OVC-leading Skyhawks visit Southeast Missouri State women

~ The Skyhawks have compiled a 10-1 record in conference play

Southeast Missouri State women's basketball coach Ty Margenthaler knows that when his team faces off against the top team in the Ohio Valley Conference, it's going to have to be firing on all cylinders to pull off a win, but it's going to start by slowing down the most potent offense in the conference.

The Redhawks (8-16, 4-7 OVC) host the three-time defending OVC tournament champion UT- Martin (17-7, 10-1 OVC) at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Show Me Center.

The Skyhawks have two of the top scorers in the conference in Heather Butler and Jasmine Newsome. Butler averages 23 ppg while Newsome averages 19.2.

"We'll stick with our normal man-to-man, but we are working on a few different things just to face them a little bit differently," Margenthaler said. "We really have not changed much ever playing them defensively. And again, they have more than just two players. Their two guards are tremendous with Butler and Newsome, but Ashia Jones down low, she really hurt us the first game. We're going to have to take away more than just two players, but we are working on a few things that hopefully would work against them."

Southeast lost to UTM 100-71 on Jan. 13, and while Butler and Newsome scored 23 and 16 points, respectively, Ashia Jones netted 15 and Tiara Caldwell chipped in 12.

Margenthaler didn't want to go into specifics about what they're going to do differently, but said that the Redhawks, who are tied for ninth place in the OVC standings, are buying into it and understand that every one of these final five games is critical for their chances of securing a berth in the OVC tournament.

"I've said this the last couple weeks, and again I'm so wide open with it because I think they need to know," Margenthaler said. "They're Division I college athletes -- they need to know where we're at and where we stand and what's going on, and if that's pressure then you know what, this is not the place for them.

"I let them know we need to get on a roll. We have five games left -- we need to win four out of five. If we win three then we've got to hope that somebody else gets beat. If you win four out of five, I think we're in, and that's just a fact. I love it. I challenge it. I want that. And hopefully our players will get excited and want that as well. We're going to find out who are the ones that really challenge, and motivate them, or who doesn't."

UTM is coming off its first conference loss of the season -- a 65-62 upset by SIU Edwardsville, which Southeast beat 69-60 in its most recent game.

SIUE held Newsome and Butler to 18 and 12 points, respectively. Two other Skyhawks scored in double figures, but it wasn't enough.

Margenthaler said the two players guarding the duo never left them, and the Skyhawks just had a bad shooting night at 30.6 percent from the field, including 5 of 32 from behind the arc.

As important as slowing down the Skyhawks' offense is, the Redhawks will also have to be successful on the offensive end -- something they've struggled to find consistency in throughout the season.

"They're going to press the whole game; they're going to play man-to-man; they're going to do a zone defense," Margenthaler said. "Teams have been able to score against them because Martin wants the ball -- they want to score. They're not going to want to defend. They want the ball.

"Hopefully we can score against them. We've got to shoot the ball well and work on breaking the zone, breaking the press, and then we've got to work on, of course, getting pretty good stops if at all possible."

The last time the Redhawks and Skyhawks met, Brianna Mitchell scored 20 points and Jordan Hunter added 16. Southeast shot 38 percent and was 3 of 17 from behind the arc.

Margenthaler stressed how important having a home-court advantage, and a large crowd, against the league's best team would be, and he's hopeful that fans will attend the game.

"It's huge, and I think our community understands that," Margenthaler said. "I wish we'd get more support, and I'm not being negative towards that, but everybody wants to play in front of people. I tell our team all the time and I tell people when I go out and speak, 'We work all week long like if you're an actor or you're rehearsing for a play. Then when it's time for the show, you want to show it off in front of fans.'

"Just that extra momentum. Then when you are struggling a little bit -- the ups and downs throughout the game, which happens -- that little extra seeing the people in the crowd supporting you, it does go a long way, and it does give you that home-court advantage. When there's 75 people in the stands -- it's not an excuse -- there's no home-court advantage. That's just the bottom line."