CAPE GIRARDEAU - The atmosphere was electric in the Show Me Center on Wednesday night as the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks played host to the No. 14 Murray State Racers. Donte Poole's 25 points led No. 14 Murray State (25-1, 13-1) to a 75-66 win over Southeast Missouri (14-12, 9-5). Murray State remained unbeaten on the road (11-0) en route to clinching its third-straight Ohio Valley Conference title.

Cold shooting early handed the Redhawks their first double-digit halftime deficit since trailing UMKC, 41-28, on Dec. 10. Southeast's .373 (22-of-59) field goal percentage marked a season-low. Southeast head coach Dickey Nutt was disappointed with the game's outcome, but noted the team still has several games remaining before the OVC Tournament.

"I'm disappointed we sent our fans home with a loss in this highly anticipated game," Nutt said. "We still have a lot of basketball left to play and I don't take anything away from our team."

Southeast struggled to get shots to fall in the first half, but even with the slow start, the Redhawks never trailed by more than four points until the last 6:22. Poole, however, hit all four of his three-pointers in the first half, including two during an 8-0 run that put Murray State ahead, 32-20, with :54 on the clock.

A pair of free throws from Marland Smith cut Murray State's lead to 32-22 at the half.

The Redhawks cut an 11-point deficit to five (33-28) at the 17:25 mark of the second half when Smith buried back-to-back treys, but that was as close as Southeast would get for the rest of the night.

An Ed Daniel layup gave the Racers their biggest lead of the contest at 47-34 (10:47) before Murray State went on to pick up its second-straight win since getting upset at home by Tennessee State.

Southeast held Isaiah Canaan, the Ohio Valley Conference's second-leading scorer with a 19.6 average, scoreless for the first 17 minutes. Canaan finished with nine points on 2-11 shooting after netting 32 in the first meeting against the Redhawks on Feb. 2.

Poole led four Murray State starters in double figures, shooting 7-13 from the field, and adding four boards and two steals.

Leon Powell led Southeast with 13 points and eight rebounds, while Corey Wilford chipped in 12 points with three 3-pointers in the second half. Tyler Stone, the Redhawks top scorer with 15 points per game, was held scoreless for the first time this season in his 15 minutes on the court. Lucas Nutt and Smith followed with 11 and 10 points, respectively.

"I want to credit Coach Nutt and Southeast Missouri," added Murray State first-year head coach Steve Prohm. "Coach Nutt has done a great job and Southeast Missouri is a good basketball team."

The Redhawks honored their seniors -- Powell, Marcus Brister, Logan Nutt, Zach House -- prior to tip-off. Tonight's home finale was the first time Southeast faced a ranked opponent at the Show Me Center, and it attracted the fifth-largest crowd in school history.

"There was nothing like the atmosphere tonight," commented Brister. "I really appreciate the support from our fans."

Southeast hits the road for its final three games of the regular-season. The Redhawks will step out of conference play to travel to McNeese State for a Sears BracketBuster matchup Saturday. Tip-off is set for 3:00 p.m.

Click here for the full box score.

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

The Dexter Bearcats added another member to the ranks of past athletes moving on to play at the collegiate level on Wednesday afternoon at the Bearcat Event Center.

Zach Lacy, the son of Russ and Kim Lacy, will carry on his football career at Avila University next fall. The 6'1", 250-pound defensive tackle is one of 29 members of Avila's 2012 recruiting class.

Avila University is a a Catholic University sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet, and is located in the Kansas City, Mo., area. The school boasts 1,200 enrolled undergraduate students, and is a member of the NAIA's Heart of America Athletic Conference (HAAC).

"They first contacted me back in November, after football season was over," Lacy recalled. "The coaches looked up some film on me on Hudl and called me."

"The biggest part of me wanting to play college was getting my education paid for," he said. "It was the icing on the cake, really; I wanted to keep playing, and Avila gave me the best offer."

Lacy was primarily an offensive tackle throughout his career for the Bearcats, but the Eagles sought him as a defensive lineman. DHS Offensive Line Coach Greg Lummukka noted Lacy's athleticism as a key factor in the decision.

"He's an explosive kid," Lummukka said. "He plays low, behind his pads, and has quick hands and feet. He's also very coachable."

The Eagles 'cleaned house' after the 2009-2010 season; Lacy will be a member of the second recruiting class under head coach Justin Berna, and will work closely with second-year Strength & Conditioning/Defensive Line coach Justin Wyatt. Wyatt's expertise on the D-Line is unquestioned; during his time at the University of Missouri (1994-1998), Wyatt was a four-year letterman for the Tigers and earned First Team All-Big XII honors in his senior season.

"I really liked all the coaches when I visited," Lacy said. "Coach Wyatt was a stud at Mizzou when he played, and definitely knows what he's doing.  He's already helping me understand the differences between Avila's defensive scheme and what we did here."

Lacy just wrapped up his senior season as a member of the DHS wrestling team, and will graduate in May. He plans to pursue a degree in Business Administration at Avila.

Photo Above:
Zach Lacy signs his letter of intent to play football for the Avila University Eagles. With Zach are his father Russ (seated), DHS Head Coach Aaron Pixley (back row, left), and DHS Offensive Line coach Greg Lummukka (back row, right).

CAPE GIRARDEAU - The Redhawks will play host the No. 14 Murray State Racers on Wednesday night in the Redhawks' final home game of the 2011-2012 campaign. Seniors Zach House, Logan Nutt, Marcus Brister and Leon Powell will be honored during a special presentation prior to tip-off.

Southeast trails its all-time series against Murray State, 45-18. The Redhawks beat the Racers, 64-57, the last time Murray State played at the Show Me Center on Feb. 16, 2011. Southeast has never defeated the Racers at home in back-to-back seasons. The Racers defeated Southeast 81-73 in a contest earlier this month at Murray.

Murray State is the first-ever nationally-ranked team to play at the Show Me Center. Southeast is 0-9 all-time against nationally-ranked teams, but Southeast has won six of its last seven games at home and is currently 10-3 at the Show Me Center this year. The Redhawks posted 10 home victories in a season for the first time since 2004-05 (10-4).

One more win will guarantee Southeast its first winning season since 2004-05. The Redhawks are 14-11 overall and 9-4 in Ohio Valley Conference play. Southeast went 15-14 and 9-7 in the OVC under-then head coach Gary Garner during its last winning campaign in 2004-05.

Another Ohio Valley Conference victory will give the Redhawks 10 league wins in a season for only the fourth time in school history and first since Southeast tied for first in the conference with a 14-4 record in 1999-00. That year also marked the Redhawks lone NCAA Tournament appearance. Southeast has gone 11-consecutive seasons with no more than nine OVC wins.

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The game will be broadcast on the Redhawks Radio Network, K103 FM (KEZS). 

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

The MSHSAA State Wrestling Tournament begins tomorrow on the campus of Mizzou in Columbia, Mo. The Bearcats, under head coach Rick Schwab, are sending five to state this year; they are: (from left) Cody Stevens (160 lbs.), Brad Wick (170 lbs.), Dylan Bazarian (152 lbs.), Trevor Waldner (126 lbs.), and Cole Dean (132 lbs.).

Stevens, in his third trip to State, will be defending his sixth-place finish in the 160-pound weight class from last year's state tournament, while Waldner looks to improve on last year's third-place finish after moving up from 119.

Bazarian, a freshman, and Waldner, a sophomore, are both products of the AAU wrestling program started by Schwab four years ago.

"It's really been to their advantage," Schwab said. "It has them ready to compete heading into their freshman year of high school, so they don't have that year or two where they have to learn everything while trying to be competitive."

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The Bearcats will begin the three day, double elimination tournament tomorrow morning, and the ShowMe Times will keep you updated on their progress in the tournament.

Good Luck Bearcats!

By Andrew Cato, ShowMe Times Sports Editor

BERNIE - The Bernie Mules and Richland Rebels met in a clash of SCAA teams on Tuesday night. Despite recent adversity, the Mules were able to pull off lopsided victories in both the JV and Varsity contests.

In the two quarters of JV action, the Mules shut out the Rebels with a 44-0 final score. Brad Freed paced the Mules with 13 points, and Matt Vernon netted 10.

In Varsity play, the Rebels kept the contest close in the opening frame. Jesse Barnes dropped in four points for Richland before the Mules unleashed a barrage of three pointers to take a 15-10 lead after the first.

Troy Kirkpatrick exploded for 16 of Bernie's 21 points in the second quarter. A three point play from Nick Daniels sparked the Rebels to their most productive frame of the contest, but the Mules carried a 36-23 lead into halftime.

Sam Turner had a solid effort in the third quarter, netting seven of Bernie's 26 points in the frame. Vernon, seeing some time on the floor with the 'big boys', knocked down a trey late in the third to help the Mules to a 62-29 lead.

Each team's offense in the fourth quarter was handled by one player; Richland's Richard Forshee, who was effectively shut down by Bernie all night, dropped in five points in the frame. A bucket from Turner was all Bernie had in the fourth, but their big lead early helped them seal a lopsided 64-34 victory.

“We played hard tonight. I think we tried to do what we’ve been working on especially in the 2nd half," Bernie head coach Brad Botsch said. "Our defensive focus was better, and we rebounded better than we had been. Our young kids stepped up and scored for us and hopefully they’ll continue to build confidence.”

The Mules will be back in action on Friday night, when they host the state-ranked Sikeston Bulldogs. The JV is set to get things underway with a 6:00 p.m. tipoff.

Photo Above: Sam Turner puts up a shot during Bernie's SCAA Tournament contest with Advance in the Bearcat Event Center (SMT file photo).