CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Southeast Missouri's Brad Korn was named the 2024-25 Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year, the league announced Tuesday before the start of this week's conference tournament.
 
In addition to Korn earning the prestigious honor, guards Rob Martin and Teddy Washington, Jr. earned first-team accolades and forward Brendan Terry garnered second-team laurels. Washington, Jr. landed a spot on the league's five-member All-Newcomer Team, as well.
 
The three All-OVC selections are SEMO's most in a season in program history and the Redhawks have two First-Team All-OVC picks for the first time in 20 years (Dainmon Gonner and Reggie Golson, 2004-05).
 
For only the second time in league history (and first since 1950-51), the All-OVC first and/or second-teams did not include any repeat selections from the previous year.
 
A native of Plano, Illinois, Korn becomes only the second in SEMO history to win the OVC Coach of the Year award joining Gary Garner (1998-99). 
 
He led the Redhawks to their best one-year turnaround in program history. SEMO was picked seventh in this year's OVC Preseason Poll and went 20-11 overall and 15-5 in conference play en route to winning the outright OVC regular-season title and claiming the OVC Tournament's #1 seed for the first time in program history.
 
SEMO was 10-10 midway through the 2024-25 campaign when it ripped off 10-straight wins for its longest winning streak during its NCAA Division I era and longest in 35 years. The Redhawks went from 9-22 overall, 4-14 in OVC play and not making the OVC Tournament in 2023-24 to finishing first with a +11 increase in both overall and conference victories.
 
The Redhawks 15 OVC wins tied a school record and the +11 margin surpassed the program's previous +10 increase from 2015-16 (5-24) to 2016-17 (15-18).
 
Korn's 2024-25 squad went undefeated in February (8-0), 9-1 during the second half of OVC play and enters the league's postseason tournament after going 17-5 in its last 22 games. The 20 wins are the most in a season with Korn at the helm and give SEMO its third 20-win season in program history along with the 1998-99 (20-9) and 1999-2000 (24-7) teams.
 
Statistically, SEMO is sixth in the nation in 3-point percentage defense (.285). The Redhawks led the OVC in scoring margin (+7.48), 3-point field goal percentage defense and turnover margin (+2.97).
 
In conference games alone, the Redhawks topped the OVC in scoring margin (+7.70), free throw percentage (.740), field goal percentage (.471), 3-point field goal percentage defense (.311), turnover margin (+2.70) and assist/turnover ratio (1.32).
 
Korn guided SEMO to two-game sweeps over five OVC opponents, including SIU Edwardsville, Southern Indiana, Tennessee State, Tennessee Tech and Western Illinois this year.
 
Martin, who is out of St. Louis, became SEMO's leading scorer for the first time this season following his 18-point effort at Eastern Illinois (Mar. 1). He enters postseason play averaging 14.5 points per game. Martin leads the Redhawks with 142 assists, the most in a season during his career. He scored double figures in 16-straight games and dropped in a career-high 31 points at SIU Edwardsville (Feb. 27), the game SEMO clinched its outright OVC Championship. Martin also reached 250 assists in his career.
 
Martin ranks ninth in the OVC in scoring, fourth in field goal percentage (.461), second in assists and first in assist/turnover ratio (2.73). In conference games, he rated fifth in scoring (16.3 ppg), second in field goal percentage (.478), first in assists (104) and first in assist/turnover ratio (2.60).
 
Right behind Martin is Blytheville, Arkansas native Washington, Jr. who averages 14.5 points and a team-high 5.4 rebounds per contest. In his first year at SEMO, Washington, Jr. leads the team with 57 three-pointers made, 56 steals and 32.4 minutes per game. He scored double figures in 22 of his 30 starts and tops the Redhawks with three double-doubles.
 
Washington, Jr. is currently 10th among league leaders in scoring, 15th in rebounding, 11th in field goal percentage (.395), fourth in steals and tied for ninth in 3-point field goals made. Against OVC opponents, he ranked 11th in scoring (13.7 ppg), 17th in rebounding (5.0 rpg), 13th in free throw percentage (.785), second in steals (42) and 13th in 3-point field goals made (35).
 
Terry is from Santa Monica, California and like Washington, Jr., is enjoying an outstanding SEMO debut this season. He is third on the team in scoring with 11.3 points per game and ranks second with 4.3 rebounds. Terry leads the Redhawks with 23 blocks and is second with 41 steals. He scored 10 or more points a total of 17 times as one of two players who started all 31 games.
 
Terry is presently 14th in the OVC in free throw percentage (.690) and tied for 10th in blocks. He ranked 14th in scoring (13.1 ppg) and tied for seventh in blocks (10) during OVC action.
 
SIU Edwardsville's Ray'Sean Taylor was voted OVC Player of the Year, Little Rock's Tuongthach Gatkek is this year's Defensive Player of the Year and Lindenwood's Jadis Jones took Freshman of the Year.
 
#1 SEMO will play either #8 UT Martin, #5 Tennessee Tech or #4 Little Rock in the semifinals of the OVC Tournament Friday. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m., CT at the Ford Center in Evansville, Indiana. The game will be televised live on ESPNU.