Tennessee State (10-6, 2-1 OVC) vs. Southeast Missouri (4-12, 0-3 OVC)
Date: Saturday, January 11, 2020
Tip-Off: 4 p.m., CT
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Arena: Show Me Center (7,000)
Series History: TSU leads, 27-22
Last Meeting: SEMO 89, TSU 74 (Feb. 28, 2019 | Cape Girardeau, Mo.)
Head Coaches: Rick Ray (84-152 overall; 47-92 at SEMO; 24-47 OVC). Brian "Penny" Collins (19-27 overall; 19-27 at TSU; 8-13 OVC).
Media Coverage
Radio: Real Rock 99.3 FM (Erik Sean, Jess Bolen)
Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: GoSoutheast.com
Twitter: @SEMOMBB
Southeast Missouri Notes (PDF)
Redhawks Host Tennessee State
Southeast Missouri (4-12, 0-3) plays host to Tennessee State (10-6, 2-1) Saturday. Tip-off is set for 4 p.m., CT, at the Show Me Center.
Follow the Redhawks
Fans can listen to Saturday's game live on the radio at Real Rock 99.3 FM. 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 and Tennessee State meet for the 50th time Saturday. TSU currently holds a 27-22 lead in the all-time series. SEMO has won two of the previous three matchups between the teams. The Tigers have lost in three of their last four trips to Cape Girardeau. TSU fell to SEMO, 89-74, the last time these teams met on Feb. 28, 2019.
Home Stand
Southeast Missouri resumes its four-game home stand when it faces Tennessee State. The home stand is SEMO's longest of the season. Austin Peay (Jan. 16) and Murray State (Jan. 18) complete the stretch next week.
Tough Early Stretch
The early part of Southeast Missouri's Ohio Valley Conference slate has included matchups against Austin Peay, Murray State, Belmont and Tennessee State --presently the top four teams in the conference standings. Combined, those teams are 40-23 overall and 10-2 in conference play this year.
Large Margin
Southeast Missouri has dropped six of its last seven games by 15 or more points. Three times during that stretch the Redhawks fell by 22 or more. Opponents are averaging 82.7 points per game and hold a +20.7 scoring margin against SEMO through three games in Ohio Valley Conference play.
OVC Member
Southeast Missouri is in its 29th season as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference. SEMO first joined the league when it moved to NCAA Division I in 1991-92. The Redhawks are 188-285 all-time in OVC play. SEMO last had a winning OVC record in 2016-17 (9-7).
OVC Start
The Redhawks are off to a 0-3 start in Ohio Valley Conference play with road losses to Austin Peay (78-63, Jan. 2) and Murray State (81-59, Jan. 4), and a home loss to Belmont (89-64, Jan. 9). Southeast Missouri is winless in its first three games of its conference schedule for the first time since 2015-16.
Tolbert Clears 100 Rebounds
Sage Tolbert, Southeast Missouri's leading rebounder with 6.5 per game, went over 100 rebounds vs. Belmont (Jan. 9). Tolbert grabbed five rebounds in that game and now has 104 this year. He stands with 260 rebounds in his career.
Kao Reaches Career-High
Guard Oscar Kao established a new career-high in scoring with 15 points against Belmont (Jan. 9). Kao, who started his second-straight game, shot 5-of-10 from the field and a perfect 4-of-4 at the free throw line. It was the second time he scored double figures in his career.
Caldwell Sees Doubles
For the fifth-straight game, Alex Caldwell scored double figures when he dropped in 11 off the bench against Belmont (Jan. 9). Caldwell made 5-of-9 field goals in 22 minutes. He missed his first start of the season after not practicing during the week due to illness. Caldwell's five-game double-digit scoring streak is currently the longest of his career and the longest of any Redhawk in 2019-20.
Wilson Nets 10 Again
Quatarrius Wilson scored 10 points in his first 10 minutes of action against Belmont (Jan. 9). Wilson scored double figures for the second-straight game and sixth time this season. His six double-digit games rank third on the team.
Good First Half
Southeast Missouri trailed by just four points at halftime (40-36) against Belmont (Jan. 9). The Redhawks shot 45.5 percent (15-of-33) from the field and outrebounded the Bruins, 21-15, in the game's opening 20 minutes.
3-Point Difference
Southeast Missouri has made 82 three-pointers through 16 games, fewest in the Ohio Valley Conference. The Redhawks are averaging 5.1 three-pointers per contest and made 29.3 percent (82-of-280). SEMO has shot under 30 percent from beyond the arc a total of nine times this year. The Redhawks shot under 20 percent on three occasions. Opponents have made 125 threes and hold a 375-246 (+129) advantage in points behind the 3-point line.
About Tennessee State
Tennessee State recently suffered its first Ohio Valley Conference loss with a 87-74 setback at UT Martin (Jan. 9). The Tigers come to town with a 10-6 overall record and 2-1 mark in league play. TSU is also 1-6 on the road. The Tigers lead the OVC with a .483 field goal percentage. TSU is second in rebounding margin (+6.7) and assists (14.9 per game), as well. Junior Shakem Johnson tops the conference with a .684 field goal percentage this season. Wesley Harris (11.6 ppg), Carlos Marshall (11.3 ppg) and Michael Littlejohn (10.9 ppg) all averaged double figures in the scoring column.
