Southeast Missouri State women's basketball team hopes to build on first OVC win

Midway through the Southeast Missouri State women's basketball team's practice Monday at the Show Me Center, coach Ty Margenthaler strongly encouraged his team to "turn the switch on" after being slow to get back on defense in transition and not communicating -- two points of emphasis in their preparation to face SIU Edwardsville tonight.

He told his players at the end of practice to come with that switch turned on when they host the Cougars at 6:30 p.m. today at the Show Me Center in an Ohio Valley Conference contest.

"Come ready, because when we are locked in and we are focused and we're cheering and we're talking, we're a really good basketball team, but we have our lapses of doing that consistently," Margenthaler said. "Today was a great example where we came out real slow, so we [coaches] get them going, get them going. Ideal world, the great, great teams are player led -- I know coach Tuke [Southeast football coach Tom Matukewicz] says that. They're the ones that come in and they're just ready. We're still trying to get that identity. We're close. We're better than we ever have been, quite honestly, since I've been here -- when we do turn it on we look pretty good, so just always be ready."

The Redhawks (8-11, 1-5 OVC) will try to build off their first conference win of the season -- a 68-66 overtime defeat of Tennessee Tech on Saturday -- while SIUE (10-9) brings a five-game winning streak and 5-1 conference record to Cape Girardeau.

The Cougars haven't lost since a 72-69 setback in their conference opener against Jacksonville State, which beat Southeast by 36 points less than a week ago.

They've since picked up wins against TTU, Belmont, Tennessee State, Morehead State and Eastern Kentucky. Southeast has lost to all those opponents, with the exception of TTU.

"They really like to transition, they really like to push," Margenthaler said. "They don't like to run a lot of offense -- they're one, two passes and shot. If we can get back and make them play against a set defense [that will be key]. Rebounds are going to be big. Their guards are very thick and very big, so our posts and guards are going to have to rebound the ball."

Junior guard Shronda Butts leads the Cougars, averaging 20.2 ppg in conference action. She's shooting 56.6 percent from the field in six OVC contests. Junior guard Tierney Austin averages 13.2 points and 6.8 rebounds in conference, and is shooting 53.3 percent.

Freshmen forwards Gwen Adams and Micah Jones average 12.0 and 9.3 ppg, respectively, against OVC opponents. Adams averages 6.2 rebounds.

"They really like to go down low. Their inside game is pretty good," Margenthaler said. "Micah Jones, she's very strong, very active around the rim, and then the St. Louis kid, Adams, is really playing well. They're shooting at a really high percentage because it's either attacking in transition and layups or trying to get the ball inside."

Margenthaler plans to stick with the same lineup he used in Saturday's victory in seniors Allyson Bradshaw, Yelena Rosado and Jasmine Robinson, and junior forward Connor King, along with junior forward Erin Bollmann, who made her first start against TTU and finished with a career-high 18 points and 10 rebounds.

The fourth-year coach knows that it will be quite the challenge for his team to bounce back from their 0-5 start to conference and make it into the tournament, but Margenthaler stressed to his players after practice that with 10 games left they need to realize the only team that can beat them is themselves.

"It's a confidence builder, it really is, and I think our league is really even," Margenthaler said. "And again, I believe in this group, and if I don't we're in trouble. I've said that from Day 1 of conference -- I really do believe that we're the only team that can beat us. I don't want to go back, but the games we lost, a couple of close ones, if we just do the little things, then we win. So I think if we can keep telling ourselves that we're the only team that can beat us, hopefully that'll give them that little switch, too."