Southeast Missouri State men's basketball team embraces fresh start in OVC

It's safe to say that the Southeast Missouri State men's basketball team is ready for the fresh start that Ohio Valley Conference play brings.

The 2-10 Redhawks get their chance to start over at zero in the win-loss column when they host defending OVC tournament champion and preseason favorite Belmont in their conference opener today. Tip-off is set for noon at the Show Me Center.

"I think this year it's really just up for grabs," Cleveland said following the Redhawks win on Sunday against Harris-Stowe. "...I think there's no favorite, so that's a great thing. We're all 0-0 and we can get that terrible non-conference schedule out of our minds. Our primary focus should just be getting better and getting ready to go."

The Redhawks began the Rick Ray era with 10 straight losses before picking up their first win at Missouri State (78-74) on Dec. 22. They followed that up with a 94-84 defeat of NAIA Harris-Stowe Sunday.

Nothing about that rough start matters except for Ray's team learning from it and improving upon it in the 16-game OVC slate.

"Unfortunately the OVC is a one-bid league and so it doesn't matter what you did in the non-conference at this point in time," Ray said. "If you're a team that's undefeated [in the non-conference] and end up finishing ninth in the OVC, that's what people will remember. If you're a team that didn't have any wins in the non-conference and end up finishing third in the OVC, that's what people will remember. We've got to make sure we start positioning ourself to have the best seed possible to go into the OVC tournament. That's what we've got to look forward to."

Southeast has secured a berth in the OVC tournament each of the last five years. The Redhawks were the eighth seed after going 7-9 in conference last season. They finished the year 13-17 overall after bowing out vs. Morehead State in the opening round of the tournament, which the Bruins won on a buzzer beater vs. regular-season champion Murray State.

Belmont enters today's contest at 8-6 on the season. The Bruins snapped a two-game losing streak with an 85-81 victory vs. Valparaiso. Other wins were against Marquette, Western Kentucky, South Alabama, Kennesaw State, Ouachita Baptist and twice vs. Lipscomb.

Southeast has yet to beat Belmont and lost 78-77 in Nashville to open conference play a year ago.

"I just want everybody to be focused the whole game, the whole 40 minutes," junior guard Jamaal Calvin said. "We can't come out flat. And if we do that to Belmont they're a good team, so we won't be able to dig ourselves out of that hole. We just need to come out and deliver the first punch for once."

Belmont's averaging 9.6 made 3-pointers per game and five Bruins have knocked down more than 10. OVC preseason Player of the Year Craig Bradshaw's made 37 3s (39.4 percent) and averages 16.1 points.

Evan Bradds, a 6-foot-7 forward, averages 17.6 points and 8.9 rebounds. He's third in the nation with a 70.3 field-goal percentage.

The Bruins defense allows an average of 78.2 points per game and they've given up 80 or more nine times. Southeast's averaging 65 ppg and led by Antonius Cleveland with 14.3 ppg.

"Just defend. We can't give a team like 56 percent from the field, so that, and like I said before just our approach," Ray said of what he would've liked to see better in his team's last outing. "We can't live vicariously through our offense. I think we're getting it, we're starting to figure out our motion offense. I think people are starting to see guys that have some versatility -- it's almost impossible if Antonius does the right thing to guard him in the offense because he may be posting on the block, he may be shooting a jump shot, he may be driving the basketball, so if he cuts hard and our guys do a good job of finding him, because of his length and athleticism and skill set, it's hard for him to be guarded.

"Even a guy like Tony Anderson -- he can make a shot, he can drive the basketball. So we're starting to figure out our own strengths individually in our motion offense but we've got to do a much better job on the defensive end."