By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information Coordinator
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Tech men's basketball will take a brief break from home games Saturday evening as the Golden Eagles hit the road for a single contest at Southeast Missouri in what will mark a doubleheader with the Tech women's team.
The Golden Eagles and Redhawks will tip off in a huge Ohio Valley Conference bout in Cape Girardeau, Mo. at 6 p.m. CST with all the coverage available on the OVC Digital Network. The women's contest will kick off the evening of basketball with a 3:30 p.m. start. Fans can also listen to both games on 106.1 The Eagle as legendary play-by-play man Roger Ealey provides the inside look at Tech basketball.
The contest marks the lone road contest in a six-game stretch for the Tech squad, which will return to Cookeville and the Eblen Center next Thursday, Jan. 22 for a home match-up with Morehead State.
Tennessee Tech (9-9, 1-4) at Southeast Missouri (8-10, 2-3)
Saturday, Jan. 17, 2015
6:00 p.m. CST
Show Me Center (7,000) – Cape Girardeau, Mo.
The Broadcasts
TV: None
Radio: 106.1 The Eagle (Roger Ealey)
Webcast: OVC Digital Network
SETTING THE STAGE
A series unborn until Southeast Missouri's entrance into the OVC, the Golden Eagles have largely owned the advantage over the Redhawks since the very beginning, leading the league's western team 31-15 all-time.
The Golden Eagles took a commanding lead on the series beginning in the 2000-01 season, not losing in consecutive games to the Redhawks over a 26-game span. Tech lost just three games over that span, locking up a series-best 10-game win streak with three OVC Tournament victories.
SEMO does hold bragging rights over Tech in its previous two match-ups, however, claiming victories each of the past two seasons.
But with serious OVC tournament implications involved in the contest, all that history can be thrown by the wayside as each team fights to keep its postseason hopes alive.
The Redhawks will go to battle behind the leadership of senior Jarekious Bradley, averaging 67.1 points per game behind his 15.6 scoring average. Bradley also adds 4.9 rebounds and has missed just three free throws all season, hitting at a 93.9 percent clip.
Antonius Cleveland and Nino Johnson also figure in heavily towards the offense, adding 9.9 and 9.7 points to mix, respectively. Johnson also leads the team with 6.8 rebounds per game, 38 blocks and 28 steals. Cleveland grabs 4.4 rebounds per game.
The Golden Eagles continue to boast on the league's top offensive units, averaging 71.1 points per game behind a healthy dose of arguably the OVC's top frontcourt duo.
Leading both the team and the partners in the paint is Charles Jackson, averaging 13.6 points and 9.6 rebounds. He also leads the team with 24 blocks and ranks second in the nation 13 double-doubles.
Dwan Caldwell joins Jackson in the post with 12 points and five rebounds per game while shooting over 75 percent from the charity stripe. Josiah Moore has continued his upward trend since the start of conference play, averaging 9.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per contest. Torrance Rowe adds 10.8 points per game while shooting over 83 percent from the free throw line.
Photo by Jim Dillon
