Southeast men lose ninth straight

MARTIN, Tenn. -- The good news for Southeast Missouri State was that Lester Hudson didn't explode for 38 points this time.

The bad news was that Tennessee-Martin's All-American senior guard had all kinds of help in handing the visiting Redhawks their ninth straight loss.

Less than two weeks after the nation's second-leading scorer torched Southeast for 38 points during a 14-point win in Cape Girardeau, Hudson had 24 points as the Skyhawks romped 86-73.

The game wasn't nearly as close as the score indicated. UTM led 84-59 with under 5 minutes left before clearing its bench.

"We came out and played hard and played smart and we got the victory," Hudson said.

Thursday night's triumph was the fifth straight and 11th in the past 12 games for UTM, which improved to 13-6 overall and 6-3 in the Ohio Valley Conference.

Southeast fell to 3-17 overall and 0-9 in the OVC as the Redhawks continue to occupy last place in the 10-team conference.

"SEMO keeps playing hard and they keep fighting," said UTM coach Bret Campbell, whose squad moved up to third place in the OVC. "But these are the games you have to win to win a championship."

Hudson, averaging 27.4 points per game entering the contest, scored 15 first-half points as UTM led 45-29 at the break.

Hudson added 11 rebounds, six assists and three steals.

"Lester shows you why he's the best player in this league because he can do everything," Campbell said. "He's not just a scorer."

Hudson scored nearly half of the Skyhawks' points during UTM's 81-67 win at the Show Me Center.

Hudson wasn't even close to that Thursday as his teammates combined to provide 62 points.

"My main focus is on my team and for us to win," Hudson said.

The guard-oriented Skyhawks received 38 points from their four primary inside players, who combined to make 15 of 22 field goals as they repeatedly got easy shots around the basket.

Senior forward Olajide Hay added 16 points for UTM, as did sophomore guard Marquis Weddle.

"Any time we get three in double figures, it's a boost for us," Campbell said.

Southeast acting coach Zac Roman hoped the return of junior center Calvin Williams, who missed the previous UTM game with an ankle injury, would help shore up Southeast's inside defense.

"We just didn't defend very well," Roman said. "I'll take Hudson scoring 24. That's below his average. Other guys hurt us."

Senior guard Kenard Moore led Southeast with a game-high 28 points. He hit 5 of 10 3-pointers.

"I think he's one of the most underrated guards in the league," Campbell said.

Senior forward Jaycen Herring added 17 points for the Redhawks.

Williams had a double-double with 11 points and 13 rebounds, which tied a career high.

The Redhawks, normally a strong free-throw shooting team, had their worst performance of the season from the line as they made 13 of 29 (43.5 percent).

"I have no idea why we shot free throws so poorly," Roman said.

Southeast, which had only seven scholarship players available, kept the score close in its previous two games, both at home. The Redhawks lost those by a combined nine points.

But Thursday's contest was only close for a short while as UTM led from start to finish.

A 3-pointer by Moore with just under 8 minutes left in the first half pulled Southeast within 24-22.

UTM closed the period with a 21-7 run to lead by 16 at the break.

UTM opened up a 20-point advantage barely 5 minutes into the second half and rolled the rest of the way, its biggest lead being 26 points.

Roman had special praise for junior reserve forward Israel Kirk, who has played most of the season with a stress fracture in his foot and suffered a broken nose early in Thursday's game. Kirk came back a short while later.

"He's just a tough kid, to play with what he's been playing with," Roman said.

The Redhawks finish a two-game road swing Saturday at Murray State.