SEMO reserves handle roles in expected fashion in Redhawks' win

Southeast Missouri State sophomore guard Alex Caldwell prepares to defend Saturday at the Show Me Center against Lincoln University in Cape Girardeau, Mo.

Tom Davis ~ Tdavis@semoball.com

Fifth-year Southeast Missouri State men’s basketball coach Rick Ray has enacted standards when it comes to the performance of his student-athletes and those expectations are considered even in games that don’t count.

Redhawk players Alex Caldwell and Quatarrius Wilson didn’t start in Saturday’s exhibition game against Lincoln University at the Show Me Center, but they definitely made their presence felt in reserve roles.

“I don’t want to reward guys when they’re not doing some of the things that we want them to do off the court,” Ray said. “There is nothing egregious, but you have to be on time, you have to take the classroom seriously, and the only way we can make sure that we are doing that is to set an example.”

Caldwell and Wilson had strong outings in helping the Redhawks beat NCAA Division II Lincoln 73-56.

Ray started two new players in junior college transfer Darrious Agnew at center and freshman guard DQ Nicholas and both performed well on the court after meeting expectations off it.

“Darrious has been consistent in his effort both on the court and off the court,” Ray said. “And the same thing with DQ.”

Agnew grabbed seven rebounds in 14 minutes, while Nicholas grabbed five boards, dished out three assists, and hit 4 of 7 shots en route to nine points.

Ray wanted to see how Caldwell and Wilson responded to not starting and he had to have liked what he saw..

“I told (Caldwell) he could take (not starting) as a negative or a positive,” Ray said. “If you come in pouting about not starting, then that continues to justify it.”

That was the opposite of how Caldwell reacted.

Caldwell hit his first shot, which gave him confidence, and he was steady throughout his 18 minutes.

“It really doesn’t matter, starting or coming off the bench,” Caldwell said. “I just wanted to get the team win and do what my coach wanted me to do.”

Caldwell hit 5 of 8 shots (including a pair of 3-pointers) and finished with 12 points, five rebounds and a couple of assists.

“I thought (Caldwell) really calmed us down and gave us a spark,” Ray said. “He has a calming influence on our team.”

That shows even in the box score.

There were a lot of positives to take from this game, such as the tremendous rebounding (the Redhawks grabbed 48 boards), but a negative was the 23 turnovers committed by Southeast. However, Caldwell threw it away just one time despite handling the ball a lot.

“He has a commanding presence every single day for us in practice,” Ray said of Caldwell. “It used to be as a freshman (last season) he would go up and down. But right now, he’s really been ‘Steady Eddie.’”

Caldwell has not just been “steady” this season he has been vocal. He continually was instructing teammates on Saturday, but he also has been encouraging.

“Learning that from last year’s point guard, Jonathan Dalton,” Caldwell said, “he would tell me ‘When guys get down, you’ve got to pick them up.’ The coaches are telling me to have positive vibes always. That is why I try to be positive.”

Wilson was especially impactful Saturday.

He played 23 minutes and grabbed 11 rebounds and scored 11 points, while also passing for a team-high four assists. A significant statistic was the fact he got to the free-throw line 11 times and made seven.

“I wanted to dominate the paint,” Ray said of his pregame goal. “On offense, I wanted to make sure we got the ball inside a lot, not just on post feeds, but on cuts and penetration.”

Wilson and Agnew were effective, but so was forward Sage Tolbert.

The sophomore hit 6 of 7 shots and finished with 12 points, two blocked shots, and grabbed five rebounds.

“When we are playing Sage and (Wilson) or Sage and (Agnew) together,” Ray explained, “that has to be a focal point for us. They’ve got to be a dominating presence, because if not, why are we playing them together? Those guys have to understand that they need to dominate that area and rebound the ball for us.”

Southeast opens the regular season Wednesday at Vanderbilt at 7 p.m.