TWO-HORSE OVC RACE APPROACHES FINISH LINE

With one week left in the regular season, it's a two-horse race for the Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball championship.

And that's exactly the way the OVC race went last year as well.

Defending champion Murray State, which has won or shared 10 of the past 11 regular-season titles, is in first place at 13-3.

Southeast Missouri State University, which finished one game behind the Racers last season, is in second place at 12-4.

"It should be an interesting week," said Southeast coach Gary Garner during his weekly media conference Monday. "A lot can still happen for just about every team in the league."

The Indians' sole focus this week is on finishing strong by winning a pair of road games on their longest OVC road trip of the season. Southeast plays Morehead State Thursday night and Eastern Kentucky Saturday afternoon. Those squads are ninth and 10th, respectively, in the 10-team league.

Murray State also plays its last two games on the road, but on paper at least, the Racers' final contests appear to be much more difficult than Southeast's. Murray State visits sixth-place Middle Tennessee Thursday and third-place Tennessee Tech Saturday.

"They've got two tough games left," said Garner of the Racers. "You're kind of caught in the way you talk to your team. We need to concentrate on Morehead State, but I'm also going to tell our players that Murray could lose a game and we still have a chance at the title.

"But the main thing is, we have to take care of our own business. We can't control what Murray does. We can only control what we do."

Southeast can finish no worse than a second-place OVC tie, and the Indians are assured of at least the No. 2 seed for next week's OVC postseason tournament. Southeast will host a first-round tourney game Tuesday, although the Indians' opponent is still far from being determined.

* While Murray State and Southeast are battling for the OVC title, most of the other positions in the league are still totally up for grabs.

The top four finishers earn first-round postseason tournament home games. While the Racers and Indians are assured of being at home for the first round, the other two home-court berths are totally up for grabs.

Tennessee Tech is currently in third place at 10-6, but 10-7 Austin Peay and 9-7 Eastern Illinois are right on the Eagles' heels, and 8-8 Middle Tennessee is just a bit further back.

Overall, the top eight finishers qualify for the league tourney. Only last-place Eastern Kentucky has been eliminated from contention.

* Last year, in Garner's second season at Southeast, the Indians went 20-9 for their best-ever record on the Division I level.

Now, with at least three games left to play the two-regular season contests and at least one game in the OVC Tournament the 19-6 Indians are on the verge of their second straight 20-win season.

"To win 20 games back to back, that's something our players can be very proud of," said Garner. "We still have to get to 20, but I'm confident we can do that. It's a good accomplishment for our program."

* Roderick Johnson continues to be a model of consistency for the Indians.

Johnson, who scored 26 points during Saturday's 72-71 win at Eastern Illinois, leads the Indians in scoring, rebounding, field-goal percentage and blocked shots.

The senior forward averages 13.5 points and 8.1 rebounds per game while shooting 62 percent from the field. He has 35 blocked shots.

Johnson leads the OVC in field-goal shooting (he ranks high nationally) while ranking third in blocked shots, fourth in rebounding and 12th in scoring. He has scored in double figures in 20 of the Indians' 25 games this season.

"Roderick has been consistent all year, but he has taken it to another level," said Garner. "He can't play much better than he's playing right now."

* Senior forward Mike Branson, Southeast's second-leading scorer at 12.4 points per game, is fourth in the OVC in 3-point shooting at 41 percent. Branson has scored in double figures in 16 of 25 games.

Junior point guard Michael Stokes, the Indians' other double-figure scorer at 12.3 points per game, is seventh in the OVC in assists with 4.1 a contest.

Senior center Brian Bunche is fifth in the OVC in blocked shots with 24 and ninth in rebounding with 6.4 per game.

* Tickets for next Tuesday's OVC tourney game at the Show Me Center went on sale Monday. The Houck Field Ticket Office is open from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday and will remain open until 6 p.m. today.

Season ticket holders will be able to purchase their regular seats through today. Any tickets not purchased by season ticket holders will be released to the general public Wednesday at 8 a.m.