Game #1 
University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy (UHSP) (1-2)
vs. Southeast Missouri (0-0)
Game Information
Date: Monday, Nov. 7, 2022
Tip-off: 11 a.m., CT
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.  
Arena: Show Me Center
Series: SEMO leads the All-Time Series, 2-0
Last Meeting: SEMO Win 68-45 | Nov. 9, 2021 | Show Me Center | Cape Girardeau, Mo.  
Head Coaches: Rekha Patterson (101-107, Eighth Season at SEMO) 
Jeffery Reis (Third Season at UHSP)
Video: ESPN+ 
Radio: SEMOESPN 93.5 FM & 1220 AM (Erik Sean)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast 
Tickets
 
Follow the Redhawks
Twitter: @OfficialSEMOWBB
Game Notes: Southeast Missouri (PDF)
 
Redhawks Kickoff 2022-23 Season Monday with Classroom on the Court Against UHSP 
Southeast Missouri women's basketball (0-0) is set to begin its 2022-23 season Monday when the Redhawks host the University of Health Sciences & Pharmacy (UHSP) (1-2) at the Show Me Center. Tip-off is set for 11 a.m., CT.
 
Monday is Classroom on the Court where the Redhawks will welcome over 2,000 students from the Cape Girardeau area for the game.  
 
Follow the Redhawks 
Fans can listen to Monday's game live on the radio at SEMOESPN 93.5 FM & 1220 AM. The game will also be televised live on ESPN+. Follow the game on Twitter @OfficialSEMOWBB.
 
Series History
SEMO leads the all-time series against UHSP, 2-0
 
SEMO most recently beat UHSP, 68-45, Nov. 9, 2021. Three Redhawks finished in double-figures. Kennedi Watkins chipped in 13 points and seven rebounds in her first career start. 
 
The Redhawks also won, 75-44, in their first-ever regular-season meeting between the two schools on Dec. 1, 2020. Eleven different players scored in a balanced effort for Southeast Missouri. Tesia Thompson scored 18 points to lead four players in double figures and the Redhawks dominated from start to finish. LaTrese Saine added 12 points and a game-high four blocks, while Sophie Bussard chipped in 13 points.
 
This will be the fourth-straight year UHSP travels to Cape Girardeau to play SEMO. The two teams played an exhibition on Oct. 30, 2019 with the Redhawks winning 91-45. 
 
Scouting the Opponent
UHSP is 1-2 in the early 2022-23 season. The Eutectics opened the campaign with a 95-70 victory over Kansas Wesleyan on Oct. 28 and have lost their two most recent games against #4 Campbellsville University (85-50, Nov. 4) and Bethel University (Tennessee) (58-52, Nov. 5) in McKenzie, Tennessee.
 
Grace Beyer led UHSP with 19 points and six rebounds against Bethel. Elizabeth Allanach chipped in 13 points. 
 
USHP Assistant Coach Jillian Lipman-Segura coached Redhawk graduate transfer Tyra Brown at Jefferson College in Hillsboro, Missouri. Brown earned National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) First Team All-American and Missouri Community College Athletic Conference (MCCAC) All-Conference honors before transferring to Coastal Carolina for her junior and senior seasons. 
 
Oh Captains, My Captains
Head coach Rekha Patterson announced on October 31, Kori Tomlin, Sophie Bussard, and Tamia Stallings were selected as team captains for the 2022-23 season. This year is the first for the trio in the leadership roles. 
 
Watkins Named to 2022-23 Preseason All-OVC Team
Sophomore forward Kennedi Watkins was named to the 2022-23 Preseason All-Ohio Valley Conference Women's Basketball Team, the league announced Oct. 18.
 
For Watkins, a Ballwin, Missouri, native, the preseason OVC honor is the first in her career.
 
She was named OVC Freshman of the Week twice during the 2021-22 season and was fourth on the team offensively with 207 points (8.3ppg). Watkins led SEMO with 17 blocks and competed in 25 games with 13 starts as a true freshman. She hauled down 138 rebounds (5.5rpg) with 32 steals. Watkins shot .446 from the field and finished in double-figures scoring 12 times and had double-digit rebounds twice. She registered a career-high 14 points on three occasions in 2021-22 including both conference games against SIUE. In OVC contests, Watkins averaged 8.8 points with 5.3 boards. 
 
Redhawks Eighth in OVC Preseason Poll
Southeast Missouri was selected to finish the season eighth in the OVC with 61 total points.
 
Tennessee Tech was picked to finish first overall in the league in 2022-23. The Golden Eagles earned 11 first place votes for 147 total points and had three players listed on the preseason team in Jada Guinn, Jordan Brock, and Anna Walker. TTU notched a 21-11 overall mark (14-4 OVC) in 2021-22 and finished as the OVC Tournament Runners-up to Belmont. The Golden Eagles competed in two rounds of the 2022 WNIT Tournament. 
 
Lariah Washington of Eastern Illinois was named the 2022-23 Preseason OVC Player of the Year.
 
Welcome Back Sophie Bussard!!
Redshirt junior Sophie Bussard will return to the hardwood after suffering a season-ending injury prior to the 2021-22 campaign. The Silver Lake, Indiana, native, started in all 26 games as a sophomore in 2020-21 and was fourth on the Redhawks with 230 points (8.8 points/game) while leading the conference in court time.
 
Team Makeup
The Redhawks return four starters from the 2021-22 season in senior guard Kori Tomlin along with sophomores Kennedi Watkins, Halle Smith, and Jaliyah Green.
 
The trio of Watkins, Smith, and Green combined for five OVC Freshman of the Week honors last season.
 
Other returners from the 2021-22 squad include redshirt junior Sophie Bussard, Chandler Davis, Julia Sion, Michaela Mayfield, and Diona Reed. 
 
Sion will make her Redhawks debut after transferring to SEMO midseason (Jan. 2022) from North Alabama.
 
The Redhawks also added six newcomers including four transfers in Tyra Brown from Coastal Carolina, Tamia Stallings from Alabama State, Rahmena Henderson from Kilgore College, and Kiyley Flowers from Grand Canyon.
 
The roster also features a pair of freshmen in Tykara Harrison and Alecia Doyle.
 
Head coach Rekha Patterson returns for her eighth season at the helm of the program.
 
SEMO went 6-23 in 2021-22 with a 2-16 OVC mark. 
 
2022-23 Schedule
The Redhawks will compete in 29 total games including 14 at the Show Me Center this season. 
 
SEMO's non-conference schedule features 11 games including five home matchups starting against UHSP (Nov.7), followed by LeMoyne-Owen College (Nov. 18), Rust College (Dec. 1), Western Illinois (Dec. 7) and Illinois-Chicago (Dec. 20). 
 
The Redhawks take a trip to Oxford, Mississippi, on Nov. 10 to take on Ole Miss for their first road contest, before continuing the week at Missouri (Nov. 13). 
 
SEMO celebrates Thanksgiving at UCF's (Central Florida) Tournament Nov. 26-27 in Orlando, Florida, playing Rhode Island and UCF. 
 
Following that trip, SEMO will face Kansas (Dec. 4) and Evansville (Dec. 18).
 
The Redhawks will then play an 18-game double round-robin OVC schedule, starting at Southern Indiana on Dec. 29.
 
Looking Ahead
After the Redhawks season opener against UHSP, SEMO faces Southeastern Conference (SEC) opponents Ole Miss and Missouri this week on the road, Thursday, and Sunday, respectively.  
 
Ole Miss went 23-9 and 10-6 in the SEC this past season. The Rebels appeared in the NCAA Tournament, facing South Dakota in the First Round. Mizzou also saw postseason action during the 2021-22 season, going to the WNIT after an 18-13 campaign (7-9 SEC).