EIU, SIUE Men, EIU Women Drop Games

CHARLESTON, Ill. – Southeast Missouri went on a key run with six minutes remaining in the game on Saturday afternoon as the Redhawks knocked off Eastern Illinois, 88-79, in Lantz Arena.

EIU fell to 14-13 overall, 7-7 in the OVC.  SEMO improved to 9-18 overall, 4-10 in the league.

The Redhawks held a 75-72 lead with 6:01 to play after Ben Harvey connected on a jumper in the lane to bring the Panthers to within one possession.  After a turnover by SEMO, EIU had two cracks at tying the game with 3-point attempts by Josiah Wallace and Kashawn Charles.  Both shots were off the mark on a night when EIU finished 12-of-27 from 3-point range.

Following the Charles miss, SEMO went on a 7-0 run to extend the lead to ten points and held on for the win.

Both teams opened the game shooting at a blistering pace with SEMO connecting for 58 percent in the first half and EIU knocking down 56 percent from the floor.   SEMO held a 46-39 lead at the half with both teams adding seven 3-pointers.

Jonathan Dalton pushed the SEMO lead to 12 points with 17:52 to play as they opened the second half with a 7-2 run.  Dalton finished with a team high 17 points as he was one four Redhawks in double figures.

EIU quickly cut into the lead with a 16-6 run over the next five minutes. A 3-pointer by Wallace brought the Panthers to within two points at 59-57 with 12:47 left in the contest.  Charles had eight points for EIU during the run knocking down a pair of 3-pointers as he finished with ten points.

EIU would take the lead with ten minutes remaining on a bucket by JaQualis Matlock before the two teams traded the lead for the next two and a half minutes.  SEMO would take the lead for good with 7:27 remaining as Dalton sank three free throws and then had a basket following an EIU miss on the ensuing possession.

Harvey would lead EIU with 29 points going 11-of-14 from the floor as EIU shot 53 percent for the game.  Wallace added 12 points and Mack Smith had 11.

Gabe McGlothan was one of three SEMO players with 13 points as he also pulled down ten rebounds.   SEMO finished the game shooting 54 percent including 11-of-22 from 3-point range.

Southeast Missouri 80, EIU Women 54

CHARLESTON, Ill. -- Eastern Illinois women's basketball fell 80-54 to Southeast Missouri Saturday afternoon in Lantz Arena. The Redhawks shot 54.2 percent from field connecting on 32-of-59 attempts. The Panthers shot 40.8 percent from the field making 20-of-49 attempts. EIU falls to 10-15 overall and 4-10 in the OVC. SEMO improves to 12-13 overall and 7-7 in the OVC.

The Panthers only lead of the game was early in the first quarter. Grace McRae scored on a layup at 6:53 mark to tie the game 2-2. EIU took their only lead of the game on another layup from McRae. The Redhawks would score five straight points to hold on to the lead for the remainder of the game.

Carmen Tellez hit a three-pointer a minute into the second quarter to bring bring the Panthers within one of the Redhawks. SEMO used a 22-4 run for the final 8:45 of the half holding EIU to just seven second quarter points and extended their lead to 39-20 heading into halftime. The Redhawks led by at least 19 the entire second half securing an 80-54 win.

SEMO out scored EIU 46-24 in the paint. They forced 17 Panther turnovers leading to 26 points and converted their nine offensive boards into 13 second chance points. Tesia Thompson finished with 20 points, six boards, and four assists to lead the game. Adrianna Murphy added 19 points and six assists off the bench. Jocelyn Taylor and Carrie Shephard finished with 16 and 10 points, respectively, and grabbed five boards each.

Taylor Steele would pour in a team-high 15 points on 6-of-12 from the field. Tellez added nine points on 3-of-6 from the arc and tallied two rebounds and two assists. McRae recorded seven points, six rebounds and two steals, while Abby Wahl added six points and six boards.

The Panthers will take their final road trip of the season next weekend heading to Nashville. EIU will play Belmont Thursday Feb. 21 for a 5 pm tip-off.

UT Martin 73, SIUE 69

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – SIUE made a valiant second-half comeback bid against UT Martin Saturday at the Vadalabene Center, but the Cougars fell just short of completing it.

The Skyhawks fended off the Cougars 73-69 to complete the series sweep and move a game ahead of them in the Ohio Valley Conference men's basketball standings. UT Martin, which has won four consecutive games, improved to 10-15 and 5-9. SIUE dropped to 8-18 and 4-10.

"Our guys fought them and this team doesn't lack confidence," SIUE Head Coach Jon Harris said. "We battled back and felt like we could win the game, even when we were down by 17 points."

Injury-saddled UT Martin, dressing only seven players, led 31-25 at half and shot ahead 52-35 midway through the second half. Yet that's when the Cougars went to work and began rallying.

They cut the Skyhawks' lead to 59-51 on a Daniel Kinchen basket with 5:05 remaining and got to within 61-59 with 2:29 to play after David McFarland punched in two shots. SIUE went on a 15-2 binge over five minutes to make a game of it.

"We dug ourselves a big hole, but our (zone) press gave us a little energy in the second half and we started making more shots," Harris said. "We got ourselves back in the game."

McFarland's 15 points, including 10 in the second half, spurred the Cougars. The senior surpassed 600 point for his career and now has 614. Tyresse Williford contributed 14 points (10 in the second half) and Cameron Williams collected 13 points, five rebounds and five assists.

The Cougars chopped the Skyhawks' lead to 68-66 on McFarland's three-pointer with 24.2 seconds, but Delfincko Bogan of UT Martin converted three free throws in the final 21.2 seconds to secure the Skyhawks' victory. Bogan's 23 points, 16 in the second half, powered UT Martin.

"They (Skyhawks) are really playing well together and with the pace they play, they don't need more than seven players," Harris said.

SIUE made 24 of 56 shots, including 8 of 24 from beyond the arc. The Cougars sank 13 of 16 free throws and were outrebounded 37-29. UT Martin made 24 of 57 shots, going 10 of 25 from three-point range. The Skyhawks also hit on 15 of 18 foul shots.

UT Martin used a 13-1 spurt to close out the first half and grab post its six-point advantage. The Cougars only point in the final five minutes of the half came on Williford's free throw with 5.6 seconds to play.

SIUE led 15-6 midway through the first half and benefited from a 7-0 spree later on in the half to overturn the Skyhawks' 18-17 advantage their first lead of the game. Nevertheless, 10-for-28 shooting and nine first-half turnovers hampered the Cougars.

"They had 15 first-half points off our turnovers and bad shots," Harris said of the Skyhawks. "We executed well at the start of the second half, but some shots didn't go down for us."

The Cougars hit the road for a trip to Nashville, Tennessee. They play Thursday at Tennessee State and then Saturday at Belmont. SIUE's final two regular-season games are at home. The Cougars welcome Tennessee Tech Feb. 28 and Jacksonville State March 2. The eight-team OVC Championships run March 6-9 in Evansville, Ind.

"We have dug ourselves a little hole," Harris said of the Cougars playoff outlook for the OVC tourney. "But we are resilient. We will see if we can go to Tennessee and get two wins."