close games this year and that's probably going to continue the rest of the season. So many games are going to come down to the last few minutes."

The Indians had two of those on their recently road trip to Kentucky, where they beat Morehead State 64-61 and lost in double-overtime to Eastern Kentucky 82-79.

Tech has really been struggling lately. After opening the season with three wins in four games and then playing Tennessee extremely tough before losing, the Eagles have lost nine of their last 10, including four in a row.

The Eagles are coming off a pair of lopsided OVC losses at home, falling to Tennessee-Martin 82-69 and Murray State 95-72.

Still, the Eagles have their share of talent.

"They've got some good players, but they just have been struggling," Garner said. "But we expect them to come in here and play well. We've got to be ready for a strong performance from them."

Alex Franco, a 6-foot-7 junior forward, is Tech's top scorer and rebounder at 14.9 points and 10.4 boards per game. He also leads the team in most other major categories, including blocked shots (36), steals (34) and assists (47).

The only other player averaging in double figures for the Eagles is 6-6 junior center Wesley Whitehorn (11.1 ppg).

Three players contribute at least nine points a contest: 5-10 senior Albert Wilson (9.4), 6-9 sophomore Eric Akins (9.2) and 6-2 junior Ricardo Woodfine (9.1).

Southeast continues to receive balanced scoring, with all five starters averaging between 8.3 and 13.3 points per game.

Guards Cory Johnson and Kahn Cotton are both at 13.3, followed by center David Montgomery (10.3), forward Calvert White (9.6) and forward Demetrius Watson (8.3).

The Indians will play their sixth straight game without leading scorer and rebounder Bud Eley, who continues to recover from a broken foot.

Garner knows how important this two-game homestand is for the Indians if they want to be a contender in the OVC race. Following tonight's contest, the Indians will take on league-leading Middle Tennessee State Saturday night.

"It's really early in the season and you can't really say you have to win this or that game," he said. "But winning at home especially is crucial."

Tennessee Tech at SEMO

7:05 p.m., Show Me Center

Probable Starters

SEMO (6-6, 2-2 OVC)

Player Pos. Yr. Ht. Avg.

Calvert White F Sr. 6-4 9.6

Demetrius Watson F Jr. 6-4 8.3

David Mongomery C Jr. 6-8 10.3

Cory Johnson G Jr. 6-0 13.3

Kahn Cotton G Jr. 5-10 13.3

TT (4-10, 0-3 OVC)

Player Pos. Yr. Ht. Avg.

Ricky Cabrera F Sr. 6-4 4.1

Alex Franco F Jr. 6-7 14.9

Wesley Whitehorn C Jr. 6-6 11.1

Marc Glanton G Sr. 5-11 2.9

Albert Wilson G Sr. 5-10 9.4

Series: Tied 6-6

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