Morehead State doubles up on Southeast

MOREHEAD, Ky. -- It would be hard to imagine a more gruesome first-half statistics sheet than what Dickey Nutt had to look at during the intermission.

Southeast Missouri State's first-year men's basketball coach could only shake his head in amazement.

In what surely ranks among the most futile halves of basketball in modern Southeast hoops history, the Redhawks had 10 points and 20 turnovers in Thursday's opening period at Morehead State.

"I haven't been involved in a game like that," Nutt said. "I don't remember playing that poorly. We haven't played that poorly this year no matter who we've gone up against."

That first-half performance left the visiting Redhawks in a 40-10 hole and things didn't get much better in the second half of an 80-40 drubbing.

No Southeast records are kept for fewest points in a half, but the 40-point output marks the lowest single-game total since the university moved up to Division I in 1991-92.

Southeast's previous low was 41 points three times, including this season's opener at Saint Louis.

The Redhawks also set a program record for largest margin of defeat in an Ohio Valley Conference game since joining the league in 1991-92. The previous worst loss was 97-58 at Tennessee Tech in 1994-95.

"We got down and they kept turning it on," junior guard Sam Pearson said. "We know we're better than that."

Southeast, coming off Saturday's 20-point loss at Eastern Illinois, fell to 5-11 overall and 2-4 in OVC play. The Redhawks remained tied for sixth place in the 10-team league.

"Right now we're just really struggling. We're really timid right now," Nutt said. "Every phase was not good."

MSU (11-6, 6-1), the defending OVC tournament champion and preseason conference co-favorite, posted its seventh straight victory. The Eagles are in second place in the league.

"I want to say this. There's certainly no way we're 40 points better than Southeast Missouri," MSU coach Donnie Tyndall said. "It was one of those nights where we played absolutely the best we could and they missed a lot of open looks.

"We've got a veteran team, we're getting better ... but it will be different when we go to Cape Girardeau."

Junior forward Cameron Butler, Southeast's No. 2 scorer and rebounder with averages of 9.2 points and 5.5 rebounds per game, missed the contest after suffering a foot injury during Sunday's practice.

"We just want to do what's best with Cameron," said Nutt, who doesn't know if Butler will play when Southeast closes out its road trip Saturday at Eastern Kentucky.

Although Southeast never led or was tied, neither squad did much offensively in the early going. So the Redhawks trailed just 8-5 after more than eight minutes.

But once the Eagles started heating up and Southeast kept struggling, things got out of hand.

The Eagles scored 32 of the opening period's final 37 points -- including the last 18 -- to build their 30-point bulge. Their biggest second-half lead was 44 points at 71-27.

"We turned the ball over and they had a nice little run," Pearson said. "This is just a bad stretch for us. We'll get better."

Southeast, in addition to the 20 turnovers, had just three first-half field goals. The Redhawks shot 17.6 percent (3 of 17), while MSU shot 48.5 percent (16 of 33).

The Redhawks, taking care of the ball better in the final period, finished the game with 27 turnovers against only three assists while shooting 22.9 percent (11 of 48).

Southeast was 2 of 13 on 3-pointers (15.4 percent) and both triples, from freshman guard Derek Thompson, came during the final three minutes during garbage time.

"We have a hard time scoring right now, especially with Cameron out," Nutt said.

MSU ended up shooting 47 percent (31 of 66) and hit 9 of 26 from beyond the arc (34.6 percent). The Eagles had 16 turnovers and 17 assists.

"We don't want that to happen again," sophomore forward Rae-Vonn Banks said.

MSU standout junior Kenneth Faried, the OVC's premier inside player, had his 43rd career double-double, including 11 this season.

Faried, the reigning OVC defensive player of the year and tournament MVP, scored 12 points and grabbed 16 rebounds despite playing only seven second-half minutes. He had three thunderous dunks and also blocked three shots.

Faried, the league's preseason player of the year, entered Thursday second nationally in rebounding at 12.8 per game. He helped MSU outrebound Southeast 46-36.

"He's an outstanding player," Nutt said.

Thompson, who started the season strong but has seen his playing time decrease dramatically recently, scored all of his team-high 10 points in the second half.

Banks, in his first season at Southeast, scored a career-high eight points in a career-high 19 minutes and provided an energy boost. He was the Redhawks' top first-half scorer with three points.

"He played hard. He had some good hustle plays," Nutt said.

Said Banks, who added three rebounds and two steals: "I just try to give all I've got."

Southeast faces another of the OVC's top teams Saturday as Eastern Kentucky (12-6, 5-2) sits in third place.

The Colonels own the nation's ninth-longest active home winning streak at 17 straight dating back to last season.

"We're going to bury that tape [from Thursday[']s game] and we're going to go to work," Nutt said.