Box Score

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CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo.  – The Panther men's basketball team held off a late Southeast Missouri rally, defeating the Redhawks, 77-74, on Saturday evening at the Show Me Center. EIU improves to 7-13 on the year and 4-5 in Ohio Valley Conference action.
 
Trailing 70-58 with 2:41 left in the game, the Redhawks (11-10, 3-5 OVC) rallied to get within three (75-72) with 16 seconds on the clock on a Jarekious Bradley three pointer. Josh Piper hit one of two free throws on the ensuing possession to seal the win before Lucas Nutt hit a layup as time expired for the 77-74 final ledger.
 
Trailing 19-18 with 10:24 left in the first half, the Panthers went on a 19-1 run over the next seven minutes to take their largest lead of the game, 37-20. SEMO responded by closing the first stanza on a 13-2 run to make the score 39-33 at intermission.
 
EIU shot 50 percent or better from the floor for the third consecutive game, going 28-for-56 from the floor. The Panthers also went 7-for-13 from behind the arc and 14-for-24 from the charity stripe.
 
Reggie Smith led EIU in scoring with a game-high 23 points on 8-for-16 shooting. Chris Olivier nearly missed a double-double with 13 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Dylan Chatman added 13 points as the junior guard went 4-for-4 from behind the arc.
 
EIU held a 37-36 advantage on the glass and had 32 more bench points (40-8). SEMO was led on the glass by Tyler Stone who grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds. He also scored a team-high 22 points in the loss.
 
Bradley added 18 points for the Redhawks while Nutt rounded out the double-figure scorers with 17 points. SEMO finished the game going 26-for-61 from field and 4-for-21 from three-point range. The Redhawks also went 18-for-29 from the charity stripe.
 
The Panthers return to action on Tuesday, Jan. 28 as they play host to Cleveland State at 7 p.m.