Missouri Baptist (7-5) vs. Southeast Missouri (3-9)

Date: Sunday, December 29, 2019
Tip-Off: 4 p.m., CT
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Arena: Show Me Center (7,000)
Series History: SEMO leads, 18-0
Last Meeting: SEMO 81, MBU 69 (Nov. 10, 2017 / Cape Girardeau, Mo.)
Head Coaches: Rick Ray (83-149 overall; 46-89 at SEMO; 24-44 OVC). Preston Ingram (7-5 overall; 7-5 at MBU).

Media Coverage
Radio: SEMO ESPN 1220 AM (Erik Sean, Jess Bolen)
Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: GoSoutheast.com
Twitter: @SEMOMBB
Southeast Missouri Notes (PDF)

Back to Work
Southeast Missouri (3-9) plays its first home game in over a month when it hosts NAIA affiliate Missouri Baptist (7-5) Sunday. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m., CT, at the Show Me Center.

Follow the Redhawks
Fans can listen to Sunday's game live on the radio at SEMO ESPN 1220 AM. Erik Sean and Jess Bolen will call the action. Video is available at ESPN+. Live stats can be accessed at GoSoutheast.com. Twitter updates provided @SEMOMBB.

Series History
Southeast Missouri is a perfect 18-0 all-time against Missouri Baptist. Thirteen of those victories have come at the Show Me Center. SEMO and Missouri Baptist last met on Nov. 10, 2017. The Redhawks won that game, 81-69, in Cape Girardeau. Missouri Baptist is the second in-state school SEMO faces this season.

Redhawks Wrap Up Non-Conference Play
Sunday's matchup against Missouri Baptist marks Southeast Missouri's final non-conference game of the season. The Redhawks are 3-9 against non-conference foes with eight of their losses outside of Cape Girardeau. The 2019-20 campaign is SEMO's sixth-straight season with a losing record in non-league action. 

Against Non-Division I
Missouri Baptist is the second non-Division I opponent on Southeast Missouri's schedule this season. SEMO has a 29-game winning streak against non-Division I foes. The Redhawks edged Missouri S&T, 72-71, in their last game against a non-Division I opponent on Nov. 22. 

Rough Stretch
The Redhawks closed out their tough eight-game road stretch with a 64-45 loss at rival Southern Illinois (Dec. 21). Southeast Missouri fell to 0-7 in true road games this season and has dropped nine-straight road contests dating back to last year. The Redhawks last road win was an 88-79 victory at Eastern Illinois on Feb. 16, 2019. The road trip tallied a total of 6,824 miles across six different states (California, Texas, Ohio, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana). It was SEMO's longest road stretch in program history.

Back Home ... Finally
It's been 37 days since Southeast Missouri last played a home game. The Redhawks went 1-7 during an eight-game road stretch over the last five weeks and two days. SEMO is 2-1 at the Show Me Center this season and beat Missouri S&T, 72-71, in its last home game on Nov. 22.

Scoring Low
Southeast Missouri's 45 points against Southern Illinois (Dec. 21) marked its fewest in a game under head coach Rick Ray. The 45 points tied SEMO's fourth-lowest point total in the school's NCAA Division I era. The Redhawks have averaged just 46.5 points in their last two contests. SEMO also shot only 29.7 percent (33-of-111) from the field in that stretch. The Redhawks have scored 50 points or less in each of their last three games. 

Redhawks Go Cold
The Redhawks started strong out of the gate against longtime rival Southern Illinois (Dec. 21). Southeast Missouri went on a 12-2 run in the first six minutes, but then missed its next 13 field goals and went scoreless for 11:21. SIU scored 26 unanswered points during the Redhawks cold spell. The 64-45 loss marked SEMO's fifth by double figures this season.

Hefty Margin
Southeast Missouri has been outscored by a +66 (209-143) margin over its previous three games. The Redhawks averaged 17.6 field goals made per game in that span. SEMO enters Sunday's matchup ranked 10th in the Ohio Valley Conference in scoring with 63.6 points per contest. 

OVC Play Ahead
The Redhawks close out 2019 at home against Missouri Baptist Sunday. After that, Southeast Missouri opens its 18-game Ohio Valley Conference slate at Austin Peay (Jan. 2) and Murray State (Jan. 4). Both APSU and MSU are undefeated at home with identical 5-0 records. SEMO begins conference play against four of the league's top five teams, including fifth-place APSU, fourth-place Murray State, league-leader Belmont (Jan. 9) and second-place Tennessee State (Jan. 11). 

Agnew Cracks Starting Lineup
East Mississippi Community College transfer Darrious Agnew scored double figures in two of his first four starts since joining the starting lineup on Dec. 7 (at Drake). Agnew scored 11 points and had four rebounds in his first start against the Bulldogs. Eight days later, he dropped in a season-high 17 points and pulled down six rebounds at Youngstown State (Dec. 15). He is part of SEMO's third different starting lineup combination through 12 games.

Hogan and Caldwell
Guards Skyler Hogan and Alex Caldwell each scored double figures against Southern Illinois (Dec. 21). Hogan led the team with 15 points and Caldwell followed with 10. It was the fourth time this season where Hogan and Caldwell scored double figures together in a game. Both have dropped in double-digits six times in 2019-20.

Double-Digit Scorers
Southeast Missouri enters Sunday's matchup with no active players averaging double figures in the scoring column. Alex Caldwell is averaging 9.8 points a game behind guard Chris Harris (15.5 ppg), who is currently out with a knee injury.

Assist/Turnover Ratio
The Redhawks are 12th in the Ohio Valley Conference in assist/turnover ratio. Southeast Missouri has assisted 110 of its 269 made field goals this year. SEMO also committed 176 turnovers through its first 12 games.

3-Point Difference
Southeast Missouri has made 63 three-pointers through 12 games. The Redhawks are averaging 5.3 three-pointers per contest and made 30.9 percent (63-of-204) for a ninth-place ranking in the Ohio Valley Conference. SEMO has shot under 30 percent from beyond the arc a total of seven times this year. The Redhawks shot under 20 percent twice. Opponents have made 100 threes and hold a 300-189 (+111) advantage in points behind the 3-point line.

About Missouri Baptist
Missouri Baptist enters the weekend with an overall record of 7-5. Four Spartans, including Jahmouri Robinson (16.2 ppg), Brendon Hardy (13.5 ppg), James McKelvin (13.3 ppg) and Hassan DeCarolis (11 ppg) are averaging double figures in the scoring column. MBU ranks third in the America Midwest Conference in 3-point percentage (.375). The Spartans lead the conference defending the three limiting opponents to a 32.3 percent clip behind the arc.