#8 Southeast Missouri (13-16) vs. #5 Morehead State (15-16)

OVC Tournament First Round
Date: Wednesday, Mar. 4, 2015
Tip-Off: 6 p.m., CT
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Arena: Municipal Auditorium (9,654)
Series History: Morehead State leads, 26-17
Coaches: Dickey Nutt (Southeast Missouri), Sean Woods (Morehead State)

Media Coverage
Radio: ESPN 92.9 FM and Real Rock 99.3 FM (Erik Sean)
OVC Tournament Central: OVCSports.com
Bracket: 2015 OVC Men's Tournament
Video: OVC Digital Network
Live Stats: OVCSports.com
Twitter Updates: @SEMOmbb
Game Notes: 2015 Southeast Missouri OVC Tournament Guide

OVC Basketball Tournament Schedule

Wednesday, Mar. 4 (First Round)
Game 1 - #5 Morehead State vs. #8 Southeast Missouri, 6 p.m. OVCDN
Game 2 - #6 Eastern Illinois vs. #7 SIUE, 8 p.m. OVCDN

Thursday, Mar. 5 (Quarterfinals)
Game 3 - #4 UT Martin vs. Game 1 Winner, 6 p.m. OVCDN
Game 4 - #3 Belmont vs. Game 2 Winner, 8 p.m. OVCDN

Friday, Mar. 6 (Semifinals)
Game 5 - #1 Murray State vs. Game 3 Winner ESPNU
Game 6 - #2 Eastern Ky. vs. Game 4 Winner, 8:30 p.m. ESPNU

Saturday, Mar. 7 (Championship)
Game 7 - Semifinal Winners, 6 p.m. ESPN2

All Times Central

Music City Madness
Eighth-seeded Southeast Missouri (13-16) opens postseason play against fifth-seeded Morehead State (15-16) in the first round of the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament Wednesday. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m., CT, at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium.

Follow the Redhawks
All of Southeast's games at the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament will be broadcast 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 OVCSports.com. Video for the first round and quarterfinal games will be available online at the OVC Digital Network. The semifinals will be televised live on ESPNU, with the championship airing on ESPN2.

Eight-Team Field is Set
Southeast claimed the last spot in the 2015 Ohio Valley Conference Tournament when Jacksonville State lost at Eastern Kentucky on Feb. 26. The Redhawks join No. 1 Murray State (26-4), No. 2 Eastern Kentucky (19-10), No. 3 Belmont (19-10), No. 4 UT Martin (18-11), No. 5 Morehead State (15-16), No. 6 Eastern Illinois (16-13) and No. 7 SIU Edwardsville (12-15) at this year's event. Seven (Murray State, Belmont, Eastern Kentucky, Eastern Illinois, Morehead State, Southeast, SIU Edwardsville) of the eight teams from last year's tourney return to the league's postseason fling.

Now Appearing
The Redhawks make their 14th Ohio Valley Conference Tournament appearance this season. Southeast has made the OVC postseason tourney in 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015. The Redhawks head to Music City Madness for the fifth-straight year under head coach Dickey Nutt. It is Southeast's longest streak of consecutive OVC Tournament appearances.

OVC Tournament Record
Southeast is 10-12 all-time in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. The Redhawks advanced to the quarterfinals four-straight years. Southeast beat Eastern Kentucky (2011, 2012) and Eastern Illinois (2013, 2014) in those first-round matchups. Southeast has never gone five-consecutive years with a win at the OVC Tournament.

As a No. 8 Seed
The Redhawks head to the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament as a No. 8 seed for just the second time in program history. Southeast last went to an OVC Tourney as an eight-seed in 2002 when first round matchups were played at campus sites. The Redhawks lost to top-seeded Tennessee Tech, 73-56, that year.

Vs. the No. 5 Seed
Wednesday's game against Morehead State marks Southeast's first-ever meeting with a No. 5 seed at the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. The Redhawks records against each seed are as follows:
vs. #1 Seed    1-2
vs. #2 Seed    0-2
vs. #3 Seed    2-5
vs. #4 Seed    0-3
vs. #6 Seed    3-0
vs. #7 Seed    3-0
vs. #8 Seed    1-0

Nutt at the OVC Tournament
Southeast has made the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament in five of six years with Dickey Nutt as its head coach. Nutt faced Austin Peay, Tennessee Tech, Eastern Illinois and Eastern Kentucky in OVC Tournament play. He is 4-4 in the postseason as all of those contests were played at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium.
vs. Eastern Kentucky    2-2
vs. Eastern Illinois         2-0
vs. Austin Peay             0-1
vs. Tennessee Tech      0-1

Back for More
Six different Redhawks, including Nino Johnson, Jarekious Bradley, Antonius Cleveland, Jamaal Calvin, Josh Langford and Caleb Woods have postseason experience. This year marks Johnson's team-high third trip to the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament. Meanwhile, Bradley, Cleveland, Calvin, Langford and Woods make their second appearance. Johnson is averaging 11.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and two blocks per game in four postseason starts.

First-Timers
A total of seven players will make their first career Ohio Valley Conference Tournament appearance with Southeast Wednesday. Isiah Jones, T.J. Thomas, Marcus Wallace, Aaron Adeoye, Ladarius Coleman, J.T. Jones and J.J. Thompson form that group.

It's Been Awhile
The Redhawks meet Morehead State at the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament for the second time. These teams last faced each other during the postseason in 2003. The Eagles, who were seeded second that year, eliminated the Redhawks with a 91-84 win.

Series History
Southeast is 17-26 all-time in its series against Morehead State. The Redhawks are looking to snap a three-game losing streak in the series. MSU beat Southeast, 70-57, on Jan. 8 in Cape Girardeau.
    
Redhawks Win Regular-Season Finale
The Redhawks ended a season-long three-game losing streak with a convincing 89-65 win over Austin Peay (Feb. 28) in the 2014-15 regular-season finale. Southeast, which posted its largest win in Ohio Valley Conference play, ended the regular-season with a win for the third-straight year.

Bradley Goes Over 1,000 Career Points
Jarekious Bradley scored a game-high 28 points off the bench, and as a result, went over 1,000 career points against Austin Peay (Feb. 28). Bradley shot 11-of-18 from the field and 4-of-7 from three-point range. He also added 2-of-2 free throws, dished out three assists and had two steals in 29 minutes. Bradley officially went over 1,000 points when he made a jumper with 7:56 left in the game. He now has 1,006 points in his two-year Southeast career.

Johnson is Next
Nino Johnson is the next Redhawk closing in on 1,000 career points. Johnson (984) is just 16 points away from reaching that milestone. So far, Dickey Nutt has had three 1,000-point scorers as Southeast's head coach. Tyler Stone (2011-14) ranks fifth all-time in school history with 1,546 points and Marland Smith (2009-13) ranks seventh with 1,423. Most recently, Jarekious Bradley (1,006) joined the elite company when he cleared the 1,000-point mark vs. Austin Peay (Feb. 28).

Johnson Joins OVC Career Blocks Leaders
Nino Johnson recorded two more blocks vs. Austin Peay (Feb. 28), and as a result, moved into a tie for 10th on the Ohio Valley Conference's all-time career blocks list. Johnson, who has 180 blocks, shares that spot with Murray State's Cuthbert Victor (2001-04).

Season-High Threes
Southeast drained a season-high 14 three-pointers against Austin Peay (Feb. 28). The Redhawks shot 50 percent (14-of-28) from long range with six different players burying a three. Isiah Jones and Jarekious Bradley paved the way with four treys each. It was just the second time Southeast had over 10 three-pointers in a game this year.

Wallace Gets First Career Start
True freshman guard Marcus Wallace made his first career start against Austin Peay (Feb. 28). Wallace had 10 points and matched a season-high seven rebounds in 33 minutes. He also dished out five assists and collected five steals. Wallace enters his first collegiate postseason after scoring double figures in five of his last six games.

Langford Returns
Guard Josh Langford, who missed four games due to a back injury, returned to give Southeast some quality minutes against Austin Peay (Feb. 28). Langford scored four points in eight minutes off the bench during his first game since Feb. 7.

Farewell Seniors
Six seniors were honored prior to Southeast's regular-season finale vs. Austin Peay (Feb. 28). Will Holifield, Caleb Woods, Aaron Adeoye, Josh Langford, Jarekious Bradley and Nino Johnson form that group. Johnson is the only one who has been with the Redhawks for four years.

Halftime Leads
The Redhawks took a halftime lead in their fifth-straight game when they pulled ahead, 41-27, against Austin Peay (Feb. 28). Southeast is 11-5 in games it leads at the half this season. The Redhawks five-game streak of leading at halftime is their longest this year. Southeast never trailed in its latest win over the Governors.

Jones for Three
Isiah Jones buried multiple threes in five-straight games and six of his last seven starts. Jones knocked down each of his first three 3-point attempts to help grab Southeast an early lead at Eastern Illinois (Feb. 22). He has shot 48 percent (19-of-39) from three-point range in his last five games alone. Jones leads the team and ranks seventh in the Ohio Valley Conference with 62 three-pointers made this year.

About Morehead State
Morehead State enters this week's Ohio Valley Conference Tournament on a three-game winning streak. MSU averaged 86 points per game over its final three games of the regular-season. The Eagles lead the OVC in rebounding margin with a +5.4 advantage. MSU is also second in the league in steals, averaging 8.3 per contest. Angelo Warner is the Eagles top scorer with 12.7 points a game. Warner ranks 17th among the conference's scoring leaders, as well. He did not play against Southeast on Jan. 8. Brent Arrington is second among OVC individuals with 62 steals.