INDIANS TO VISIT HOME OF BRAVES

PEORIA, Ill. -- Southeast Missouri State University's 1998-99 basketball opener went just fine as the Indians hammered Division II Southern Illinois-Edwardsville 78-35 Saturday night.

But if the Indians are to make it 2-0 on the young season, they're going to have to knock off a most formidable foe in the Bradley Braves.

The squads will square off at 7:05 tonight at Carver Arena. It will be the season opener for the Braves.

"Bradley is always extremely tough at home to begin with. Throw in the fact that they should have a good basketball team this year, a lot better than last year, and it's going to be an extremely difficult challenge for us," said Southeast coach Gary Garner.

But Garner figures that at least the Indians should find out a whole lot more about themselves tonight. They probably didn't really learn all that much from the season-opening rout of SIU-Edwardsville. Likewise, both Southeast's exhibition games were lopsided victories.

"I think we'll definitely know more about where we stand after this game," Garner said.

The Indians beat the Braves 79-71 in Cape Girardeau last year. Bradley went on to finish 15-14 for its fifth straight winning season. Along the way, the Braves also beat Michigan and Villanova at home.

Although Bradley lost its leading scorer and rebounder from last season, center Bayo Akinkunle -- who is now playing professionally in Germany -- the Braves return a host of other key players, including a standout backcourt.

Rob Dye, a 6-foot-1 junior, was second behind Akinkunle in scoring last year, averaging 12.5 points per game and sinking 39 percent of his 3-point attempts.

Eric Robinson had 71 steals and averaged eight points per game last year.

"We lost our most athletic big man," said Bradley coach Jim Molinari. "Roberson and Dye have a chance to make an excellent pair of guards. They took a big step last year and, with more improvement, could be impact players on a nightly basis."

"They've got excellent guards, maybe the best tandem in the Missouri Valley Conference," Garner said. "It's going to be really hard for us to match up with them."

Molinari will be counting on several returning players up front to help ease the loss of Akinkunle. Ed Cage, a 6-7 junior, averaged 7.6 points last year. Gavin Schairer, a 6-7 senior, averaged five points and shot a team-high 43 percent from 3-point range.

All told, the top five scorers after Akinkunle from last season return.

"They lost a very good big man, but they've got a lot of veterans back and they're going to have an excellent team," said Garner. "Their front line is very athletic, big and strong."

Garner was for the most part satisfied with the way the Indians performed in their opener, but he realizes they have so much room for improvement.

Southeast had four players score in double figures Saturday, including two first-year performers in junior forwards Mike Branson and Roderick Johnson, who had 14 and 12 points, respectively.

Two senior veterans, forward Demetrius Watson and center Bud Eley, scored 13 and 11 points, respectively.

"I thought we did some good things, particularly in the second half, but we really have a long way to go," Garner said. "I'm not sure if we're ready to take on a team like Bradley on the road."

The Indians will find out tonight.

SEMO at Bradley

7:05 p.m., Carver Arena, Peoria, Ill.

Probable Starters

SEMO (1-0)

Player Pos. Yr. Ht. Avg.

Mike Branson F Jr. 6-6 14.0

Roderick Johnson F Jr. 6-6 12.0

Bud Eley C Sr. 6-10 11.0

Cory Johnson G Sr. 6-0 7.0

Jeramy Biles G So. 5-11 6.0

BU (0-0)

Player Pos. Yr. Ht. Avg.

Matthew Lee F Jr. 6-5 0.0

Gavin Schairer F Sr. 6-7 0.0

Eddie Cage C Jr. 6-7 0.0

Rob Dye G Jr. 6-5 0.0

Jerome Robinson G So. 6-0 0.0

Series: Tied 1-1

Last meeting: SEMO won 79-71 in 1997-98

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