Redhawks try to avert slow start in OVC

~ Southeast men look to pick up steam this week at home after dropping their conference opener.

No matter what happens this week, Southeast Missouri State will still have 17 Ohio Valley Conference games remaining.

But coach Gary Garner knows that the Redhawks' two-game homestand is mighty important as they attempt to avoid the kind of slow OVC start that plagued them last year.

Southeast (2-3, 0-1 OVC) hosts Tennessee State (1-0, 0-0) Thursday night and Tennessee Tech (4-1, 1-0) Saturday night, after which the Redhawks will have six of their next eight OVC contests -- including four of five -- on the road.

"It's a big week for us," Garner said during his weekly media conference on Monday. "We don't want to dig a hole like last year."

The Redhawks lost their first two OVC games last season and started out conference play 1-4, but they recovered, thanks to a seven-game winning streak.

"But that's hard to do. Not many teams in the country win seven in a row," Garner said. "It's very important we win Thursday, because Tennessee Tech might be the best team in the league, looking at scores."

The Eagles, Saturday's opponent, lost OVC player of the year Willie Jenkins from last season's team that won the regular-season conference title, but they returned most of their other key players.

Tennessee Tech has arguably the league's two most impressive nonconference wins to date, beating Oregon State of the Pac-10 Conference by 28 points and defeating Wisconsin-Milwaukee, which returned four starters from last year's NCAA Sweet 16 squad.

Tennessee State has had just one game so far, a 72-63 win over Division III Fisk on Nov. 21. The Tigers will come to the Show Me Center having not played in more than two weeks.

"I'd rather have played more, but they'll be well rested and they'll have more tape on us," Garner said.

Chappell hasn't played

Junior forward John Chappell, a transfer from Highland (Ill.) Community College, is the only Southeast player who has not yet appeared in a game.

Garner said that will likely continue as Chappell could possibly redshirt this season.

"John Chappell is one of those young men that has not come on in our system," Garner said. "At this stage of the game, we don't think he can help us. We don't want to waste a year of eligibility by playing him 20 seconds.

"We don't think he will help us this year."

White could play more

Junior center Tyrell White, a transfer from Wayne County Community College in Detroit, has next to Chappell seen the least action of any Southeast player, appearing in three games for a total of 11 minutes. He has scored two points.

With Southeast's inside players struggling offensively so much, Garner said White -- a 6-foot-7, 250-pounder -- could start playing more, although he was held out of Saturday's loss at Tennessee-Martin because of a medical condition that centers around the heart.

Garner said doctors want to run more tests before clearing White for further action. As long as White is cleared, Garner said, "He could start playing more."

Johnson set for surgery

Junior guard David Johnson, a transfer from Meramec Community College in St. Louis who is the Redhawks' third leading scorer, will have hernia surgery today.

Johnson, averaging 9.7 points per game, missed the Tennessee-Martin contest and will be sidelined indefinitely.

"Hopefully he won't miss too many games, but we just don't know how long he'll be out," Garner said.