Southeast Missouri (6-9, 1-1 OVC) at Belmont (10-3)

Game Information
Date: Thursday, January 6, 2022
Tip-Off: 7 p.m., CT
Location: Nashville, Tenn.
Facility: Curb Event Center (5,000)
Series: BU leads, 10-0
Last Meeting: BU 77, SEMO 66 (Jan. 7, 2021 | Nashville, Tenn.)
Head Coaches: Brad Korn (17-25 overall,17-25 at SEMO; 10-12 OVC). Casey Alexander (197-133 overall; 62-14 at BU).

Follow the Redhawks
Radio: Real Rock 99.3 FM (Erik Sean)
Video: ESPN+
Live Stats: BelmontBruins.com
Twitter: @SEMOMBB
Game Notes: Southeast Missouri (PDF)

Redhawks Head to Music City 
Southeast Missouri (6-9, 1-1) hits the road for two games in the Music City this week. The Redhawks will first visit Belmont (10-3) Thursday. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m., CT at the Curb Event Center.

Follow the Redhawks
Listen live on the radio at Real Rock 99.3 FM with Erik Sean handling the play-by-play duties. Video can be accessed at ESPN+ and live stats are available at BelmontBruins.com. Twitter updates provided @SEMOMBB.

Series History
Belmont is the only team Southeast Missouri has never beaten in its Ohio Valley Conference history. The Redhawks are 0-10 all-time against the Bruins and that record includes a 0-5 mark at the Curb Event Center. BU won nine of the first 10 matchups of the series by double-digits. The only game the Bruins did not win by 10 or more points was on Jan. 1, 2015 (78-77 in Nashville).

First OVC Win
Southeast Missouri picked up its first Ohio Valley Conference win of the season in impressive fashion when it thumped Austin Peay, 98-79, on Jan. 1. With the win, SEMO improved to 14-15 all-time in OVC home-openers. It was the Redhawks first victory in an OVC home-opener since 2016-17. That year, SEMO beat Eastern Kentucky, 81-48, on Dec. 31.

Home Winning Streak
Southeast Missouri is presently on a four-game home winning streak after beating Missouri Baptist (71-63, Nov. 22), Webster (76-64, Dec. 4), Evansville (75-73, Dec. 8) and Austin Peay (98-79, Jan. 1). SEMO is on its longest home winning streak since it won five in a row during the 2016-17 campaign. The Redhawks are 4-2 overall at the Show Me Center this year.

Strong Start in 2022
The Redhawks started the New Year with a 98-79 win over Austin Peay. SEMO and APSU went head-to-head in the only Ohio Valley Conference game that day as all other matchups were postponed. The Redhawks posted a victory in their first game of a New Year for the second-straight season. Last season, SEMO beat Tennessee State, 83-79, in double overtime on Jan. 2.

Redhawks End Skid
Southeast Missouri ended a season-long five-game losing streak with its recent win over Austin Peay (Jan. 1). All five of those losses were on the road with four of those decided by double-digits. The win over the Governors was SEMO's first since the Redhawks edged Evansville, 75-73, on Dec. 8.

Redhawks Take Two OVC Honors
Southeast Missouri shooting guard Eric Reed, Jr. and freshman point guard Phillip Russell earned Ohio Valley Conference weekly honors on Jan. 3. Reed, Jr. won the OVC Player of the Week award for the first time in his career and Russell claimed his third Freshman of the Week accolade this season. A native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, opened OVC play with a pair of 20-point performances last week. He led SEMO with 20 points at Murray State (Dec. 30) and followed that up with a career-high 34 points two days later in the Redhawks New Year's Day win over Austin Peay (Jan. 1).  Reed, Jr. buried seven 3-pointers against the Governors in a game where his team made a season-high 17 treys. His 34 points are the most in a game by any player in the OVC so far this season. For the week, Reed, Jr. averaged 27 points and five rebounds per game, while shooting 56.7 percent (17-of-30) from the field, 75 percent (9-of-12) at the free throw line and 55 percent (11-of-20) from 3-point range. Russell, who hails from St. Louis, scored double figures in two starts a week ago. He averaged 17.5 points, four assists and one steal per contest. Russell also shot 92.8 percent (13-of-14) at the free throw line and 40 percent (6-of-15) from downtown. He scored 20 points vs. Austin Peay (Jan. 1) for his fourth game with 20 or more points this year. Additionally, Russell has scored double figures in seven-straight games and 13 of 15 starts in 2021-22. UT Martin guard KJ Simon won the league's Newcomer of the Week award to complete this week's honorees.

Reed, Jr. Goes Off
Guard Eric Reed, Jr. scored an Ohio Valley Conference single-game high 34 points to lead Southeast Missouri to its dominating 98-79 win over Austin Peay (Jan. 1). Reed, Jr. became just the second player in the OVC to score over 30 points in a game this year. Murray State's Tevin Brown scored 33 points vs. Chattanooga (Dec. 18) prior to Reed, Jr.'s performance. The 34 points rank third-most in a game during SEMO's NCAA Division I era.

Eruption from Three
Southeast Missouri erupted for a season-high 17 three-pointers against Austin Peay (Jan. 1). Only SEMO and Belmont (vs. Lipscomb, Dec. 2) have made 17 three-pointers in a game of the Ohio Valley Conference teams this season. The Redhawks shot a blazing 60.7 percent (17-of-28) from downtown with six different players making a three. Eric Reed, Jr. matched a career-best seven three-pointers and Phillip Russell buried five treys to lead the way. SEMO outscored the Governors, 24-3, from 3-point range in the first half alone.

Another Month Starts with a Win
Southeast Missouri began each of its first three months this season with a win. The Redhawks opened the year with a 99-94 victory at Missouri State (Nov. 9), beat Webster University (Dec. 4), 76-64, to start December and began January with a 98-79 pasting of Austin Peay (Jan. 1).

Let's End This
The Redhawks have dropped seven-consecutive games away from Cape Girardeau. Each of the last five matchups in that stretch were true road games. Southeast Missouri is 2-5 in true road contests and hasn't won a game outside of Cape Girardeau since Nov. 26 (at Incarnate Word, 79-76).

Nicholas Leads OVC in Free Throw Percentage
Guard DQ Nicholas returned after missing three games with a shoulder injury to score 14 points off the bench against Austin Peay (Jan. 1). Nicholas scored nine of his points on a near-perfect 9-of-10 free throws. As a result, he moved to first in the Ohio Valley Conference in free throw percentage. Nicholas has missed only three times (25-of-28) and is shooting 89.3 percent at the free throw line this season.

Best Free Throw Shooting Teams
Belmont and Southeast Missouri are the best free throw shooting teams in the Ohio Valley Conference. BU leads the league with a 75.5 percent (157-of-208) clip, while SEMO is close behind shooting 75.1 percent (232-of-309). However, the Redhawks have made and attempted more free throws than anyone in the league. SEMO is shooting over 20 (20.6) free throws per game through 15 contests. Three Redhawks, including DQ Nicholas (1st, .893), Chris Harris (3rd, .800) and Eric Reed, Jr. (5th, .778) are among the top five free throw shooters in the OVC.

More on the Free Throw Front
Southeast Missouri sunk a season-high 29 free throws against Austin Peay (Jan. 1). SEMO finished at 29-of-36 for 80.6 at the charity stripe in that game. It marked the third time the Redhawks made 25 or more free throws in a game this season.

100th Game 
Nygal Russell scored nine points and had four rebounds in the 100th game of his career vs. Austin Peay (Jan. 1). Russell shot 4-of-8 from the field in 24 minutes. He has played in 100 games and made 34 starts in his Southeast Missouri career.

Shooting 3s
Southeast Missouri is shooting an average of 24.5 three-pointers per game this season. SEMO attempted a season-high 32 three-pointers vs. Webster (Dec. 4). The Redhawks recently made a season-high 17 three-pointers vs. Austin Peay (Jan. 1). It was the fifth time SEMO made 10 or more 3-pointers in a game. For the season, the Redhawks are shooting 34.5 percent from three. SEMO drained an average of 14.5 threes in its last two games alone.

Seven in a Row
Phillip Russell has scored double figures in seven-straight starts. Russell, who ranks second on the team in scoring with 15 points per game, recently pitched in 20 vs. Austin Peay (Jan. 1). He has scored double figures in 13 of his 15 starts.

Every Game Starter
Phillip Russell is the only player who has started every game for the Redhawks this season. Russell enters the week as Southeast Missouri's second-leading scorer with 15 points a game. He has scored double figures in 13 of his starts and ranks ninth in the Ohio Valley Conference in scoring.

20-Point Games
Redhawk players have accounted for nine 20-point scoring games this season. Eric Reed, Jr. scored 21 points at Missouri State (Nov. 9), 23 at Incarnate Word (Nov. 26), 26 vs. Webster (Dec. 4), 20 at Murray State (Dec. 31) and 34 vs. Austin Peay (Jan. 1), while Phillip Russell poured in 21 points vs. Montana State (Nov. 28), 24 vs. Evansville (Dec. 8),  25 at Pepperdine (Dec. 18) and 20 vs. Austin Peay (Jan. 1). Reed, Jr. has a team-high eight 20-point games in his career.

Starting Combinations
The Redhawks have used seven different starting combinations through 15 games this year. Phillip Russell, Nygal Russell, Dylan Branson, Sam Thompson and Eric Reed, Jr. marked the seventh lineup when they took the court at California Baptist (Dec. 21). P. Russell, N. Russell, Reed, Jr., Dylan Branson and Patterson are 2-3 in five contests.

Multiple Threes
Phillip Russell buried multiple 3-pointers in 11 of his last 15 starts. Russell finished with a season-high five 3-pointers made vs. Austin Peay (Jan. 1). His 33 three-pointers made are second on the team. Eric Reed, Jr., who leads the team with 35 treys this year, has posted two or more on nine occasions. His season-best is seven made 3-pointers vs. Austin Peay (Jan. 1).

Keep it Up Reed
Guard Eric Reed, Jr. made a 3-pointer in 25 of his last 26 games dating back to last season. Reed, Jr. buried a 3-pointer in 22-straight contests before that streak came to an end at Pepperdine (Dec. 18). It was the first time he went without a made 3-pointer since the SIU Edwardsville game on Jan. 28, 2021.

Free Throw Difference
Opponents have shot 63 more free throws than Southeast Missouri through 15 games this year. As a result, opponents are outscoring the Redhawks by a +44 (276-232) margin at the charity stripe. 

About Belmont
Preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference favorite Belmont is off to a 10-3 start this season. Thursday marks BU's first OVC game of 2021-22. The Bruins' first two conference contests -- Dec. 30 at SIUE; Jan. 1 at Eastern Illinois -- were postponed. Both of those games have been rescheduled for later this month. The Bruins have Preseason OVC Co-Player of the Year Grayson Murphy and center Nick Muszynski. Muszynski tops BU and ranks fourth in the OVC in scoring with 16.8 points a game. He is also second in the league with 23 blocks. Murphy averages eight points per contest and rates second among conference leaders with 75 assists (5.8 per game). Ben Sheppard and Will Richard average 16.1 and 11.7 points a game, respectively. The Bruins are 5-0 at home this season and lead the OVC in free throw percentage (.755), assists (18.1 apg), steals (9.2 spg), turnover margin (+2.85) and assist/turnover ratio (1.5). BU also averages 80.5 points per contest, second-most in the OVC. 

Balanced Attack
Three or more players have scored double figures for Southeast Missouri a total of 13 times this season. SEMO is 6-7 when at least three of its players reach double figures in the scoring column.