Redhawks duel Govs for first in OVC

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Southeast men have dropped nine straight games at Austin Peay.

It has been a decade since the Southeast Missouri State men's basketball team last won at Austin Peay.

Southeast coach Scott Edgar figures that's long enough.

"I like to think you can win somewhere at least every 10 years," Edgar said. "I think it's our time."

The Redhawks will get an opportunity to finally win in Clarksville, Tenn., tonight as they face the Governors in a battle for the Ohio Valley Conference lead.

Defending regular-season champion Austin Peay (10-7, 6-1) and Southeast (11-6, 6-1) are tied for first place in the 11-team OVC entering the 7:30 p.m. tipoff.

"It should be a championship atmosphere," Edgar said.

Southeast has lost nine straight times at Austin Peay, the last win in Clarksville coming during the 1998-99 season.

Overall, Southeast is 1-12 in its last 13 meeting with the Govs. Southeast's most recent victory over Austin Peay was at the Show Me Center during the 2004-05 campaign.

The Redhawks almost broke through in both areas a year ago as Edgar's first Southeast squad nearly beat the Govs twice.

Southeast lost 68-67 in Clarksville as the Redhawks played without center Mike Rembert, who received an automatic one-game suspension after being ejected with two technical fouls during the previous contest.

The Redhawks fell 75-73 in Cape Girardeau as they were again without a key player -- point guard Roderick Pearson -- for the same reason.

"We almost won there last year," senior forward Brandon Foust said. "Hopefully we can pull it off."

Edgar said the way the Redhawks battled Austin Peay last year -- and the kind of season they're having so far -- should give them plenty of confidence, despite Monday's 79-51 home loss to Murray State.

"The players are over it, the staff is over it," said Edgar of Southeast's only OVC defeat so far. "I think we have confidence going in there. I'm sure they've improved, and I know we've improved."

Edgar knows it will take more than confidence to beat the Govs, who returned all five starters from last year's OVC championship team.

Austin Peay's headliner is junior forward Drake Reed, the reigning OVC player of the year.

Reed, a rugged 6 foot 5, 235-pounder, is the OVC's fifth-leading scorer at 15.5 points per game. He is ninth in the league in field-goal percentage (52.1).

But Edgar emphasized that the Govs -- who had a six-game winning streak snapped at Murray State on Thursday night -- are about more than Reed.

Three other Austin Peay players are scoring in double figures, including 6-3 sophomore guard Wes Channels at 12.2 points per game off the bench.

Fernandez Lockett, a 6-4 senior forward who averages 11.1 points and a team-high 6.2 rebounds, and 6-5 senior guard Todd Babington (10.5 ppg, team-high 44 3-pointers on 36.4-percent shooting) add more scoring punch.

Kyle Duncan, a 6-5 junior guard/forward, averages just 6.4 points, but is second in the OVC in 3-point shooting at 60.7 percent (17-of-28).

And Edgar considers quick 5-9 senior Derek Wright one of the OVC's more underrated point guards.

Wright, who averages 9.3 points, ranks fourth in the OVC in assist-to-turnover ratio (72 assists, 34 turnovers). He is fifth in assists and second in steals (46).

"They are a veteran team. ... It's just incredible the number of combined starts they have," Edgar said. "I think before the season they had 252 combined starts.

"They're good, they're talented, they're athletic. Reed is the player of the year. Babington is as good an open shooter as there is in the conference. Lockett is athletic. And I think they have maybe the most underrated point guard in the conference."

Austin Peay is second in the OVC in turnover margin, averaging a league-low 12.7 turnovers, while forcing an average of 17.2 turnovers.

But the Govs, with no regular contributor taller than 6-6, have had issues on the boards as they are being outrebounded by an average of 3.5 per game.

Southeast is the OVC's top rebounding team in conference play at plus 5.6.

"It will be a highly, highly competitive game," Edgar said.

 

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APSU, SEMO battle for top

Govs hope to improve their defensive effort vs. first-place Redhawks






The one number Austin Peay coach Dave Loos is usually concerned about is 70; the score he wants his Govs to hold opponents under.

But now Loos is concerned about another number: 50 percent.


That is one number the coach doesn't want to see opponents shoot more than against Austin Peay (10-7, 6-1 OVC), as Murray State did in the Racers' 82-70 Ohio Valley Conference victory Thursday night.

The loss halted the Govs' six-game winning streak and knocked them into a first-place tie with Southeast Missouri State (11-6, 6-1 OVC), their opponent at 7:30 p.m. today at the Dunn Center.

Austin Peay is 22-14 all-time against SEMO, and won both games last season. The Redhawks' first OVC loss this season, ironically enough, came against Murray State on Monday, a 79-51 setback.

What's troubling for Austin Peay is it's 3-5 in games when opponents shoot more than 50 percent. Murray State (8-7, 5-3 OVC) shot 55.6 percent.

For the season, Govs' opponents are shooting 49.5 percent. Austin Peay is shooting 45.6 percent.

"It boils down to the defensive end for us," Loos said. "People are shooting over 50 percent on us almost every time we play, and that can not happen. We've got to get better defensively, and we've got to take more pride in our defense and make it more of a priority. If you let people shot over 50 percent consistently, you're going to lose. I'm surprised we've won as many as we have with the way people shot against us."

The Govs, who pride themselves on their defensive intensity, know something has to change against the Redhawks.

"We've got to play way better on the defensive end," senior point guard D.J. Wright said. "If we can play defensively like we do on the offensive end, and work as hard as we do there, we'll be a great team. It's a team thing, and we all have to pick each other up and get out there and get the job done."

Said sophomore forward Ernest Fields, who scored a career-high 15 points against Murray State: "We are a much better defensive team that we showed against Murray. We're a much better rebounding team than we showed. They crashed the boards harder than us. We were going for the rebounds, but it just went their way."

And reigning OVC Player of the Year Drake Reed agreed: "We didn't defend like we needed to. We gave up way too much dribble penetration, and they (Murray State) got some key rebounds that won them the game."

Rebounding has been a big problem for Austin Peay.

The Govs have been outrebounded 539-480, a deficit of 3.1 a game, and they've been outrebounded in 13 of 15 games.

"It's all part of how we play on the defensive end," Loos said. "We've got to box people out. We can't afford to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them and try to outjump them. We are not where we need to be on that end of the floor."

SEMO is outrebounding its opponents 295-256, a plus of 5.6 a game.

The Redhawks are led by 6-foot-5 junior forward Jaycen Herring (13.0 ppg), 6-foot junior guard Kenard Moore (10.4 ppg), and 6-6 senior forward Brandon Foust (9.9 ppg, 7.7 rpg).

"They've got good talent and they're deep," Loos said. "They play fast and we'll have to be ready to go, that's for sure."