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CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Robert Nyakundi scored a career-high 29 points to help Southern Methodist (6-4) rally from a 10-point deficit and beat Southeast Missouri (4-7), 84-65, Monday night at the Show Me Center.
 
Nyakundi, who did not make a three-pointer in the game's opening 20 minutes, scored 24 of his points in the second half, where he heated up to make five of his final eight three-point attempts.
 
Southeast was having success early, and as a result, built a 25-15 lead with 8:59 left in the first half.
 
Tyler Stone scored six of the game's first eight points, while Marland Smith added eight points and drained back-to-back threes to get Southeast a 14-9 advantage at the 14:34 mark.
 
After Lucas Nutt's layup pushed the Redhawks lead to 10 points, SMU went on a 23-8 run to grab a 38-33 lead at the intermission. The Mustangs scored seven unanswered points in the last 3:50 to secure their halftime edge.
 
“We have to get closer to a 40-minute stretch,” said Southeast head coach Dickey Nutt. “We haven't played a full 40 minutes yet. We have to keep our heads up and continue to improve.”
 
Nick Niemczyk buried a jumper to pull Southeast to within three points (40-37) early in the second half, but Nyakundi nailed two-straight three-pointers to give SMU a 49-40 lead with 16:50 left.
 
Nyakundi, who scored 15 points in the first 8:30 of the second half, pushed SMU's lead to 55-40 when he made three free throws with 15:04 remaining.
 
The Mustangs would then lead by as many as 23 points on London Giles layup (84-61) at the 2:41 mark before polishing off their sixth win of the season.
 
Nyakundi shot 8-of-13 from the field and made 6-of-9 shots in the second half. He also made all five of his three-pointers and hit a perfect 7-of-7 free throws in the final stanza.
 
Giles, like Nyakundi, finished with a career-high in the scoring column. He followed with 24 points on 7-of-14 field goals, including 5-of-8 from downtown.
 
SMU outrebounded Southeast, 38-32, and held a commanding 28-4 advantage in second chance points.
 
Smith led the Redhawks with 22 points, scoring over 20 points in his second-straight game. He shot 50 percent (7-of-14) from the field, with four of his makes from behind the arc. Smith added 4-of-4 free throws and a team-high five assists in 36 minutes, as well.
 
“Marland played outstanding tonight,” commented Nutt. “He gave us a lot of quality minutes.”
 
Stone added a double-double 11 points and 11 rebounds, and chipped in a game-high three blocks, while Corey Wilford contributed 11 points in 16 minutes off the bench.
 
Meanwhile, Leon Powell scored six points and had six rebounds. Powell, who fouled out with 9:24 left in the game, played just 16 minutes.
 
Southeast, which was outscored, 46-32, in the second half, shot 45.8 percent (22-of-48) from the field on the night.
 
The Redhawks, who are now on a season-long three-game losing streak, head to Sacramento State Dec. 22. Thursday's game marks Southeast's final tune-up before Ohio Valley Conference play.