Redhawks down Austin Peay in triple overtime

~ Southeast men broke their six-game losing streak against the OVC leader.

Southeast Missouri State's basketball players said they were enjoying themselves so much, they hardly seemed flustered when the game dragged on past the three-hour mark.

Three overtimes? So what.

"It's probably the most exciting game I've ever been in," junior wing Jaycen Herring said.

Added junior guard Kenard Moore: "It was fun."

Southeast coach Scott Edgar glanced at the scoreboard as the players lined up for a free throw during Tuesday's OVC game at the Show Me Center. Southeast beat Austin Peay 121-116 in triple overtime. (Aaron Eisenhauer)

Tuesday night's nationally televised contest at the Show Me Center was extra enjoyable because of the way things turned out for the Redhawks.

Southeast snapped a six-game losing streak and ended a string of frustrating losses to Austin Peay with an amazing 121-116 triple-overtime victory.

"It was exactly what we needed," senior center Mike Rembert said.

Herring, Moore and Rembert all had big games, and junior backup point guard Hank Harris saved his best for last by scoring nine points in the third overtime.

But there's no way Southeast coach Scott Edgar could pick one primary star after his squad outlasted the defending Ohio Valley Conference regular-season champions.

Southeast's Jaycen Herring dribbled the ball down the court during the first half. Herring scored a team-high 29 points. (AARON EISENHAUER aeisenhauer@semissourian.com)

"Everybody played great tonight, and that's what it took," Edgar said.

A national television audience on ESPNU saw the Redhawks (12-11, 7-6) beat Austin Peay for just the second time in the past 15 meetings.

The Governors (13-9, 9-3), who fell into a first-place tie with Murray State, had won the last three meetings against Southeast by a total of six points, including by three points at home Jan. 12.

"It's a great feeling," senior guard David Johnson said of finally beating the Govs. "We had a lot of nail-biters. ... It just felt good to finally beat them at home."

Herring, a junior college transfer who is Southeast's leading scorer this season, put in a career-high 29 points and added a career-high 12 rebounds for his first double-double at Southeast.

Southeast's Mike Rembert attempted a shot from under the basket. Rembert finished with 17 points, nine rebounds and four blocks.

Moore, also a junior college transfer, came off the bench to score a career-high 28 points. He hit 7-of-10 from 3-point range -- mostly from well beyond the arc -- and is 11-of-16 on 3-pointers in his last two games.

"I don't know where I'm at to be honest," said Moore of his knack for firing from very long distance. "If I'm open, I'll shoot it."

Rembert, playing his best ball of the season after going through two surgeries since last year, had a season-high 17 points to go along with nine rebounds and four blocked shots.

That came after Rembert had 13 points and 10 boards during Saturday's one-point loss at Murray State.

Edgar said he believes Rembert is finally getting healthy again. Rembert said he has felt fine physically for a while.

"I just think with the season it's been a progression," Rembert said.

Sophomore guard Marcus Rhodes contributed 13 points and seven rebounds.

And probably nobody came up bigger than Harris, a juco transfer who backs up sophomore starter Roderick Pearson.

Harris had scored 23 points all season, and was averaging less than 12 minutes of playing time.

With Pearson picking up two early fouls and battling foul trouble all night before finally fouling out with about six minutes left in regulation, Harris played 41 minutes.

He scored all 12 of his points in the three overtimes. Nine came in the final extra period, including a 3-pointer at the end of the shot clock with 41 seconds left that put Southeast up 115-111.

Harris made four of Southeast's six free throws in the final 29 seconds as the Redhawks nailed down the victory. He also finished with a game-high seven assists.

"The only thing after that on my mind was get this stop, and help us win," Harris said of his thoughts following his late 3-pointer. "All I wanted was to get a stop on defense so we could get the ball, come down, get fouled and win."

Southeast, all alone in sixth place in the 11-team OVC, but just a game out of third place, survived 30 turnovers, three players fouling out and a career-high 43-point explosion by Austin Peay senior point guard Derek Wright.

The Redhawks shot 58.6 percent from the field, including 52.2 percent from 3-point range, and outrebounded the Govs 56-47.

Still, Southeast never could put Austin Peay away, despite having control for most of regulation.

"You can't TKO the champion," Edgar said. "You gotta knock 'em out."

Southeast led 78-66 with just under 5 minutes left, but Austin Peay closed with a 15-3 run to force overtime at 81-81.

The fun was just beginning.

Herring scored nine of Southeast's 11 points in the first 5-minute extra session, but there was still no winner as the squads ended 92-92.

Things stayed tight in the second overtime, and Southeast sophomore wing Johnny Hill hit 1-of-2 free throws with 56 seconds left for a 101-101 draw.

Moore's final 3-pointer of the night, just 34 seconds into the third overtime, put Southeast up 104-101. The Redhawks never relinquished the advantage.

"There's not a lot of teams that could have lost six straight. ... and played with the passion these guys did tonight," Edgar said.

In addition to Harris playing his most minutes of the season, so did Herring (46), Rembert (40) and Moore (35).

That's what it took as the Redhawks won the highest-scoring combined game in the program's history, surpassing the 119-113 win over Troy State in 1993-94.

Southeast just missed out on its highest point total since moving to Division I in 1991-92 as the 1993-94 squad put up 125 points in a victory over Chicago State.