OTAHKIANS WIN WILD SHOOTOUT

Eastern Kentucky University's women's basketball team has bullied Southeast Missouri State for years.

But on Saturday, thanks to a record-smashing shooting exhibition from Paula Corder and stellar efforts from Tajauna White and friends, the Otahkians turned the tables.

Southeast outlasted Ohio Valley Conference adversary EKU for only the second time in 17 tries with its 101-93 double-overtime triumph at the Show Me Center.

Corder, a 5-foot-10 junior forward from Ellington who transferred to Southeast this season from Three Rivers Community College, knocked down a school-record 9 of 11 3-pointers, sank 13 of 14 free throws and finished with 44 points, second most in Southeast history.

With the Otahkians trailing 91-90 with 1 minute 18 seconds remaining in the second overtime, Corder, who carried a 15.8-point average into the game, hit a 3 with 1:04 to go before moving Southeast ahead 95-91 and for good with a pair of free throws with 51 seconds left.

"Paula is a great shooter and a great offensive player," Southeast coach Ed Arnzen said. "She's not big enough to play where I want her to and maybe not strong enough, but you give the basketball to her and you better get up on her.

"And the problem is that if you get up on her too good, she drives and you foul her, and she's as good a free-throw shooter as in there is in the country."

Corder said she once had a 41-point outing in junior college, but her performance Saturday was especially fine because it helped advance Southeast to 8-2 overall, good for the Otahkians' best start since the 1990-91 season, and, more importantly, to 3-0 in the OVC.

EKU slipped to 4-6 overall and 1-2 in the OVC.

"I had a couple games in junior college that were about like this, but this one tonight felt good," Corder said. "It was a sweet win, going into double overtime.

"We're definitely surprising some conference teams, and it feels good."

After trailing 32-28 at halftime, Southeast led the final 4:43 of regulation until EKU guard Mikki Bonds, a freshman who had a team-high 20 points and 11 rebounds, drove toward the basket and dropped in a short jumper to tie the game 72-72 with six seconds left and send it into overtime.

EKU seemed to have the second overtime in hand as they held a seven-point lead with just over a minute and a half left in the first extra period. The Colonels led until Corder was fouled on a 3-point attempt with seven seconds remaining and Southeast trailing 84-81.

Unfazed by the pressure, Corder sank all three to tie the score. EKU's Larrya Wall missed a 10-footer at the buzzer as the game stretched to a second extra period.

"I always have said that I wanted to get in that situation," Corder said, "and when I did get in that situation, I was like, `Uh, oh.' But I was pretty confident."

Said Arnzen: "I didn't have any doubt that she was going to hit all three free throws."

Corder scored eight points in the second OT, Reagan Hughston and Annie Struve both knocked down jumpers early in the period and Tiffany Melis hit 3 of 4 free throws in the last 33 seconds to help stave off the Colonels.

Southeast's White, a 5-9 senior forward, tallied 21 points and a team-high 11 rebounds and guard Rusty Sowers had 10 points.

Point guard Shauna Cook, who filled in for Moneik Campbell, who has been out since Christmas with an upper respiratory infection and will remain unavailable indefinitely, handled EKU's pressure well and distributed a game-high nine assists.