Southeast Missouri State University Athletics

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - Southeast Missouri (0-1) started strong, but fell victim to a big second half run as Illinois (1-0) pulled away, 81-69, Friday night at the State Farm Center.

SEMO and Illinois met for the third time overall and first since Dec. 28, 2005. The Fighting Illini improved to 3-0 in the series with each of those wins coming on their homecourt.

The Redhawks stormed out of the gate knocking down seven of their first 12 field goals. Preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference guard Antonius Cleveland heated up to score SEMO's first eight points of the game.

SEMO led all the way to the 5:08 mark in the first half before D.J. Williams' layup gave Illinois a 26-25 edge and the Fighting Illini never relinquished their lead from then on. Illinois closed out the half on an 11-6 run to take a 37-31 advantage at the intermission.

"I told our guys before the game that I thought they would have a hard time guarding us because of us being undersized and us being in attack mode in our ability to make shots," SEMO head coach Rick Ray said. "I thought we got wrapped up in living vicariously through our offense. We defended when we were scoring. We didn't defend when we weren't scoring. We have to continue to defend even when we're not scoring."
 
At one point, the Redhawks shot 58.6 percent, but saw their field goal percentage dip slightly under 40 percent (38.7) in the game's opening period.

The Fighting Illini used an 8-0 run to widen their lead to double figures in the first 2:31 of the second half. Three-pointers by Michael Finke and Tracy Abrams keyed the surge that gave Illinois a 45-31 lead with 17:29 remaining.
 
Ahead, 50-41, with 12:42 on the clock, Illinois put the game out of reach when it went on a 15-2 run to take its biggest lead. The hefty surge gave the Fighting Illini their biggest lead of the night (65-43) and SEMO never recovered.

Newcomer Milos Vranes led SEMO with 12 points in 17 minutes off the bench. Vranes, in his Redhawk debut, shot a near-perfect 5-of-6 from the field and knocked down a pair of 3-pointers. He also added a game-high three steals.

Cleveland followed with 10 points, and as a result, scored double figures in his 11th-straight game dating back to last season. He leads the Redhawks with 55 double-digit career scoring games and reached double-digits in 18 of his last 19 starts. Cleveland limped off the court following his nice one-handed dunk, but returned in the final three minutes of the game.

A total of seven players, including Vranes, Jaylen Benton, Denzel Mahoney, Dondre Duffus, Tahj Eaddy, Jonathan Dalton and Daniel Simmons took the court for the first time in a Division I game against Illinois tonight. Eaddy dropped in nine points and Simmons had seven, as 11 different Redhawks were in the scoring column.

As a team, SEMO made 10 three-pointers, something it did only twice in 29 games last season.

"I think we have the ability to shoot the basketball," Ray said. "With us playing small and guys like Denzel and Milos playing that so-called four-spot, it really changes the dynamic of our offense. Antonius has room to drive and go make plays because we have the spacing. Daniel and Tahj add that three-point aspect to our team, as well. To be honest, I'm really not that concerned about our offense because I know we can score the basketball. Now, we have to figure out our identity on the defensive end."

Naismith Trophy candidate Malcolm Hill led all scorers with a game-high 21 points. Hill, who made only one field goal in the first half, pitched in 16 points in the final 20 minutes. Three other starters, including Morgan, Abrams and Finke followed with 16, 13 and 12 points, respectively. Morgan did not miss a field goal (8-of-8) and Hill did not miss a free throw (7-of-7).

Illinois shot 56.6 percent (30-of-53) for the night and outrebounded the Redhawks, 37-22.

SEMO is now 9-17 in season-opening games since moving to the NCAA Division I ranks. The Redhawks began their season on the road for the 11th consecutive year.

The Redhawks will host Hannibal-LaGrange in their home-opener coming off a short turnaround Sunday. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m., CT, at the Show Me Center.