SE ON THE WARPATH: SUCCESS COMES SOONER THAN EXPECTED

When Southeast Missouri State University hired Gary Garner as its men's basketball coach less than two years ago, school administrators were confident that he could lead the Indians to Division I success.

But it's doubtful that even the most ardent Southeast supporters believed the success would come so quickly.

In just his second season in charge of the Southeast program, Garner led the Indians to unmatched success since the school made the move up to the Division I level eight years ago.

Never prior to this season had the Indians won more than 16 games on the Division I level. Never had they finished higher than third in the Ohio Valley Conference. And never had they won an OVC Tournament game.

But in a season of firsts for Southeast basketball, all those aforementioned statistics fell by the wayside.

Coming after a 14-13 record in Garner's first year at Southeast, this season the Indians went 20-9, finished a strong second in the OVC with a 15-3 record and advanced to the OVC Tournament championship game for the first time ever.

Only a buzzer-beating shot by Murray State Sunday kept the Indians from winning the tourney title and gaining their first-ever berth in the NCAA Division I Tournament.

"I'm really proud of what our team accomplished this year," said Garner. "We had a lot of firsts and we almost had one more."

Garner has preached the family concept of basketball since he came to Cape Girardeau and the Indians have bought into it in a big way.

While the Indians were blessed with talent this season, probably the key to their success was the way they worked as a team -- not to mention the way they played defense.

Southeast led the OVC in scoring defense and field-goal percentage defense.

"This group was just really determined all the way through," Garner said. "We really became a close-knit group. We really feel like a family."

Although the Indians return some key players for next season, the loss of four seniors -- three of them starters and among the team's top players -- will be felt in a big way.

The Indians' major loss is senior center Bud Eley, the OVC Player of the Year who had a brilliant four-season career at Southeast and a sensational senior campaign. Eley averaged a double-double of more than 15 points and 10 rebounds per game.

"Losing Bud, needless to say, will really hurt," said Garner.

Other seniors are starting guards Cory Johnson and Kahn Cotton, along with key reserve forward Demetrius Watson.

Johnson averaged more than 10 points per game and set a school career free-throw percentage record. He was the OVC free-throw champion during both his seasons at Southeast.

Cotton, the Indians' point guard, averaged more than eight points per game and led the squad in assists. He became known for his clutch shots at the end of games.

Watson, a starter much of his junior season, contributed nearly four points a game.

"All four seniors were extremely valuable and we'll really miss them," Garner said. "They're not only very good basketball players but quality people."

But the cupboard won't be bare. Junior forwards Roderick Johnson and Mike Branson averaged more than 12 and 10 points per game, respectively.

And several key reserves will return, including junior forward/center Brian Bunche, freshman guard Fred Abraham and sophomore guard Nathan Owen.

The Indians will also be looking to sign several talented recruits and advancing to the OVC Tournament championship game that was shown nationally on ESPN certainly can't hurt in that area.

Southeast has already signed two players and has several more scholarships available.

"I like the nucleus of our team," Garner said. "I think we'll be fine."

(All statistics on this page are through February 23)

No. 3 Cory Johnson

Position: Guard

Height: 6-0

Year: Senior

Hometown: Piedmont

Cory averaged 10.8 points per game. He had 63 3-pointers, and shot .389 from 3-point range.

No. 4 Brian Bunche

Position: Center

Height: 6-8

Year: Junior

Hometown: Little Rock, Ark.

Brian averaged 3.4 points per game. He also rebounded 86 times during the regular season.

No. 5 Kahn Cotton

Position: Guard

Height: 5-10

Year: Senior

Hometown: North Little Rock, Ark.

Kahn averaged 8.2 points per game. He also shot .846 from the free throw line and had 79 assists.

No. 10 Fred Abraham

Position: Guard

Height 6-0

Year: Freshman

Hometown: Patterson, N.J.

Fred averaged 3.0 points per game and had 35 assists.

No. 12 Ben Pranger

Position: Guard

Height: 5-10

Year: Freshman

Hometown: St. Louis

No. 20 Nathan Owen

Position: Guard

Height: 6-2

Year: Sophomore

Hometown: Cape Girardeau

No. 22 Ryan Thomas

Position: Guard

Height: 6-1

Year: Freshman

Hometown: Carbondale, Ill.

No. 23 Drew DeMond

Position: Forward

Height: 6-7

Year: Freshman

Hometown: Rockton, Ill.

No. 24 Kyle Rees

Position: Guard

Height: 6-3

Year: Freshman

Hometown: Jonesboro, Ark.

No. 30 Demetrius Watson

Position: Forward

Height: 6-4

Year: Senior

Hometown: St. Louis

He averaged 4.1 points per game.

No. 33 Roderick Johnson

Position: Forward

Height: 6-6

Year: Junior

Hometown: Milwaukee, Wisc.

He earned a spot on All-OVC Newcomers team.

No. 34 Matt Morris

Position: Guard

Height: 6-2

Year: Sophomore

Hometown: McLeansboro, Ill.

No. 44 Mike Branson

Position: Forward

Height: 6-6

Year: Junior

Hometown: St. Louis

He averaged 10.3 points per game, including 34 3-pointers. He also had 41 assists.

No. 54 William "Bud" Eley

Position: Center

Height: 6-10

Year: Senior

Hometown: Detroit, Mich.

He averaged 15.2 points per game, including 56 assists. He was named the OVC Player of the Year.