Southeast Missouri State men's basketball team loses at Morehead St.

~ Southeast fell to 1-4 in OVC action with an 80-67 loss to Morehead St.

Southeast Missouri State men's basketball coach Dickey Nutt came back to one word for each of his team's struggles in its game against Morehead State on Thursday -- concentration.

The lack of concentration led to the Redhawks struggling at the free-throw line, missing easy baskets throughout the game and ultimately resulted in an 80-67 loss to the Eagles on Thursday night at Ellis T. Johnson Arena in Morehead, Ky.

"That's the thing that's so discouraging to us because we worked so hard on the defensive end," Nutt said. "We kind of got our defense together, and then offensively we're not completing our plays. We're not finishing. We're not focused. We're not concentrating on what's going on. You've got to make your layups and free throws on the road to win."

The biggest difference in the game was that Southeast shot just 52.4 percent from the free-throw line, making 11 of 21 attempts, while Morehead State made 26 of 29 attempts (89.7 percent).

"That's very surprising to me, and that's a lack of concentration, I think," Nutt said. "I think that was just a lack of concentration, a guy worrying about the last play, worrying about his execution that went wrong the last play and he steps up to the line and he's not concentrating. That's something that's disappointing to me."

Southeast, which fell to 1-4 in the Ohio Valley Conference and 9-9 overall, took an 11-0 lead in the first three minutes of the game. All 11 points were scored by junior Jarekious Bradley, who hit three consecutive 3-pointers to open the game.

Southeast's offense stumbled, though, and the Redhawks didn't score during the final 6 minutes, 29 seconds of the first half. The Eagles outscored them 12-0 during that span to take a 31-22 advantage into halftime.

"I just think we have to play a lot tougher when you're playing against guys like Morehead State," Nutt said. "I just feel like they just kind of bullied us a little bit in the first half and set the tone."

Nutt said Southeast's defense was improved and allowed them to remain close in the first half despite shooting just 25.9 percent.

"We were active and we paid attention to detail," Nutt said. "We knew who could shoot and who couldn't, and we did a decent job tonight defensively."

Morehead State shot 32.3 percent from the field in the first half and 41.8 percent for the game. The Eagles hit eight 3-pointers in game, including a pair in the final minutes that halted any chance of a comeback.

After Southeast tied it at 54-54 with 7:28 remaining, the Eagles used a 15-7 run capped two 3s by Morehead State's Brent Arrington to take an eight-point lead with 2:34 remaining.

The Eagles (12-7, 3-1) had a balanced scoring attack led by Arrington with 20 points. Drew Kelly and Angelo Warner finished with 16 and 14 points, respectively.

Chad Posthumus kept the Redhawks from getting many second-chance baskets with his 13 defensive rebounds. The Eagles outrebounded Southeast 38-31.

Bradley led all scorers with 28 points. He shot 58.8 percent and hit five of nine 3-point attempts. Tyler Stone finished with 15 points and seven rebounds.

Nutt said that Bradley played outstanding, but is concerned because he sprained his knee in the final minutes of the game.

"He was certainly a force out there defensively and offensively," Nutt said. "He kept us in the game and gave us a chance to win, no doubt."

The Redhawks have a quick turnaround before their next conference matchup. They face Tennessee Tech (10-9, 3-1) at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Eblen Center in Cookeville, Tenn.

"Hey, it may get worse before it gets better because Tennessee Tech's a better team," Nutt said. "We better forget about this in a hurry and get ready for the next one."

The Golden Eagles have lost just once on their home court this season. They also allow just 69.2 points per game, which is one of the fewest points allowed by an OVC team.

"The main thing is to forget about this game and move to the better," Nutt said. "You've just got to learn from your mistakes. ... I'm very confident. We've been on the road for a long time. Our schedule hasn't played in our favor -- I'm not making excuses -- I just feel like there's a lot of basketball to be played and we've got to get ready for the next one."