Eastern Illinois (4-8, 1-1 OVC) vs. Southeast Missouri (6-7, 1-1 OVC)

Game Information
Date: Thursday, January 1, 2026
Tip-Off: 7:30 p.m., CT
Location: Cape Girardeau, Mo.
Facility: Show Me Center (7,000)
Series: SEMO leads, 38-32
Last Meeting: EIU 73, SEMO 58 | 3/1/25 | Charleston, Ill.
Last Meeting in Cape Girardeau: SEMO 79, EIU 72 | 12/19/24

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Southeast Missouri Notes | 2025-26 SEMO Basketball Media Guide

Coaches
Eastern Illinois: Marty Simmons (325-341 overall; 44-93 at EIU; 25-51 OVC)
Southeast Missouri: Brad Korn (80-92 overall; 80-92 at SEMO; 47-48 OVC)

Happy New Year!
•    Southeast Missouri (6-7, 1-1) hosts Eastern Illinois (4-8, 1-1) on New Year's night Thursday. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m., CT at the Show Me Center.
•    SEMO is back in action following a 12-day break for the holidays.
•    The Redhawks last played on Dec. 20 at Tennessee State.
•    Thursday marks the first of 10 Ohio Valley Conference home games for the Redhawks.

Series Notes
•    Southeast Missouri leads its all-time series against Eastern Illinois, 38-32.
•    SEMO has won seven of the last nine meetings between the teams.
•    The Redhawks split their series with the Panthers last season, winning 79-72 in Cape Girardeau and falling, 73-58, in Charleston.
•    EIU has lost in its last four trips to Cape Girardeau.
•    SEMO is 20-12 against the Panthers on their home court.

Ringing it in
•    The Redhawks are looking to ring in the New Year with a win for the fourth time under Head Coach Brad Korn.
•    Southeast Missouri is 3-2 in its first game of the New Year with Korn at the helm.
•    SEMO beat Tennessee State (67-65, Jan. 2, 2025; 83-79, Jan. 2, 2021) and Austin Peay (98-79, Jan. 1, 2022) for those victories.

OVC Home-Openers
•    Southeast Missouri is 20-13 all-time in Ohio Valley Conference home-openers.
•    SEMO is 4-1 in such games with Brad Korn as its head coach.
•    The Redhawks have won four-straight OVC home-openers.
•    The only OVC home-opening loss in that span was a close 69-67 decision vs. UT Martin on Dec. 18, 2020.

It's New Year's Day
•    The Redhawks play on New Year's Day for the second time under Head Coach Brad Korn.
•    Southeast Missouri last played on Jan. 1 in 2021-22. SEMO beat then-Ohio Valley Conference member Austin Peay, 98-79, in Cape Girardeau.

Home OVC Record
•    Brad Korn is 29-18 all-time in Ohio Valley Conference home games.
•    Southeast Missouri posted its best home OVC record at 8-2 with Korn at the helm during its 2024-25 campaign.
•    The Redhawks are on a five-game winning streak in conference games at the Show Me Center. 
•    SEMO held its opponent under 70 points in its last three OVC home contests.

First OVC Win
•    The Redhawks picked up their first Ohio Valley Conference win of the season with a 91-82 victory at Tennessee State (Dec. 20).
•    Southeast Missouri shot a season-high 57.7 percent from the field in its best offensive performance thus far.
•    SEMO beat TSU for the seventh time in the last nine meetings between the teams.

Career-Highs for Bell
•    Marqueas Bell registered new career-highs in points and rebounds at Tennessee State (Dec. 20).
•    Bell finished with 22 points and 12 rebounds for his team-leading third double-double of the season.
•    He shot a near-perfect 8-of-9 from the field in a career-best 36 minutes.
•    Bell scored double figures in two of his last three starts.

Strong December
•    Southeast Missouri concluded December with a 4-1 record, its best December mark under Head Coach Brad Korn.
•    The Redhawks only loss in December was an 85-74 defeat at Tennessee Tech (Dec. 18).
•    SEMO scored 88 or more points in three of its December victories.
•    It was the third-straight year where the Redhawks posted a winning record in December.

Almodovar on a Roll
•    Luke Almodovar has scored double figures in four-straight games off the bench.
•    Almodovar recently scored 19 points and 13 in the first half at Tennessee State (Dec. 20).
•    Southeast Missouri's bench averaged 37 points per game in that stretch behind Almodovar's boost.

One More
•    Brad Korn is one win away from moving to second all-time among head coaches in victories during Southeast Missouri's NCAA Division I era.
•    Korn has won 80 games and currently stands tied for second on that list with Dickey Nutt (80, 2009-15).
•    Gary Garner (126, 1997-2006) has the most wins of any head coach in SEMO's Division I era.
•    Korn led SEMO to 21 wins in 2024-25, its second-most in a season since the Redhawks moved to the Division I level.

Stacker Eighth in the Nation in Free Throw Percentage
•    Braxton Stacker leads the Ohio Valley Conference and ranks eighth in the nation in free throw percentage.
•    Stacker has missed only three free throws through 13 starts.
•    He is 40-of-43 for 93 percent.
•    Stacker did not miss a free throw with a minimum of four attempts in five games this year.

Over 80
•    The Redhawks scored over 80 points for the sixth time this season in their 91-82 win at Tennessee State (Dec. 20).
•    Southeast Missouri's 91 points marked a season-high.
•    SEMO is 5-1 in games where it scores over 80 points.

Winning the Second Half
•    Southeast Missouri won the second half in five of its last seven games. 
•    Most recently, SEMO edged Tennessee State, 47-45, in the second half on Dec. 20.
•    The Redhawks are outscoring opponents, 535-518 (+17) in the second half this year.

Strong at Home
•    Brad Korn posted a winning record at home each of his first five seasons as head coach.
•    Southeast Missouri's 12-3 record at the Show Me Center in 2024-25 is his best home record to date.
•    Korn is 47-26 all-time in Cape Girardeau.
•    The Redhawks won eight of their last 10 home games dating back to last season.
•    SEMO led the Ohio Valley Conference in home attendance during OVC play a year ago.
•    The Redhawks are 3-2 at home this season.

Mr. Consistent
•    Braxton Stacker scored double figures in 12 of his first 13 starts of the 2025-26 campaign.
•    Stacker scored 10 or more points in his last nine outings.
•    He opened the year with 12 points at Saint Louis (Nov. 3) and followed that up with a career-high 26 points four days later at Missouri (Nov. 7). He then finished with 10 points vs. Webster (Nov. 12), 11 at Iowa (Nov. 18), 18 vs. Cal Poly (Nov. 25), 15 at Northern Arizona (Nov. 26), 24 vs. Lipscomb (Nov. 29), 10 vs. St. Mary of the Woods (Dec. 2), 12 at Chattanooga (Dec. 6), 12 vs. Saint Xavier (Dec. 14), 12 at Tennessee Tech (Dec. 18) and 11 at Tennessee State (Dec. 20).
•    He has scored double figures a team-high 30 times in his career.
•    Stacker ranks second on the team in scoring (13.7 ppg) and leads the Redhawks in steals (19), free throw percentage (40-of-43, .930) and is second in 3-point field goals made (24).
•    Stacker rates 15th in the Ohio Valley Conference in scoring and leads the league in free throw percentage. He is also 11th in steals.
•    He is one of two Redhawks who started every game this year.

About Eastern Illinois
•    Eastern Illinois comes to Cape Girardeau on a two-game winning streak after beating SIU Edwardsville and East-West University.
•    EIU is last in the Ohio Valley Conference in scoring averaging just 66.2 points per game.
•    The Panthers are currently the top free throw shooting team in the conference with a 74.4 percent clip.
•    Zion Fruster is EIU's top scoring threat. Fruster ranks fourth in the OVC with 16.4 points a game.
•    Fruster is also shooting 90 percent at the free throw line as the league's second-best free throw shooter behind Southeast Missouri's Braxton Stacker.