CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. - Cole Murray scored 26 points and made eight 3-pointers, and Lavone Holland II added 19 to lead Northern Kentucky (7-3) to an 80-66 win over Southeast Missouri (4-6) Saturday afternoon at the Show Me Center.

NKU used a scorching start to build a double-digit lead over the first six minutes of the game. The Norse drained seven of their first eight 3-pointers and pulled ahead, 26-11, with 13:28 left to play in the first half.
 
"Northern Kentucky is a good team," SEMO head coach Rick Ray said. "We didn't do a good job of finding the shooter and executing our game plan."
 
Murray connected on each of his first five 3-point attempts and accounted for six of NKU's nine treys in the first half.
 
After Denzel Mahoney's jumper cut NKU's lead to 34-30 at the 6:07 mark, the Norse countered with an 11-3 run to take a 45-33 advantage at the intermission.
 
The Norse finished the first half shooting 59.1 percent (13-of-22) from the field and 60 percent (9-of-15) from downtown. Murray's 18 first-half points matched what SEMO's starters combined to score in the opening stanza.
 
SEMO managed to narrow NKU's lead to single digits just once in the second half when Trey Kellum's jumper made it a 45-37 game with 19:16 remaining.
 
Holland nailed a 3-pointer on the Norse's ensuing possession and NKU later took its biggest lead (76-56) on a pair of free throws by Murray with just under four minutes left.
 
Murray, who entered the game with an average of 8.1 points per contest, shot 8-of-11 from 3-point range and matched a career-high. Holland was 5-of-12 from the field and 6-of-10 at the free throw line.
 
"All Murray does is shoot 3s," said Ray. "We simply didn't follow the scouting report on him."
 
NKU shot 49 percent (25-of-51), outrebounded SEMO, 40-27, and knocked down 13 three-pointers (nine in the first half).
 
Antonius Cleveland led all SEMO scorers with 16 points and six rebounds. Kellum had 15, Daniel Simmons added 13 off the bench and Mahoney chipped in 12.
 
The Redhawks, who made their first nine free throws of the game, finished at 19-of-35 from the charity stripe. SEMO's 35 free throw attempts marked a season-high.
 
"When you are down, you have to make those free throws," Ray said. "We missed free throws, wide open shots and didn't finish at the rim."
 
Defensively, SEMO forced 20 turnovers and collected 11 steals. It was the second time an opponent turned the ball over 20 or more times against the Redhawks this year.
 
SEMO, which dropped its third-straight, is on its longest losing streak of the season.
 
The Redhawks break for final exams before heading to Missouri State on Dec. 17. SEMO and MSU meet for the second time in 10 days to begin Las Vegas Classic play.