Final Statistics

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Southeast Missouri (11-13, 5-6) used a huge second half to erase a 12-point deficit and get by Eastern Illinois (14-10, 7-4), 68-64, Saturday night in Ohio Valley Conference action at the Show Me Center.

It was a tale of two halves for Southeast, which shrugged off a sluggish start to pull off its come-from-behind win.

"I don't think we could have played more poorly early on," said Southeast head coach Dickey Nutt. "Then, we made some adjustments and things started to click. This was a huge win for us."

The Redhawks trailed, 50-38, with 10:36 left to play when they put together a big 16-3 run to take their first lead of the game.

Freshman Marcus Wallace scored seven points to key the decisive surge that also saw Nino Johnson, Jarekious Bradley and J.J. Thompson contribute. The Redhawks scored 12 unanswered points during the run that ended with Thompson knocking down two free throws to give Southeast a 54-53 edge with 4:50 left to play.

Walk-on and nearby Sikeston native J.T. Jones, who came off the bench to send a jolt in the Redhawks, had a steal at halfcourt and later scored a layup off a steal by Johnson to regain a 56-54 lead immediately after the Panthers tied the game.

Southeast never relinquished its lead after Jones' basket.

After Josh Piper's free throw narrowed the Redhawks lead to 56-55, Johnson rebounded his own miss and threw down a one-handed jam to send the crowd into a frenzy.

Johnson blocked Trae Anderson's shot and got the rebound on EIU's next possession before Bradley buried a three at the top of the arc to expand Southeast's lead to 61-55 with 1:33 on the clock.

Dylan Chatman's three-pointer made it a 64-62 game with 17 seconds left, but Southeast made four free throws in the final seconds to polish off the victory. The Redhawks did not miss a free throw in the last 28 seconds, going 6-of-6.

Southeast fell victim to a 10-2 run in the first 3:25 of the game, missing six of its first seven shots along the way. LeTrell Viser and Chatman each buried a three and Anderson capped the quick jaunt with a layup at the 16:35 mark.

The Redhawks battled back to tie the game at 13-13 on a jumper by Wallace with 12:02 left to play and pulled within a point (17-16) when Isiah Jones knocked down a three with 9:34 remaining.

After Jones' make, EIU answered with a 12-4 run to build a 29-20 advantage. Anderson scored six points to key the surge that ended on his own free throws with 3:38 on the clock.

Both teams would then go scoreless for the next 2:25 before Thompson ended the drought with a layup. Chatman followed that up with his second three of the first half, giving the Panthers a 32-22 lead at the intermission.

Southeast scored a season-low 22 first-half points and shot 31 percent (9-of-29) from the field in the opening 20 minutes.

Wallace netted a season-high 18 points on 6-of-9 field goals and 5-of-7 free throws off the bench to lead Southeast. Wallace's effort helped the Redhawk bench outscore EIU's reserves, 40-9.

"Marcus was a star tonight and he was all over the floor," said Nutt. "He made big shots and free throws. I was really pleased with his effort."

Thompson followed with 11 points, while Johnson and Antonius Cleveland each turned in a double-double. Johnson scored 10 points and had 10 rebounds, and Cleveland pitched in 10 points and added a career-high 12 boards.

Bradley posted nine points, three rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal in 19 minutes off the bench. He returned after missing Thursday's game at Murray State with a concussion.

Jones was 1-of-2 from the field with a steal in a big 11 minutes.

"J.T. gave us amazing energy and really picked our team up tonight," said Nutt.

Southeast shot 40.7 percent (24-of-59) from the field and heated up to make 50 percent (15-of-30) of its attempts in the second half. The Redhawks outscored the Panthers, 46-32, in the second stanza, as well.

Anderson finished with a game-high 25 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead EIU. The Panthers were without two of their top scorers in Chris Olivier and Reggie Smith. Both did not play due to sickness.

Southeast continues its three-game homestand when it hosts UT Martin Feb. 12. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m., CT. Thursday's game will be nationally-televised on the CBS Sports Network.