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NASHVILLE, Tenn. – First-Team All-Ohio Valley Conference forward Tyler Stone scored a game-high 27 points to lead sixth-seeded Southeast Missouri (18-13) to a commanding 79-61 win over seventh-seeded Eastern Illinois (11-19) Wednesday night in the first round of the OVC Tournament.

Stone, who battled flu-like symptoms Tuesday, guided Southeast to its fifth win in a row as the Redhawks matched their longest winning streak of the season. Southeast also eliminated the Panthers for the second-straight year.
 
The Redhawks picked up their 18^th win, marking just the fourth time they posted 18 or more victories in a season during their NCAA Division I era. Southeast last reached 18 wins in a season in 2000-01 (18-12).
 
"I thought the difference in tonight's game was transition basketball and our bench," said Southeast head coach Dickey Nutt. "I was pleased with how we played overall and was happy to get that first win under our belt."

The Redhawks advance to the OVC Tournament quarterfinals for the fourth-straight year and will have a date with No. 3 Eastern Kentucky on Thursday at 8 p.m, CT. Southeast will look to repay the Colonels, who used a three-pointer by Glenn Cosey at the buzzer to slip past the Redhawks on Feb. 1.

While Stone turned in his fourth-straight double-double, the Redhawk reserves did their part by outscoring EIU's bench, 24-0.

EIU scored the first four points of the game, but Southeast went on a 12-0 run to take an eight-point lead with 15:16 left in the first half. Darrian Gray scored his first points at an OVC Tournament on a three-pointer and Jarekious Bradley added five points to key the stretch.
 
The Redhawks later went scoreless for 5:03 and the Panthers clawed their way back to pull ahead, 19-17, at the 7:20 mark.
 
Shortly after that, Southeast countered with Stone scoring five-straight points to kickstart a 19-6 run over the final 6:23. Stone followed his own jumper with a three-pointer and dropped in seven points. Antonius Cleveland also drove the baseline and threw down a one-handed dunk, and converted a three-point play on Southeast's next possession to give the Redhawks a 39-27 halftime lead.
 
Southeast drained four three-pointers in the first 6:23 of the second half to help grow its lead to 20. Stone buried two, while Gray and Cleveland chipped in one apiece. Nino Johnson's dunk then pushed the Redhawks lead to 59-39 with 12:37 on the clock.

The Redhawks led by as many as 22 on two occasions when Stone put down a dunk to make it a 63-41 game (11:09) and made a layup to put Southeast ahead, 74-52, with 4:15 remaining.

Southeast's 18-point win was its largest in an OVC Tournament game since the Redhawks beat EIU, 78-51 (+21), in the first round of the 1999 Tourney.

Stone shot 11-of-17 from the field and matched a career-high 3-of-4 three-pointers. He also pulled down a game-high 11 rebounds, dished out one assist, had a steal and gathered three blocks. Stone has gone 44-straight games with 10 or more points.

"Tyler was good out there tonight," said Nutt. "He continues to get better every game."

Cleveland followed with 15 points on 5-of-11 field goals and 4-of-5 free throws in 29 minutes off the bench.

Johnson finished with 12 points and eight rebounds, and Gray added 10 points. Lucas Nutt dished out 10 assists and surpassed 600 in his career.

The Redhawks shot 50 percent (31-of-62) on the night, including a .533 clip (16-of-30) in the second half. Defensively, Southeast held the Panthers under 40 percent (.373).

Bradley got into early foul trouble and scored nine points in just 14 minutes. He wound up fouling out of the game and that could have been a blessing in disguise.

"Jarekious has been playing with an injured knee and saw limited action due to foul trouble," said Nutt. "That helped us because he was able to rest."

Sherman Blanford led the Panthers with 22 points.