CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Phillip Russell scored a career-high 24 points and Nygal Russell pulled down a career-best 15 rebounds to lead Southeast Missouri (5-4) to an exciting 75-73 win over Evansville (4-8) Wednesday night at the Show Me Center.
SEMO beat an NCAA Division I opponent at home for the first time this season and did so without its leading scorer in Eric Reed, Jr. who was inactive due to illness.
Neither team led by more than seven points in a game that went wire-to-wire with eight ties and 16 lead changes.
Knotted at 58-58 with nine minutes remaining, SEMO used a 7-0 run to get ahead, 65-58. P. Russell started the surge with a layup and Nana Akenten followed with a 3-pointer before DQ Nicholas added two free throws.
SEMO again led by seven (67-60) following a layup by Chris Harris, but UE managed to pull to within two when Evan Kuhlman buried a 3-pointer with just over a minute (1:03) to go.
Jawaun Newton kept the Purple Aces within striking distance by knocking down two free throws to make it a 75-73 game with eight seconds on the clock.
P. Russell was later fouled and went to the free throw line for a 1-and-1 with three seconds. P. Russell missed the front end and Shamar Givance pulled down the rebound. Givance then launched a 3-pointer from the right side that went off the rim as time expired.
After both teams went scoreless for the first three minutes of the game, UE used back-to-back 3-pointers by Blaise Beauchamp to take an 18-13 lead at the 11:07 mark in the first half.
The Purple Aces led by five on two more occasions before P. Russell nailed a 3-pointer giving SEMO a 27-25 edge with 4:53 left.
P. Russell again knocked down a 3-pointer, this time stretching SEMO's lead to 36-32 before the Redhawks headed to the intermission ahead, 40-38.
SEMO, which shot 56 percent from the field in the first half, finished at 51.9 percent (28-of-54) for the night. The Redhawks outrebounded UE, 37-31, and assisted 15 of their made field goals.
P. Russell went 10-of-16 from the floor and hit a pair of 3-pointers. He also had four rebounds, four assists and two steals in 35 minutes. N. Russell had 11 of his career-best 15 boards in the first half alone to go along with seven points and three assists.
Meanwhile, Nicholas matched a season-best 17 points and had three assists. Additionally, Harris contributed 12 points and four dishes.
SEMO made a near-perfect 12-of-13 free throws and buried its first 12 attempts of the night.
Givance, Newton and Noah Frederking each had 15 points to pace UE, which shot 29.7 percent (11-of-37) from 3-point range.
The Redhawks played with just eight players tonight. Reed, Jr. and Nate Johnson were both out due to illness, while Parker Long and Sam Thompson remained out due to injury.
SEMO won its final home game of 2021 and moves on to begin a season-long five-game road stretch beginning at Purdue Fort Wayne Saturday.
