SE TEAMS HEADED IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS

The initial goal of every Ohio Valley Conference basketball team -- men or women -- each year is to win the league's regular-season championship.

But probably the ultimate goal for OVC squads is to capture the conference tournament, which means an automatic berth in the Big Dance -- the NCAA tourney.

Toward that end, OVC teams fight hard to try and finish in the top four during the regular season, thus earning a home date for the first round of the league tournament and thus having a more reasonable path of advancing to Nashville, Tenn. -- the neutral site of the tourney semifinals and championship game.

Right now, Southeast Missouri State University's squads are definitely heading in opposite directions as far as securing home berths for the opening round of the OVC Tournament.

Southeast's men, who have been at home to start the league tourney the past two seasons -- the Indians went on to make it to the championship game each year and won the title last season -- are tied for sixth place in the nine-team conference at 4-6 following Saturday night's surprising 96-94 home loss to Tennessee State.

Southeast's women, who made it to Nashville the last time they earned a first-round OVC Tournament home game two years ago, are tied for third place at 7-3 after Saturday's 95-84 home triumph over Tennessee State.

Teams hit road

So as the Indians and Otahkians prepare for three consecutive difficult road games this week -- Tuesday at Tennessee Tech, Thursday at Murray State and Saturday at Tennessee-Martin -- they certainly have differing outlooks on the OVC race.

"It's really going to be tough for us now," said Indians' coach Gary Garner, whose squad has already suffered just one fewer OVC loss than it did in the previous two seasons combined. "We've really dug ourselves a big hole. In any conference, you have to protect your home court and we haven't been able to do that."

The Indians not only haven't been able to protect their home court, they've been basically pillaged in it, losing four of five OVC games at the Show Me Center so far.

Granted, those four defeats have been by a total of 11 points there were three two-pointers and a five-pointer but that does little to ease Garner's pain, especially considering Southeast went 15-3 at the Show Me Center in regular-season OVC play the previous two years.

Indians need streak

For the defending conference regular-season co-champion Indians, who are 13-9 overall, probably nothing short of sweeping their last six OVC games would give them a shot at a top-four finish.

And even winning out the rest of the way certainly wouldn't guarantee Southeast a spot in the top four. The current fourth-place team, 6-4 Austin Peay, swept the two-game season series against the Indians, meaning if those squads end up deadlocked for fourth then the Govs gain the tie-breaker.

Third-place Murray State is 6-3. The Racers, who beat the Indians earlier, could very well get another loss Tuesday when they visit Austin Peay. If that happens, then the Indians could put some heat on the Racers by knocking them off Thursday, but that would only mean much if Southeast is able to win at Tennessee Tech Tuesday.

And that won't be easy, considering the Golden Eagles are tied for first place with Eastern Illinois, both at 8-2.

You get the picture. In order to earn a first-round OVC Tournament home game, the Indians will not only have to go on a real tear the rest of the way, they also will need plenty of help from other teams, which is something a coach never likes to depend on.

Otahks in control

On the other hand, the Otahkians control their own destiny for a top-four finish and are still in the running for the regular-season title, although 10-0 Tennessee Tech would really have to falter the rest of the way.

The Otahkians, 12-8 overall, are tied for third place with Austin Peay, both squads just a half-game behind second-place Eastern Kentucky (7-2) and two full games ahead of fifth-place Tennessee-Martin (4-5).

"Right now we're in good shape (to get a league tourney home game), but there is still a lot of basketball left to be played and we really can't think that far ahead," said Otahkians' coach Ed Arnzen. "We've got three really tough games this week. If we stumble this week, we could come right back to the pack."