Redhawks attempt to build off dramatic home win

~ The Redhawks are 1-0 in conference play heading to a two-game swing through Tennessee.

Bolstered by winning its Ohio Valley Conference opener in thrilling fashion, Southeast Missouri State now hits the road in search of more OVC success.

The Redhawks (3-5, 1-0 OVC) play at Tennessee State (2-4, 0-0) tonight, followed by a contest at Tennessee Tech (3-3, 0-1) on Saturday. Both tipoffs are set for 7:30 p.m.

"Home wins are precious and priceless," said Southeast coach Scott Edgar, whose squad rallied from 14 points down to beat visiting Tennessee-Martin 81-79 Saturday night. "Now we have an opportunity to go get some precious and priceless road wins."

Tennessee State and Tennessee Tech were picked second and third, respectively, in the OVC's preseason poll, meaning the Redhawks will be underdogs in both games. Southeast was the preseason No. 5 selection.

"Like any OVC trip, it's extremely difficult. I think we might be playing two of the most athletic teams in the entire OVC," Edgar said. "It's a tremendous challegenge. But I've always said, the bigger the challenge, the bigger the opportunity.

"I think this is going to be as balanced as any OVC you've seen. The teams that protect their home court will have the best chance of finishing in the top four. We've already protected our home court once, now we have to see what we can do on the road."

Edgar hopes what the Redhawks were able to pull off in their first league game will help them carry added confidence on this road trip. His players believe that will be the case.

The Redhawks trailed Tennessee-Martin by 14 points midway through the second half Saturday and were still behind by six points with under 2 minutes left.

But Southeast rallied with 11 consecutive points, taking the lead for good on junior swingman David Johnson's 3-pointer with 52 seconds remaining.

"I think a game like this will really help us on the road trip," said Johnson, who led the Redhawks with 20 points against Tennessee-Martin and has scored 36 points in the last two games. "It should give us a lot of confidence.

"We know this is going to be a really tough trip, but I think we're getting better and better."

Added freshman guard Marcus Rhodes, who had the best game of his young Southeast career with 14 points and six assists off the bench against Tennessee-Martin: "A game like this has got to help our confidence, knowing we can come back like that."

Southeast, a relatively small team even by OVC standards, will have to combat a big and brawny Tennessee State squad tonight.

The Tigers' front line features 6-foot-11, 240-pound senior center Larry Turner, 6-7, 250-pound senior forward Clarence Matthews and 6-8 senior forward Courtney Bohannon.

"They're probably the biggest team in the OVC. They're huge," Edgar said. "And they probably have the most athletic team up front."

Turner, a transfer from Oklahoma in his second season with the Tigers, averages just 6.2 points per game, but he is third in the OVC in rebounding with 8.8 per contest.

Matthews is tied for sixth in the OVC in scoring with teammate Ladarious Weaver, each at 15.5 points per game, and Matthews ranks sixth in rebounding with a 7.7 average.

Matthews was a second-team all-OVC pick last year, when he led the league in field-goal shooting at 57.4 percent, although he is at only 45.3 percent this year.

"He's a preseason all-conference player who is living up to that," Edgar said. "He scores in a variety of ways. He'll be in contention for conference player of the year."

Weaver, a junior guard, leads the league in 3-pointers made, with 22 in 56 attempts for 39.3 percent.

The Tigers have a solid rebounding team as they are beating their opponents on the boards by an average of 1.5 per game.

Southeast is last in the league in rebounding margin at minus 8.4.

"They do a tremendous job in rebounding," Edgar said. "Most of the teams we play against will have us in size and length. That's why we have to get the game stretched out.

"If the game settles in between the foul lines, they have a huge advantage. We have to make teams uncomfortable."

Edgar said the Redhawks also have to continue displaying the energy that fueled Saturday's late comeback.

"We're going to have to take the energy we had the last nine minutes against Tennessee-Martin to the road," he said. "If we do, we'll have an opportunity."