Top OVC teams take an unlikely turn early

Southeast Missouri State University coach Gary Garner entered Saturday night's Ohio Valley Conference matchup at Morehead State believing the Eagles were solid but not a powerhouse.

But Garner's opinion of the Eagles rose after they thumped the Indians 77-63. Morehead State led by 27 points before coasting.

And, even though two-time defending regular-season champion Tennessee Tech or defending conference tournament champion Murray State looked like the teams to beat in the OVC, Garner isn't so sure.

"Morehead State is a better basketball team that I thought going in," Garner said during his weekly media conference Monday.

Asked if the Eagles could be the best team in the conference, Garner said, "I really didn't think so going in, but they might be. They have basically the same team as last year, but every player is better. They have all the ingredients."

The Eagles, who finished second in the OVC last year and were picked third in the preseason poll, have jumped to the top of the standings by winning their first four games -- including a victory at Tennessee Tech that ended the Golden Eagles' 33-game home winning streak.

"It's still early, but Morehead State might be in the driver's seat," Garner said.

Especially now that Murray State has joined Tennessee Tech in suffering a surprising home conference loss. The Racers were stunned Saturday by Austin Peay 56-53 when Corey Gipson hit a 3-pointer with less than one second remaining.

Gipson started his high school career at Scott County Central before transferring to Richland. He played at Three Rivers Community College the past two seasons.

"The league might be a little more balanced than most people thought," Garner said.

The only other undefeated team in OVC games is surprising Tennessee-Martin (9-4, 2-0), which visits the Show Me Center on Thursday to take on the Indians (6-8, 1-2). The Skyhawks, after losing four starters from last year, were picked eighth in the preseason poll.

The Indians return for another home game Saturday against Murray State (8-5, 1-1).

Happy with split

Garner came away pleased that the Indians split two games during last week's long road trip that featured a 93-77 win over Eastern Kentucky Thursday and the loss Saturday to Morehead State.

"We felt if we could go on this road trip and win one out of two, we'd feel pretty good," Garner said. "You're always disappointed when you lose, but after you get back to reality, when you go on the road and split, you're happy.

"I don't think too many teams will win both games on this trip."

Eastern Illinois is an example of that. The Panthers, who were picked fourth in the preseason poll and opened conference play with a 10-point win at Southeast, lost at both Morehead State and Eastern Kentucky last week. The Colonels were picked to finish last in the nine-team league.Crader coming on

It might not be readily apparent, but Garner believes 6-foot-11 sophomore center Adam Crader is making steady improvement and could be a big factor the rest of the season as he tries to provide starting center Brandon Griffin some needed rest.

Crader scored a career-high seven points, grabbed two rebounds and blocked two shots against Morehead State.

"Adam is getting better and better," Garner said. "He's getting better because he really works hard in practice."

Garner said that Griffin, a junior averaging 11.7 points and an OVC-leading 10.6 rebounds per game, plays better when he can get an occasional breather.

"It's important that we get Brandon some rest," Garner said.

Griffin is one of five Southeast players who average in double figures. Sophomore guard Derek Winans leads the way at 15.1 points per game, followed by junior forward Damarcus Hence (12.1), senior forward Tim Scheer (11.2) and sophomore guard Brett Hale (10.5).

mmishow@semissourian.com

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