SE TO PUT 8-2 RECORD AGAINST 1-0 TENN. STATE

Tennessee State's men's basketball team is struggling big time with a 1-9 record, but that doesn't mean the Tigers aren't dangerous.

So says Southeast Missouri State University coach Gary Garner, whose Indians will entertain the Tigers tonight in a 7:30 tipoff at the Show Me Center as Ohio Valley Conference play resumes for good.

"They've evidently had their problems so far, but they're a talented team," said Garner. "They're certainly a team we can't afford to take lightly."

While the Tigers will be playing their OVC opener tonight, Southeast is already off to a 1-0 league start, thanks to a big win at Tennessee Tech on Dec. 2.

With Garner expecting a balanced league race this season, he figures it's extra important for a team to protect its home court. That means this is a big week for the Indians, who will play host to OVC contender Austin Peay Saturday afternoon.

"You really have to take care of your home court," said Garner, whose squad is 8-2 overall. "This is a big week for us. We'd love to have a really good start (in OVC play) before we go on the road again (next week)."

When Garner looks at Tennessee State, he sees a squad that has a solid starting lineup but lacks depth, which he believes has been a major problem for the Tigers.

"I'm really impressed with the talent of their starters," Garner said. "They've really got some good players. But I don't think they have much depth. Once you get into their bench, I think they struggle some."

To back up Garner's assessment, the Tigers receive virtually all of their scoring from five players. Tennessee State, which has only nine available players, has four players averaging 1.6 points or less per game.

The Tigers have two of the top scorers in the OVC, with 6-foot-3 junior guard Jamie Roberts ranking sixth at 18.4 points per game and 6-6 junior forward Kurtis Murry seventh at 16.8 points a contest.

Kevin Samuel, a 6-3 junior guard, contributes 12.4 points and 6.7 rebounds per game.

Tennessee State also gets solid production from 6-8 junior center Ralph Martin, who averages eight points and 7.3 rebounds per game, and 6-4 sophomore forward Kyle Rolston, who contributes 8.1 points and 7.2 rebounds an outing.

"Roberts, Samuel and Murry are all very good perimeter kids," said Garner, noting that all three players have hit at least 20 3-pointers this season. "Martin is really big and he can move, and Rolston is a good player."

Despite their dismal record, the Tigers have had some impressive games, including a six-point loss at Georgia in which Tennessee State held the lead until the final minutes.

As a team, the Tigers have struggled in three important areas. They rank last in the OVC in field-goal shooting at 39 percent, last in rebounding margin at minus eight per game and last in turnover margin at minus three a contest.

Southeast, meanwhile, will be looking to improve in the turnover department as well. The Indians have committed a whopping 68 turnovers in their last three games. Somewhat surprisingly, Southeast was able to win two of those contests.

"We really have to cut that down," said Garner. ""That's my biggest concern right now. It's just way too many turnovers."

Garner likes the way the Indians have been defending and rebounding in recent games.

"Defensively, we're playing well, and now we're rebounding well after we were struggling for a while," Garner said. "We just have to cut our turnovers down."

The Indians lead the OVC in scoring defense, allowing 61 points per game, and field-goal percentage defense, allowing opponents to shoot just 40 percent.

Mike Branson leads a balanced Southeast offensive attack at 12.7 points per game. Also averaging in double figures are Roderick Johnson (11.3 ppg) and Michael Stokes (10.7 ppg).

Johnson leads the way in rebounding at 7.8 per game while Brian Bunche is right behind at 7.3. Johnson is fourth in the OVC in field-goal shooting at 55 percent and he is fifth in rebounding. Bunche ranks eighth in rebounding.

Garner acknowledged that he will be trying to guard against his players taking a 1-9 team lightly tonight. But he doesn't believe that will be a problem.

"That's always a concern. Our players will see their record, and they know we've got a very good Austin Peay team coming in here Saturday," said Garner. "But at the same time, we're coming off a loss (to Southern Illinois Sunday) and it's our first conference game for over a month, so I think that will help us get their attention."