home dogs . . .

[loophole]

here's a nice home dog that will have some mojo workin' tonight:



Redhawks' tournament hopes officially end

Friday, February 26, 2010

By Marty Mishow ~ Southeast Missourian
Freshman guard Marland Smith almost singlehandedly kept Southeast Missouri State's Ohio Valley Conference tournament hopes alive Thursday night.

But Tennessee State got a career performance from one of its own standout freshman to clinch the final available OVC tournament berth and officially eliminate the Redhawks.

Robert Covington, a 6-foot-8 freshman forward, compiled collegiate highs of 27 points and 16 rebounds as the visiting Tigers recovered from wasting an 18-point lead to knock off the Redhawks 74-67.

Smith stood out in Southeast's seventh straight loss with a collegiate-high 30 points, 19 coming during the second half when he made 5 of 11 3-pointers. He added two assists and two steals without a turnover while playing all 40 minutes.

"Marland Smith had an outstanding night. He had a freshman of the year performance," Southeast coach Dickey Nutt said. "He's playing with a lot of confidence right now."

So is Covington, who like Smith has emerged as one of his squad's leaders.

"I think he's a pretty doggone good freshman," said TSU coach John Cooper, like Nutt in his first season at his respective school. "Marland Smith. ... wew, he got it going. We couldn't cool him off."

Southeast (7-22, 3-14), which has lost nine straight OVC games, is now locked into ninth place in the 10-team league with one contest remaining.

That is still an improvement from the last-place finish of a year ago, when the Redhawks went winless in the OVC.

TSU (9-21, 6-11) remained eighth, with the top eight making the OVC tournament. The Tigers can still finish as high as tied for sixth after posting their fifth consecutive conference victory despite dismissing four players several weeks ago.

TSU ran out to a 13-2 lead and three times built the advantage to 18 points before Southeast pulled within 43-29 at halftime.

"We dug ourselves a hole," junior forward Cameron Butler said. "At this level you can't do that and expect to win. We do that every game."

In what has also been a familiar theme, the Redhawks made a furious second-half rally that culminated with them taking their only lead on Smith's 3-pointer with 5 minutes, 18 seconds left that made it 62-60.

But TSU went right back ahead 21 seconds later on a 3-pointer by senior guard Jeremiah Crutcher.

After a Southeast miss, TSU sophomore guard Will Peters hit a 3-pointer. After another Southeast miss, the Tigers made two free throws for a 68-62 lead.

Down 68-64, Southeast had a costly turnover with 40 seconds remaining. The Redhawks pulled within 68-65 with 33 seconds left, but TSU made 6 of 6 free throws in the final 31 seconds.

"The same thing we've been doing all season. We dig ourselves a hole," Smith said. "We made a good run, but they made some big shots."

Smith has scored at least 19 points in each of the last three games and has taken over the team scoring lead with a 10.6 average. He was coming off a collegiate-high 28 points in Saturday's loss at Miami of Ohio.

"I'm just trying to come out and give my team the best chance of winning," Smith said. "I'd rather win than get the points."

As impressed as Nutt was by Smith's play, Covington -- who hit 13 of 13 free throws and both of his 3-point attempts -- also made an impression. Like Smith, Covington has come on lately and is averaging 10.7 points.

"Marland is going to be an outstanding player. He's going to be fun to watch," said Nutt, who added of Covington: "He's going to be good. He was outstanding tonight.

Butler added 10 points for Southeast despite playing at what Nutt described as "50 percent" due to a lingering foot problem.

Southeast ends its season Saturday at home against perennial OVC power Austin Peay (16-14, 10-7, tie for fourth place).

The Redhawks will have the benefit of a big home crowd on Senior Night as seniors Johnny Hill, Israel Kirk and LaMont Russell will be recognized.

Southeast's Show Me Sellout promotion has already produced more than 6,000 tickets sold for one of the biggest expected crowds in several years.

"To us it's important," Nutt said of the finale. "We're not playing for a spot in the tournament, but this is our championship game.

Added Butler: "Our seniors deserve this win. It can give us momentum for the future. Like [junior guard] Sam Pearson said, this is our championship game."

 

[loophole]

here's another one:



Sycamores? MVC tourney fate at stake today

Win keeps Indiana State out of MVC play-in game
By Todd Golden
The Tribune-Star

TERRE HAUTE ? Indiana State?s men?s basketball players probably don?t need a reminder as to the importance of today?s Missouri Valley Conference finale against Missouri State. After all, the Sycamores? MVC Tournament play-in depends on the outcome.

Win, and the Sycamores avoid Thursday night in St. Louis. Lose, and they are fated for their ninth-straight play-in entrance into the tournament.

But if they Sycamores did need a refresher about what?s riding on the game, all they need to do is look at one a former teammate who went through the same scenario the current Sycamores are living through.

Former ISU point guard Gabe Moore has been a fixture at ISU?s practices this season. After playing basketball overseas last season, he?s back at ISU and enrolled in classes.

Moore was a senior in 2008 when ISU was in the same situation it finds itself in today. In 2008, the Sycamores were 8-8 in the MVC going into the final week of the season. ISU lost at Northern Iowa mid-week, but could still escape the MVC play-in with a victory over Missouri State at home in the regular season finale.

The Bears, playing in then-coach Barry Hinson?s final regular season game, came into Hulman Center and soundly defeated the Sycamores 83-73. ISU headed to St. Louis for yet another play-in appearance.

It was Moore?s Senior Night and the bad feeling he had after that game is not one he wants to see ISU?s three seniors -- Harry Marshall, Rashad Reed and Josh Crawford -- have to go through themselves.

"It?s the same scenario. You try to give the experience that you?ve been through to show them and tell them how important this is. The play-in game is so tough to try and win out of. It?s hard to win four games there," said Moore, who was ISU?s practice on Friday. "All I can do is tell them. Hopefully they get it, they still have to want it themselves."

Marshall, who is one of Moore?s best friends, knows all too well what his former teammate went through in 2008.

"I was here when that happened to Gabe, so I?ve tasted that bitter feeling before," Marshall said. "Like coach says, you don?t want to put a ton of pressure on guys because it?s the first time some of them have been through this, but you also have to bring it to the front of their minds that this is an important game. No one wants to go off their home court on their last game after a loss and no one wants to play on Thursday."

ISU had a chance to all but clinch a top-six seed in the MVC Tournament on Wednesday at Illinois State, but a motivated Redbirds team, fighting for seeding spots of its own, defeated the Sycamores 75-58. The Redbirds dominated the paint with a 44-26 rebounding edge as both Dinma Odiakosa and Tony Lewis registered double-doubles with points and rebounds.

While Missouri State can?t boast a post presence like Odiakosa, the Bears are plenty capable in the paint and they proved it in the Sycamores? visit to Missouri State on Jan. 19. Will Creekmore and Caleb Patterson dominated the Sycamores for stretches of the game -- Creekmore combined to score 11 points before the four-minute timeout in each half at JQH Arena. Creekmore and Patterson combined for 32 points and 10 rebounds in the first meeting.

"The post players have a chip on our shoulders. We know they got into us down there, so we?re coming in focused. The coaches have been on us and we?ve been on ourselves to get some stops," Crawford said.

The Bears can work off of their posts and get the ball to talented swingman Kyle Weems or guards Adam Leonard, Jermaine Mallett and Nafis Ricks. Point guard Justin Fuehrmeyer adds experience to the lineup.

ISU must also take care of the ball, something it failed to do at Illinois State when ISU had 20 turnovers led to 26 Redbirds? points. Reed had a particularly rough night. He was 1 of 10 from the field, 0-for-5 from 3-point range and had seven turnovers. He wants to make amends as he plays what is likely to be his last game at Hulman Center.

"Wednesday was a hard game and I didn?t play well. You have to forget about it and play your game the next game. [Today] gives me a good shot for me to go out on a high note, which is where I?ve been the last two years," Reed said.

One difference between the current Missouri State team and the one ISU faced in 2008 is that few of the current Bears have been through one of these types of games before. Fuehrmeyer is the only contributor left from the Bears? 2008 team, a team that had been through the Valley wringer a bit more than the current Bears have been, but also a team that has greatly exceeded expectations placed upon it before the season. The Bears were picked to finish ninth in the conference.

"I have a great deal of faith. For us it?s a matter of finishing game," Missouri State coach Cuonzo Martin said. "It?s about us understanding on the road what it takes when a crowd gets into it and a team goes up eight or nine points. I don?t think it?s a question of our talent, it?s about executing and doing what we need to do start to finish."

For his part, ISU coach Kevin McKenna is trying to keep ISU?s focus away from what?s happened in the past. He has also tried to steer clear of putting any pressure on the team, despite what?s at stake.

"We don?t talk about negativity, we don?t talk about things that have happened to past teams. I haven?t said anything about two years ago. What I?ve talked about is that our guys have one senior game, let?s give everything we have for that game. If our effort and execution is up to what we?re capable of, those things take care of themselves," McKenna said.

McKenna also noted that both Marshall and Dwayne Lathan, who were kept under 20 minutes at Illinois State on the advice of the team?s medical staff, will not be as restricted minutes-wise as they were Wednesday.

For Moore, who played with five players on ISU?s current roster, he will take extra satisfaction if ISU wins tomorrow, knowing that his former teammates did what his senior class was unable to do.

"One of the reasons I came back was to help the team out and give them a knowledge of the game. It was something I would have loved to accomplish, but its even better seeing it and being a part of it having been around the team so much. I bleed Indiana State, so I?d be proud just like they?d be proud," Moore said.
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[loophole]

another one:


Colonels control their own destiny
Wendy Haun
Register Sports Writer

RICHMOND ? The Colonels know they control their own destiny.

A win in the regular-season finale today at McBrayer Arena would lock up a first-round home game in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament.

However, the Colonels will have to beat the league?s top team to secure home-court advantage.

Tip-off with Murray State is set for 7 p.m. tonight at McBrayer Arena.

Despite the success the Racers have had this season ? 26-4, 16-1 in conference, with the only loss coming in an 80-75 setback against Morehead on Thursday ? the Colonels do have a confidence factor going into the key matchup. They took Murray down to the wire earlier this season, falling just 62-60.

?We did do some things very well in that game,? Eastern Kentucky University coach Jeff Neubauer said. ?Our defense was as good as we?ve played this season. Papa Oppong played great in that game at Murray. There were some areas we were not at our best but hopefully, we can learn from the positives and the negatives that took place.?

If the Colonels (20-10, 11-6 OVC) were to beat Murray, they would automatically clinch the key fourth seed in the tournament and would win the right to play host to a first-round tournament game. Also, if either Eastern Illinois or Austin Peay lost on Saturday, they would also finish in the top four.

Since both the Governors and the Panthers split the season series with Morehead State, if the Colonels were to wind up tied with either teams, they would fall behind in the tiebreaker.

However, the easiest thing for EKU to do would be to win tonight.

?Our basketball team has played very well throughout the season,? Neubauer said. ?As the season continues to expand, our guys have put together a great resume. We encourage our guys to play great on every possession and we?ll do the same tomorrow. We?ll play as a team and we?ll play together.?

In the loss earlier this season at Murray, B.J. Jenkins hit a game-winning jumper with 2.4 seconds left to begin the Racers? terrific run through the conference season. Murray leads the conference in scoring (78 ppg), field-goal percentage (50.6) and scoring defense, holding opponents just 61 points.

Leading the charge is Danero Thomas (10.5 ppg) and Tony Easley (10.4 ppg, 5.5 rebounds). However, despite their offensive prowess, Neubauer stresses that Murray has more defensive firepower than anything else.

?Murray has done so many things this year and they?ve done it with great defense,? he said. ?They?re a good man-to-man defensive team. They?ve put up great offensive numbers as well. They?re playing very fast this year, but the fact that they?re a great defensive team and can put up big numbers is what has made them the OVC champion.?

 

[loophole]

one more:


Paladins try to keep momentum

By Mandrallius Robinson ? Staff writer ? February 26, 2010


Depending on your perspective, the Furman University men?s basketball team is either way too late or right on time.

Before Thursday night, the Paladins struggled containing the shifty guards they faced each night in the Southern Conference. However, in the final week of the regular season, Furman increased its pressure against dribble penetration, with the pressure of the conference tournament looming.

In Thursday?s 59-44 victory over The Citadel, Furman did not concede a single clean look and allowed only two field goals to Cameron Wells, the SoCon?s fourth-leading scorer. Today, the Paladins must follow that performance against the SoCon?s No. 2 scorer, the College of Charleston?s Andrew Goudelock. In the final game of the regular season, Furman (13-15, 7-10) will host the Cougars (19-10, 13-4) at 4 p.m. in Timmons Arena.

Goudelock has averaged 19.3 points per game. He scored 28 in Charleston?s 92-80 win against Furman on Jan. 21. Wells, who scored 22 in The Citadel?s 70-60 win against Furman on Jan. 23, managed 11 points Thursday.

The Paladins? stingy defensive effort came a bit too late to help them earn a first-round bye in the upcoming SoCon tournament or even a winning record in the regular season. However, if they were ever going to find a time to max out, the Paladins believe this is the perfect time.

?You want to start peaking towards tournament play,? said junior forward Amu Saaka, who defended Wells on Thursday.

?There are a lot of things we could do better, but it?s great getting a win,? he added. ?As a team, we stayed focused for the most part. It shows us what we can do on defense.?

With Thursday?s win, the Paladins gained a bit of leverage over Georgia Southern (6-11), should the teams finish tied for fifth in the South Division. Furman can drop to the last spot only if it loses today and if Georgia Southern wins on Monday night at UNC Greensboro and rises 14 spots in the Ratings Percentage Index (RPI).

Considering the improbability of the final part of that equation, Furman is expected to open the SoCon tournament at 7 p.m. Friday in Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte. Furthermore, if Furman wins today, those tiebreaker points will be moot and the Paladins would snap a four-game losing skid to the Cougars.

?College of Charleston is probably the most well-balanced team in our league,? Saaka said. ?Just getting that win going into the conference tournament would do tons for our confidence. In this league, I think the competition is pretty level, so any edge we could get would be great.?