CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Ohio Valley Conference preseason-favorite Belmont (9-6, 1-0) made a season-high 17 three-pointers to get by Southeast Missouri (2-11, 0-1), 92-82, Thursday afternoon at the Show Me Center.
 
Belmont made all but 10 of its field goals from 3-point range and knocked down 10 in the first half during the league-opener for both teams.
 
"Belmont is one of the toughest teams to defend," said Southeast head coach Rick Ray. "They do simple things, but are so good at spreading out the defense."
 
Southeast was even with Belmont in virtually every statistical category except 3-pointers and that was the difference in the end.
 
The Redhawks started strong again, scoring the first six points of the game to take their biggest lead when Eric McGill buried a 3-pointer with 18:06 left to play in the first half.
 
Belmont heated up to drain a 3-pointer on three-straight possessions to grab its first lead. Craig Bradshaw scored before Taylor Barnette hit back-to-back threes, giving the Bruins a 19-17 edge at the 13:41 mark.
 
Trey Kellum's jumper put Southeast ahead, 25-23, with 11:18 remaining and that was the Redhawks final lead as Belmont eventually headed into the locker room with a 47-44 advantage.
 
Despite Belmont's barrage of 10 three-pointers, Southeast (.500) managed to outshoot the Bruins (.448) from the field in the first half.
 
Deadlocked at 49-49 with 17:13 left to play in the second half, Belmont put together a 10-0 run to take a double-digit lead. Nick Smith nailed a 3-pointer on the final two possessions of that surge to push the Bruins lead to 59-49 at the 13:34 mark.
 
Austin Luke's 3-pointer gave Belmont its largest lead at 69-55 with 11:22 on the clock, but Southeast kept fighting.
 
The Redhawks pulled to within six points on three occasions in the final 6:18 of the game. McGill and Isiah Jones each drained a 3-pointer and Kellum hit two free throws to make it a two-possession game.
 
After Kellum's free throws, Bradshaw and Luke both added two free throws of their own to finish off the 92-82 victory.
 
Bradshaw led all scorers with 28 points, including 15 in the second half. He shot 9-of-18 from the field and had a game-high seven 3-pointers.
 
Barnette followed with 20 points as all five of his makes were from beyond the arc. Evan Bradds also contributed a double-double 13 points and 14 rebounds for the Bruins, who shot 45.8 percent (27-of-59) from the floor.
 
Jones paved the way for Southeast, which had at least four players score double figures for the third-straight game. He scored 20 points, shooting 6-of-14 from the field with five of his makes coming from downtown. Jones also had six rebounds, four assists and two steals.
 
McGill matched a season-high 15 points on 5-of-11 field goals and 3-of-6 threes in 31 minutes. Antonius Cleveland followed with a double-double 13 points and 11 rebounds, and Kellum added 10 points and six boards.
 
Southeast shot 42.2 percent (27-of-64) and made a season-high 10-of-19 three-pointers for 52.6 percent on the afternoon.
 
"We are light-years ahead of where we were from the start of the season even more so on offense," said Ray. "Our guys are improving individually. They are being more assertive on the offensive end and doing a good job of sharing the basketball. Our offense has improved leaps and bounds."
 
Southeast dropped to 9-16 all-time in OVC openers.
 
The Redhawks close out their three-game homestand when they welcome Tennessee State Saturday. Tip-off is set for 4:15 p.m., CT, at the Show Me Center.