Redhawks avenge loss to Western Illinois, end five-game slide

Calvin Williams said his goal wasn't to personally dominate Western Illinois inside, although that's exactly what happened.

All Williams cared about was helping Southeast Missouri State break a five-game losing streak.

"It was more me doing what it takes to win," Williams said. "We were desperate for a win."

Williams certainly did his part, reaching career highs with 25 points and five blocked shots as the Redhawks squeezed out a 64-63 victory Sunday at the Show Me Center.

Southeast improved to 3-8, while WIU fell to 4-7. The Leathernecks beat the Redhawks 71-66 on Dec. 10 in Macomb, Ill.

FRED LYNCH ~ flynch@semissourian.comSoutheast Missouri State's LaMont Russell drives against Western Illinois' Julian Jones Jr. during the second half Sunday at the Show Me Center.

"We needed this win," senior forward Jaycen Herring said.

Williams, a 6-foot-9 junior forward, hit 7 of 9 field-goal attempts and 11 of 13 free throws. He added five rebounds and two assists.

With WIU having no player taller than 6-5 on the court most of the game, Southeast's plan was to attack the Leathernecks inside with Williams.

"We talked about that the whole game," Southeast acting coach Zac Roman said. "We wanted to get the ball inside."

Williams especially dominated over the final 11 minutes of a contest that was tight the entire way.

FRED LYNCH ~ flynch@semissourian.comABOVE: Southeast Missouri State's Calvin Williams shoot over Western Illlinois defenders Josh Rivers, left, and Rodney Williams Jr. during the second half Sunday at the Show Me Center. BELOW: Southeast's Johnny Hill and Western Illinois' Julian Jones battled for a loose ball during the second half.

Williams, repeatedly going strong to the basket against smaller defenders, scored 14 of Southeast's last 16 points.

Eight of Williams' 14 points down the stretch came from the free-throw line, including two with 1:28 left that broke a 62-62 tie.

"Calvin stepped up," Roman said. "They doubled and tripled him. They still couldn't stop him."

Even before Sunday, Williams had improved all aspects of his game from a year ago, when he averaged 6.9 points and 5.5 rebounds in his first season at Southeast after transferring from Colorado.

Williams is now averaging 16.2 points and 6.9 rebounds, while shooting 57.1 percent from the field and 74.6 percent from the line.

Roman credits Williams -- who last year shot 45.8 percent from the floor and 57.6 percent from the line -- for intense offseason work that has elevated his play.

Williams agreed and said he is especially happy to have improved his free-throw stroke.

"That's my focus right now, trying to get to the line," Williams said.

Southeast had its highest field-goal percentage against a Division I opponent this season -- 52.5 -- and held a Division I opponent to its lowest shooting rate at 36.8.

The Redhawks also continued their strong free-throw shooting -- hitting 19 of 24 for 79.2 percent -- and committed just 12 turnovers.

Despite the numbers, Southeast never could shake pesky WIU.

Down 29-28 after trailing most of the first half, Southeast opened a 56-49 lead midway through the second half to match the biggest advantage of the day for either side.

WIU answered with a 7-0 run to make it 56-56, and there was no more than a three-point margin the rest of the way as each squad held leads.

"They had confidence after beating us last time," Roman said. "I knew they were going to battle."

WIU's Josh Rivers drilled a 3-pointer with 1:44 left for a 62-62 tie.

Sixteen seconds later, Williams was fouled going up for a shot and made both free throws to put Southeast back on top 64-62.

The Leathernecks had a chance for another tie, but Quenton Kirby hit just one of two foul shots with 48 seconds remaining.

Southeast turned the ball over with 27 seconds left, but Williams blocked Kirby's driving shot in the lane with about eight seconds to go.

Junior wing Johnny Hill missed two free throws with 4.9 seconds left, leaving the door open for a winning shot by the Leathernecks.

Hounded closely by Herring, Rivers launched a running 3-pointer from the right corner that hit the rim as the buzzer sounded.

"I was just hoping and praying he missed," Herring said. "We battled too hard to go down on a shot like that.

"I did all I could. If he had made that. ..."

Senior guard Kenard Moore scored 13 points for the Redhawks, while Herring added 11.

"We kept our heads together and played hard till the end of the game," Moore said.

The Redhawks prevailed despite using only seven of their nine scholarship players.

Junior guard Jimmy Drew still has not played due to a foot injury, while junior point guard Bijon Jones missed the contest with an injury suffered last week in practice.

"We had to grind it out," Roman said. "It feels good. Winning is a lot more fun than losing.

"We had a great week of practice, and this is their reward."