Box Score Final Statistics
MURRAY, Ky. – Southeast Missouri (10-13, 4-6) made five 3-pointers in the final four minutes, but came up short in a 82-72 loss to Ohio Valley Conference leader and rival Murray State (20-4, 10-0) Thursday night at the CFSB Center.
MSU got a big scare from the Redhawks down the stretch, but managed to pull away for its 18th-consecutive win.
Down, 73-56, with 4:06 on the clock, Southeast started raining in threes. Isiah Jones buried three treys in a short span of 1:48. Marcus Wallace and Antonius Cleveland then dialed up from long distance, and just like that, the Redhawks were within six (78-72) with 1:04 left.
MSU made four free throws in the last 52 seconds to finish off the 82-72 win.
"I was proud with our effort and we showed no quit tonight," said Southeast head coach Dickey Nutt. "This was as hard as I've seen this team play in a long time."
While Southeast's late surge was impressive, it was a six-minute stretch that proved to be the difference in the end.
Nino Johnson (15:54) and Antonius Cleveland (14:15) each picked up their fourth foul with over 14 minutes left in the game. With Johnson and Cleveland on the bench, Southeast shot 2-of-9 from the field and turned the ball over four times in 6:05 as the Racers widened their lead to double figures.
MSU later built its largest lead of the night to 22 on two occasions when T.J. Sapp's jumper made it a 70-48 game with 6:57 remaining and Justin Seymour's three made it a 73-51 contest with a little over five minutes left.
Jones knocked down a three-pointer to jumpstart Southeast's ferocious comeback in the last four minutes.
Southeast started strong, leading MSU for the first nine minutes of the game.
Jamaal Calvin, who made only his second start of the season, scored eight of his team's first 10 points as the Redhawks pulled ahead, 10-4, with 14:41 left in the first half. Calvin buried two threes and knocked down a pair of free throws to help grab Southeast the early lead.
Shortly after Cleveland's free throw gave the Redhawks a 15-12 edge at the 11:54 mark, MSU answered with an 11-4. MSU scored six-straight points following Cleveland's free throw.
Tyler Rambo secured the Racers first lead (16-15) on a layup with 11:07 remaining. Rambo also capped the run with a jumper that widened MSU's lead to 23-19 with 7:17 on the clock.
Southeast tied the Racers three times in the final 6:08 of the first half before MSU used a 9-4 run to take a 36-31 lead at the intermission.
Johnson's free throws knotted the game at 27-27 with 4:10 left, but Jarvis Williams and Sapp combined for six points to ignite the Racers surge. Sapp's layup gave MSU its largest lead of the half at 36-29 before Cleveland scored as time expired to bring the Redhawks to within five.
MSU did not fall behind the rest of the way.
Four Racer starters scored double figures, led by Williams who posted a double-double 23 points and 11 rebounds. Sapp followed with 19 points, Cameron Payne pitched in 16 and Jeffery Moss added 10.
MSU shot 51.8 percent (29-of-56) from the field and 55.6 percent (15-of-27) in the first half alone. The Racers also outrebounded Southeast, 37-27, and held a hefty 42-18 advantage inside the paint.
Jones led all Southeast scorers with 19 points, including 17 in the second half. Jones threw in all of his season-high five three-pointers in the game's final 20 minutes. For the game, the Redhawks had nine threes, matching their season-high.
Cleveland registered a season-high 17 points on 5-of-8 from the field. He dished out a team-high four assists, as well.
Johnson rounded out the Redhawks double-digit scorers with 16 points in 32 minutes.
In addition, Southeast shot a season-best 83.3 percent (15-of-18) at the free throw line.
Southeast was without its leading scorer, Jarekious Bradley, who missed the game due to a concussion he suffered during the team's practice Wednesday.
The Redhawks return home to host Eastern Illinois Saturday. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m., CT, at the Show Me Center.
