Redhawks struggle from three-point range in rivalry loss to Murray State

Southeast Missouri State forward Brendan Terry is embraced by coaches as he returns to the bench during a recent game at the Show Me Center.

Tony Capobianco ~ tcapobianco@semoball.com

The Southeast Missouri State men’s basketball team renewed their old rivalry with Murray State and fell 71-51 on Sunday, Dec. 8, in Murray, Kentucky.

The Redhawks and Racers used to be Ohio Valley Conference rivals before Murray State moved to the Missouri Valley Conference in the 2022-23 season. Sunday was the first time the two teams met as non-conference opponents.

SEMO concludes its non-conference road slate with only one win (vs. Central Arkansas on Nov. 21) to show for it.

Three-point shooting doomed SEMO, who shot only 4-for-13 from the arc. From the other side, Murray State shot 9-of-18 from the three-point line.

Jacobi Wood led the Racers with 23 points on 8-of-15 shooting, followed by 15 points from Nick Ellington and 12 from Terence Harcum.

Brendan Terry and Teddy Washington Jr. each led SEMO with 12 points each. Washington was the only Redhawk to attempt 10 field goals, making four. Rob Martin scored eight points on 4-of-9 shooting.

The Redhawks shot 21-of-52 from the field overall. They struggled to find the basket in the second half, making only 7-of-26 shots from the floor.

SEMO and Murray State entered halftime tied 33-33, with the Redhawks at one point leading as much as seven points after a layup by Troy Cole Jr. with 10:21 left in the first half. Cole finished the game with five points.

A 20-2 run by the Racers gave them control of the game, leading 54-39 with 11:34 left in the game. Their lead over the Redhawks rose to 20 with four minutes left in the game.

The Racers’ highest lead over SEMO was 21, and have made more free throws (12-of-20) than the Redhawks have shot (7-of-11).

SEMO (3-6) will return to the Show Me Center for a holiday homestand. The Redhawks will have a week off before an OVC tune-up against St. Mary of the Woods, an NAIA school from Indiana on Sunday, Dec. 15.

The Redhawks will have two OVC doubleheaders with Eastern Illinois (Dec. 19) and SIUE (Dec. 21) before closing out the calendar year with Westminster, a Division III from Fulton, on Dec. 29.

SEMO Women fall at Arkansas

The SEMO women’s basketball team faced their second SEC opponent of the season, as they fell to Arkansas 84-45 on Sunday at Fayetteville, Arkansas.

Freshman Zoe Best led the Redhawks with 13 points on 5-for-12 shooting, while senior Sophie Bussard scored 12 points off the bench.

The Redhawks shot 10-of-26 from the three-point line but made 17-of-63 in total field goal attempts, including 1-of-2 from the free-throw line.

The Razorbacks shot 28-of-66 from the floor, including 7-of-25 from three and 21-of-24 from the free-throw line. Arkansas had four players score double-digits, led by Carley Keats’ 19 points and Izzy Higginbottom’s 18 points.

The Redhawks (1-6) will take a week off and return to the Show Me Center for a four-game holiday homestand, starting with an in-state matchup with Missouri State on Monday, Dec. 16.

SEMO will have two OVC doubleheaders with Eastern Illinois (Dec. 19) and SIUE (Dec. 21) before closing out the calendar year with NAIA member William Woods on New Year’s Eve.