Redhawks fall to 0-12 in OVC

Several struggling men's basketball teams have gotten well at Southeast Missouri State's expense this season.

Tennessee Tech was the latest to join the list.

The Eagles also became the latest squad to pile on the reeling Redhawks.

Tech blew open a close game in the first five minutes of the second half and rolled to a 91-75 victory Saturday night at the Show Me Center.

The Eagles, who had lost five of their previous seven games, improved to 11-10 overall and a seventh-place 5-6 in the 10-team Ohio Valley Conference.

FRED LYNCH ~ flynch@semissourian.comSoutheast Missouri State's Jajuan Maxwell passes the ball away from Tennessee Tech's Zac Walker during the first half Saturday at the Show Me Center.

"We've been up and down," said Tech coach Mike Sutton, whose squad has won 12 of the past 13 meetings against Southeast. "I'm pleased with the result."

Southeast (3-20, 0-12) has been nothing but down as the undermanned Redhawks lost for the 12th straight time.

Dating back to last season, when Southeast lost its final seven OVC games, the Redhawks have dropped 19 consecutive league contests.

"You've just got to keep working hard," junior forward LaMont Russell said.

Tech blew out Southeast for the second time this month after the Eagles romped 103-76 on Jan. 3 in Cookeville, Tenn.

"They've got all the pieces," Southeast acting coach Zac Roman said of the Eagles. "To me they looked like one of the top two teams in the OVC both times we played them."

Unlike the earlier contest at Tech, in which Southeast trailed by 13 points at halftime, the Redhawks were in contention at the break Saturday.

Despite falling behind 11-1 in the first four minutes, Southeast trailed just 35-31 at the intermission.

"We were right there," junior center Calvin Williams said.

Not for long.

It took just five minutes of the second half for the Redhawks to fall apart.

That's how long the Eagles needed to build a 58-37 lead courtesy of a 23-6 burst to start the period.

"They were doing a lot of things right and we weren't executing," Russell said.

The closest Southeast got after that was 61-49 as 72.4-percent second-half shooting allowed the Eagles to cruise.

Tech outscored Southeast 56-44 in the final period.

"I think we lost focus," Williams said of Southeast's second-half performance. "We have to get better at staying focused."

Daniel Northern, one of the OVC's premier big men, tore apart the Redhawks.

Northern, a 6-foot-9 senior center, scored a career-high 27 points and matched his career high with 18 rebounds to go along with two blocks and three steals.

"I've been waiting for Daniel to have that type of explosion," Sutton said.

Northern, who hit 10 of 13 shots, scored 21 second-half points. He entered the game with averages of 11.4 points and 7.5 rebounds while leading the OVC in blocks.

"He had a great game," said the 6-9 Williams, who also ranks among the league's top centers. "Daniel's a great athlete. He can run the floor, rebound."

Said Roman of Northern: "We just didn't have an answer for him."

Kevin Murphy, a 6-6 freshman forward, also had a career night for the Eagles with 16 points. He had been averaging 6.5 points per game.

Southeast was paced by senior guard Kenard Moore with 21 points.

Senior forward Jaycen Herring scored 17 points for the Redhawks while Williams added 12 points, 11 rebounds, four blocks and three steals.

"They have three players that could start for any team in our league," said Sutton of Moore, Herring and Williams. "They're very good offensive players."

Southeast's offense wasn't the major problem Saturday as the Redhawks shot a respectable 45 percent and scored eight points above their season average.

The Redhawks' defense, on the other hand, left plenty to be desired, especially in the decisive second half.

"We broke down a little bit defensively on some major possessions," Russell said. "We gave up too many easy baskets."

Southeast has a week between games as it visits Eastern Illinois on Saturday.