Southeast Missouri (6-7, 0-0 OVC) at Belmont (8-5, 0-0 OVC)

Date: Thursday, Jan. 1
Tip-Off: 1 p.m., CT
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Arena: Curb Event Center (5,000)
Series History: Belmont leads, 2-0
Coaches: Dickey Nutt (Southeast Missouri), Rick Byrd (Belmont)

Media Coverage
Radio: ESPN 92.9 FM and Real Rock 99.3 FM (Erik Sean)
Video: OVC Digital Network
Live Stats: BelmontBruins.com
Twitter Updates: @SEMOmbb
Game Notes: Southeast Missouri

Conference Play Begins
Southeast Missouri (6-7) opens its 16-game Ohio Valley Conference slate at Belmont (8-5) Thursday. Tip-off is set for 1 p.m., CT, at the Curb Event Center.

Follow the Redhawks
Thursday's game will be broadcast live on the radio at ESPN 92.9 FM and Real Rock 99.3 FM. Erik Sean will provide play-by-play. Live stats can be accessed online at BelmontBruins.com. Free video is available online at the OVC Digital Network.

Happy New Year!
Southeast officially rings in the New Year against Belmont, the two-time defending Ohio Valley Conference regular-season champion. This year marks the first time the Redhawks play a New Year's Day game under head coach Dickey Nutt. The last time Southeast played on New Year's Day was in 2005. The Redhawks beat Lincoln University, 95-68, in Cape Girardeau that season.

Begin with a Win
The Redhawks are looking to start the New Year with a win. Southeast has done just that three times with Dickey Nutt as its head coach. The Redhawks beat Austin Peay, 86-84, on Jan. 3, 2013; Jacksonville State, 74-56, on Jan. 2, 2012; and UT Martin, 82-75, on Jan. 3, 2011. All of those victories were in Cape Girardeau. The last time Southeast opened the New Year with a win on the road was on Jan. 2, 2007 (88-74, at Eastern Kentucky).

OVC Openers
Southeast is 9-14 all-time in Ohio Valley Conference openers. The Redhawks have opened league play with a win in two of the last three seasons. Southeast is 2-3 in OVC-openers under head coach Dickey Nutt.

Series History
The Redhawks and Belmont hook up for the third time in 2014-15. Belmont currently owns a 2-0 lead in the all-time series which began when the Bruins joined the Ohio Valley Conference in 2012-13. Belmont scored 107 points in each of the first two meetings between these teams.

Non-Conference Ends
Southeast ended its 13-game non-conference season with a win when it beat Harris-Stowe, 104-66, on Dec. 28. The Redhawks closed out their rugged non-league schedule with a 6-7 record. Southeast played three SEC teams (Missouri, Arkansas, Ole Miss) and two Missouri Valley Conference foes (Southern Illinois, Missouri State) during one of its toughest non-conference seasons to date.

Defense Clamps Down
Freshman Marcus Wallace came off the bench to score 11 points and collect a game-high five steals in the Redhawks latest victory over Harris-Stowe. Wallace helped spark a Southeast defense that forced a season-best 29 turnovers, including 17 in the second half. The 29 turnovers were the most an opponent committed against the Redhawks since UT Martin had 27 on Dec. 2, 2006. Additionally, the 29 turnovers are the third-most forced in a game by an Ohio Valley Conference team this year.

Season-Highs All Around
The Redhawks recently ended their season-long three-game losing streak with a 94-66 win over Harris-Stowe (Dec. 28). Southeast established several season-highs in the process. The Redhawks notched season-bests in points (94), second-half points (58), field goals made (35), field goals attempted (69), assists (21), blocks (7), steals (14) and turnovers forced (29).

On the Road Again
Southeast plays its sixth road game of the season when it visits Belmont Thursday. The Redhawks are 1-5 on the road two months into the 2014-15 campaign. Southeast, which has dropped four-straight away contests, last won outside of Cape Girardeau when it beat Central Arkansas, 74-68, on Nov. 22.

Two More to Go
Jarekious Bradley is two 3-pointers away from reaching 100 in his career. Bradley is 98-of-273 from three-point range in two years at Southeast. He has made three or more three-pointers in four of his starts this season.

Everyone Scores
All 12 Redhawks who played against Harris-Stowe (Dec. 28) got into the scoring column. Aaron Adeoye led all scorers with a season-high 16 points, while Antonius Cleveland and Jarekious Bradley each added 13, and Marcus Wallace had 11. It was the third time where nine or more different Southeast players scored in a game this year.

Bradley Leads OVC in Free Throw Percentage
Jarekious Bradley is the top free throw shooter in the Ohio Valley Conference through 13 games this season. Bradley, who has not missed a free throw in four-straight contests (8-of-8). He is shooting 90.3 percent and is 28-of-31 at the charity stripe this year. Addtionally, Bradley stands 21st in the nation in that category.

Closing In
Senior forward Nino Johnson is nine blocks away from breaking Southeast's all-time career record. Johnson had a single-season record 84 blocks in 2012-13. He currently has 148 in his career and ranks second behind William "Bud" Eley (156 blocks, 1995-99). Johnson was third on the team with 28 swats a year ago.

Starting Streak
Nino Johnson has started in 19-consecutive games dating back to last season, presently the longest streak among active players. Johnson scored double figures 12 times and pulled down double-digit rebounds on five occasions during that stretch. The last time Johnson wasn't in the starting lineup was vs. UT Martin on Feb. 12, 2014.

Experience Factor
Dickey Nutt (547) and Rick Byrd (1,058) have coached a combined 1,605 games. Nutt is in his sixth season at Southeast, while Byrd is in his 29th year at Belmont. Additionally, Byrd is just three victories away from getting 700 in his career. There is a combined 52 years of experience between Nutt (19) and Byrd (33).

About Belmont
Belmont stands atop the Ohio Valley Conference East Division with Tennessee Tech and each enter the start of league play with identical 8-5 records. After winning seven-straight games from Nov. 17-Dec. 2, the Bruins have since dropped four of their last five. Belmont, which went 2-4 in December, is coming off a three-game road trip. Most recently, the Bruins lost at Butler, 67-56, on Dec. 28. Belmont leads the OVC with 131 three-point field goals made. The Bruins are knocking down 10.1 three-pointers per contest, good for sixth in the nation. Belmont is also third in the country in both total three-pointers made and attempts. Craig Bradshaw leads the OVC and stands 23rd in the nation in scoring with 19.6 points per game. Bradshaw (28) and teammate Taylor Barnette (31) have combined for 59 threes, holding the top two spots among OVC leaders in three-point field goals made.Meanwhile, Evan Bradds is second in the conference and eighth in the nation in field goal percentage (.637). Freshman Amanze Egekeze boasts the league's top three-point field goal percentage (.542) and Reece Chamberlain leads the OVC and rates 18th in the nation in assists (77) with nearly six (5.9) a game. The Bruins were picked second overall behind Murray State in this year's OVC Preseason Poll.