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CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Nick Niemczyk scored 18 points in his first career start to lead Southeast Missouri (3-3) to a 64-57 win over Mid-American Conference foe Miami (Ohio) (2-2) Saturday afternoon at the Show Me Center.

Niemczyk heated up to score 14 points in the second half, where Southeast shot 65 percent from the field and outscored Miami, 42-27.

"I couldn't be more proud of our team today," said Southeast head coach Dickey Nutt. "Miami is an outstanding basketball team and this was a big win for our program. I thought we played nervous in the first half, but settled down in the second."

Southeast shot just 30 percent in the opening stanza and trailed, 30-22, at the intermission.

Leon Powell had a steal at halfcourt and dribbled the rest of the way to throw down a monsterous dunk and ignite a stretch of seven-straight points early in the second half.

Niemczyk buried a three-pointer on the next possession after Powell's transition bucket, before giving Southeast its first lead when he knocked down a jumper to make it 37-36 with 12:57 remaining.

The Redhawks, who would not trail again, then made key baskets and hit some huge free throws down the stretch.

Josh Sewell's free throw knotted the game at 37-37, but Southeast answered with a 10-1 run to build its biggest lead. The Redhawks scored six points in the paint, while Niemczyk knocked down another three-pointer to key the surge which ended when Tyler Stone's layup gave Southeast a 47-38 advantage with just under eight minutes to play.

Jon Harris' three-pointer later cut Southeast's lead to 55-53 with 2:49 on the clock before Marcus Brister made  a reverse layup with the shot clock winding down to give the Redhawks a four-point cushion with under a minute left.

"That basket was huge and we were able to hit our free throws in the end," said Nutt.

Southeast followed Brister's acrobatic shot by making 7-of-8 free throws in the last 56 seconds to ice its second-straight victory.

Lucas Nutt accounted for 5-of-6 shots, while Niemczyk added the final two points of the game.

Niemczyk shot 6-of-11 from the field, 3-of-6 from downtown and 3-of-4 at the free throw line to lead Southeast. He also added a team-high six rebounds in 34 minutes.

Brister followed with 10 points and a game-high four assists. He added 4-of-4 free throws, going perfect at the free throw line for the third time in his career.

Powell chipped in nine points and five rebounds, while Zach House contributed two points in seven quality minutes off the bench when Southeast's frontline was in foul trouble.

"Our depth was good tonight and Zach had some good moments for us," commented Nutt.

Julian Mavunga scored a game-high 27 points and had seven rebounds to lead Miami. Harris followed with 12 points off the bench, while Bill Edwards added a game-high 12 boards.

Southeast, which improved to 3-6 all-time against Mid-American Conference schools, returns to action at Arkansas State Tuesday.