Southeast Missouri State men's basketball team drops to 0-10 with loss to Northern Kentucky

The Southeast Missouri State men's basketball team tied its worst start since the 2010-11 season after its 10th consecutive loss to start the season.

The Redhawks, who started Dickey Nutt's second season 0-10, lost to Northern Kentucky 79-69 on the road Saturday night to fall to 0-10 in the Rick Ray era.

The Norse improved to 3-6. It was only their second victory over a Division I opponent this season.

Junior forward Joel Angus III scored the first basket of the game, but the Redhawks' lead was short-lived.

After NKU's Tyler White knocked down a 3-pointer to give the Norse the lead 1 minute into the contest, they led the rest of the way.

Southeast got as close as 11-9 after an Isiah Jones 3-pointer with 15:35 left in the first half, but NKU went on a 9-0 run to stretch its lead to double figures.

The Norse led by as many as 14 in the first 20 minutes of the game.

The Redhawks used an 8-3 run over a span of 1:27 in the last few minutes of the half to cut it to six and trailed 39-30 at the break.

Southeast shot 51.9 percent from the floor in the first half, while NKU knocked down 53.9 percent of its shots. The Norse were 6 of 13 from 3-point range in the first half -- with three makes coming in the first 4:04 of the game -- while the Redhawks made just one triple.

Southeast hung with the Norse and pulled within eight with 14:46 remaining before making just one of its next nine field goals -- a 3 by Jones with 12:41 left to cut it to 10 -- as NKU extended its lead to 64-46 with 8:42 to go.

After the Redhawks cut it to 14 with 5:23 to go, forward Trey Kellum picked up his fifth foul and got a technical foul.

Dean Danos knocked down both free throws and hit a 3-pointer on the ensuing possession to give the Norse their largest lead of the night at 75-56 with 4:43 to go.

Southeast outscored NKU 11-4 to close out the game, and the Redhawks' 10-point loss was their smallest final margin of the season.

Southeast shot 48.3 percent on the night after going 14 of 31 from the field in the second half. The Redhawks were 4 of 10 from beyond the arc, with Jones making 3 of 5 attempts. Freshman Jaylin Stewart knocked down one.

Jones tied a career high with 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting to lead Southeast. Angus finished with 16 points, and Antonius Cleveland had 13 points and six rebounds.

Cleveland was 6 of 13 from the floor but made just 1 of 6 free-throw attempts. The Redhawks were 9 of 16 from the charity stripe.

NKU shot 49.1 percent and shot 33.3 percent from 3-point range. The Norse made just 2 of 11 3-point attempts in the second half. They finished 15 of 20 from the free-throw line.

Forward Jalen Billups led NKU with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting and 11 rebounds.

Cole Murray finished with 12 points, and Lavone Holland II and Danos had 10 apiece.

The Redhawks remain on the road, playing Missouri State in Springfield on Tuesday night. Tip-off is set for 7:05 p.m.

After that, they host NAIA Harris-Stowe on Dec. 27 before beginning Ohio Valley Conference action at home vs. Belmont on Dec. 31.