Southeast Missouri dominates Little Rock, advances to OVC Tournament Final

EVANSVILLE, Ind. (KBSI) — Top-seeded Southeast Missouri cruised past No. 4 Little Rock, 78-59, in the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament semifinals Friday night, securing a spot in the championship game for the fourth time in program history and the second time in three years under head coach Brad Korn.

Rob Martin led all scorers with 21 points as the Redhawks (21-11) controlled the game from start to finish, eliminating the Trojans (19-14) in their first-ever OVC Tournament meeting. SEMO led for all but 33 seconds, using a dominant first-half run to take control.

The Redhawks were kickstarted right from the word ‘go,’ when Teddy Washington hit a wide open three to start the game followed by a contested three-pointer from Rob Martin to start the game on a six nothing run.

Trailing 17-16, the Redhawks exploded for a 22-5 surge. Troy Cole Jr. kickstarted the stretch with two free throws before Martin followed with back-to-back jumpers. Cole Jr. added a layup, a steal, and a breakaway dunk to push SEMO’s lead to double digits at 30-20. He later capped the run with a three-pointer and another dunk off a steal from Teddy Washington Jr., extending the advantage to 38-22 with 3:41 left in the first half.

Little Rock cut the deficit to nine, but Washington Jr. knocked down a turnaround jumper just before the buzzer, sending SEMO into halftime with a 40-29 lead. The Redhawks shot 51.9% (14-of-27) from the field in the first half and dominated in transition with 15 fast-break points.

The Trojans made a brief push in the second half, pulling within eight at 46-38 with 14:13 remaining. However, SEMO responded immediately. TJ Biel’s driving layup reestablished a double-digit cushion, and he followed with a three-pointer and two free throws in a 16-second span to extend the lead to 64-47 with 7:16 left. The Redhawks sealed the game with a 12-2 run, highlighted by Washington Jr.’s free throw that pushed the margin to a game-high 22 points at 70-48 with 5:48 to play.

Martin, who has now scored in double figures in 17 consecutive games, tallied over 20 points in his first career OVC Tournament start, finishing 8-of-15 from the field and 4-of-5 at the free-throw line. Cole Jr. added a career-high 17 points, while Biel contributed a season-high 13 off the bench.

SEMO knocked down eight three-pointers and outscored Little Rock 24-6 from beyond the arc while also winning the rebounding battle, 33-30. The game featured 45 combined fouls, and the Redhawks’ 19-point margin of victory marked their largest ever in an OVC Tournament semifinal.

Southeast Missouri will face the winner of No. 3 Tennessee State and No. 2 SIU Edwardsville in the OVC Tournament championship game Saturday at 8 p.m. CT. The title game will be broadcast live on ESPN2.