Southeast Missouri (4-7) at Sacramento State (5-5)

Game Information
Date: Thursday, Dec. 22, 2011
Tip-Off: 9:05 p.m., CT
Location: Sacramento, Calif.
Site: Hornets Nest (1,200)
Series Record: Southeast leads, 1-0
Coaches: Dickey Nutt (210-239 overall, 21-52 at Southeast, 9-27 OVC); Brian Katz (23-74 overall, 23-74 at Sacramento State)

Southeast Missouri Game Notes

Media Coverage
Redhawks Radio Network: K103 FM (KEZS), flagship; 1440 AM (KSIM); 903 AM (KWOC); 1470 AM (KMAL). Erik Sean, Play-by-Play.
WebCast: HornetSports.com
Live Stats: HornetSports.com

Quick Hits

California Dreamin'
Southeast Missouri (4-7) plays its final game before the Christmas holiday when it visits Sacramento State (5-5) Thursday. Tip-off is scheduled for 9:05 p.m., CT.

Return Trip
Southeast and Sacramento State met for the first time in an ESPN BracketBuster matchup in 2010-11. The Redhawks beat the Hornets, 67-52, on Feb. 19 in Cape Girardeau. Lucas Nutt led Southeast with 17 points, while Marland Smith and Leon Powell followed with 16 and 15 points, respectively. In addition, Southeast went a perfect 10-of-10 at the free throw line. The Redhawks head west to return the trip from that ESPN BracketBuster game this season.

Nutt to Coach 450th Career Game
Thursday marks the 450th game that Dickey Nutt will coach at the NCAA Division I level. Nutt is 210-239 all-time in 16 seasons as a head coach.

Redhawks Searching for First Road Win
Southeast is 0-5 on the road this season and heads to Sacramento State for its final tune-up before Ohio Valley Conference play. The Redhawks are currently one of three teams in the OVC without a road win. SIU Edwardsville (0-3) and Jacksonville State (0-5) are the others. Southeast's last road win came at SIU Edwardsville (83-63) on Feb. 7, 2011. After that, the Redhawks beat Eastern Kentucky, 65-49, but that was at a neutral site during the OVC Tournament.

Consistent Effort
Forward Tyler Stone is quickly becoming a high-impact player and has been one of Southeast's most consistent threats as of late. Stone, who leads the Redhawks in scoring (14.5 ppg), rebounding (7.4 rpg) and blocks (11, 1.0 bpg), has scored double figures in five-straight games. In addition, he scored a season-high 30 points at Central Arkansas (Dec. 5) and registered two double-doubles during that span.

Smith Steps Up
Marland Smith became the second Redhawk to score over 20 points in back-to-back games this year when he dropped in a season-high 22 against SMU (Dec. 19). Smith made 7-of-14 field goals and knocked down a season-high four three-pointers vs. the Mustangs. Leon Powell also accomplished the feat when he scored 26 points at Central Arkansas (Dec. 5) and 21 points vs. UMKC (Dec. 10).

Redhawks Looking to Build Momentum
Southeast, which lost four of its last five games, is looking to snap a season-long three-game losing streak. The Redhawks lost to Central Arkansas (Dec. 5) on the road and both UMKC (Dec. 10) and SMU (Dec. 19) at home during that span.

Mix and Match
The Redhawks used their sixth different lineup combination when Marland Smith (G), Logan Nutt (G), Nick Niemczyk (G), Leon Powell (F) and Tyler Stone (F) started against SMU (Dec. 19). That same lineup is expected to start at Sacramento State Thursday. The Redhawks have not won more than one game with the same five starters through 11 games this season.