SEMO Men’s Basketball: Season outlook, key players, Bradley game preview

CAPE GIRARDEAU – It’s probably fair to say Brad Korn enters the upcoming season with what looks on paper to be one of his deepest and more experienced teams in recent memory.

It’s also fair to say Korn’s SEMO Redhawks have a lot of unknowns, a group picked by an Ohio Valley Conference poll of league head coaches to finish seventh in the conference this season.

“We’ve got six or seven returning guys,” junior Rob Martin said. “Coach Korn said it should light a fire in us and we should be able to just to go out there and show them what we got. The rankings matter a little, but at the same time, you’ve still got to go out there and play the game. I feel like it got us ready and excited for this year, and it's going to be fun.”

To the likes of players such as Martin, Korn has built an experienced roster and has also gotten SEMO older thanks to the transfer portal, through which he added five upperclassmen from the junior college ranks.

“I just thought it was important to get a little bit more older, a little bit more mature in some spots this year,” Korn said. “Just because I felt we didn't have the depth and the experience that we needed a year ago. So, I feel good about those guys and just the overall physicality and edge that junior college players play with. I think they get a bad rap, but they just have a whole lot to prove when they get their opportunity.”

The question is whether Korn and his coaching staff can get the most out of this unit.

With the season opener against Bradley going down on Monday night, here are four storylines entering the 2024-25 season:

Offensive outlook

Consistently, SEMO has been dominant in the paint, and that trend could very well continue given it will be one of the tallest teams in the OVC.

Korn made it a point to go find players that add to this team’s physicality and arsenal of low-post scorers. Coupled with junior centers Mason Hanback and David Idada, junior college transfer Elliot Lowndes adds firepower to a SEMO frontcourt that now features a trio of 7-footers.

The issue lies in whether the Redhawks have enough creation and production on the perimeter. In an offensive scheme that saw SEMO finish second-to-last in the conference in 3-point percentage (30.4) and eighth in 3-point average (6.2 per game) last season, the unit gets back its top returning shooter in Martin, who made 40 3s a year ago.

Outside of the star point guard, who feels that his “three went up even higher” this offseason, more playmakers need to emerge. Korn said guys such as junior Braxton Stacker and sophomore BJ Ward have been impressive shooting beyond the arc during summer and fall practices.

“I don't know if we're necessarily going to be like 50-60 percent 3-point shooting team, but we’ve also got those guys that you can't leave in open space,” Korn said. “It's also a group where, if they see one go in, the next two might go in. So, a little bit streaky, but enough shot making ability to keep defenses honest.”

The catalysts

SEMO will possess a two-way group that should improve on defense and will thrive on terrific guard play.

As mentioned, the backcourt will be anchored by Martin, the former Indiana State transfer coming off of a productive sophomore campaign where he led the Redhawks in scoring (11.9 average) and assists (108). He attacks fluidly on both offense and defense and has the upside to emerge as a first-team all-conference performer this winter.

Don’t sleep on Stacker, another guard who lives in the lane. The former 2021 Missouri High School Defensive Player of the Year for Cardinal Ritter is, according to Korn, “a physical playmaker” that can make an even bigger splash this season because of his ability to drive and kick.

Under-the-radar player

The Redhawks have several potential difference makers who have yet to burst onto the scene, but Pensacola State College transfer Brendan Terry may have the most upside of them all.

The skilled 6-foot-7 junior forward had a successful two-year stint at the JUCO level and, while he is not yet a prolific shooter, is a standout defender (seven rebounds per game and 19 total blocks in 2023-24) who instantly bolsters the SEMO front court.

“I think Brendan Terry has kind of stood out a little bit to me,” Korn said. “It’s hard for centers in basketball in general, and just being from California for junior college and coming here, he was a pretty good player, but I had no idea that his skill set was as high as it is.”

Bradley Preview

SEMO travels to Peoria, Ill. on Monday in its season opener at Bradley, who is the preseason Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) front runner. Tenth-year head coach Brian Wardle led Bradley to a 23-12 record and a second-round appearance in the NIT tournament last season.

“We know we’re considered an underdog in this season opener,” Stacker said. “But we're coming in with a lot of confidence in ourselves as a team. We definitely feel like we can win this game.”

Despite losing two of their top three shooters from last season, the Braves return 61.6 percent of its scoring, including five players who started two games or more. Headlining the bunch is first-team All-MVC point guard Duke Deen and 6-foot-9 forward Darius Hannah, who led the MVC in field goal percentage (.612) a season ago.

“They play in the gap a lot,” Martin said. “Being able to take care of the ball, move the ball, score, and transition I think is the main key for us to be able to be in the game and have a chance to beat Bradley. Scouting them, they’ve got a lot of big guys, so being able to box them out and just being physical, not being out-punked is big. I feel like if we do those things, we'll be good.”

Korn is confident in his revamped roster and believes that this road test is a great measuring stick to kick off the new season.

“I think our guys will be ready to go compete and do what we’ve practiced up to this point,” he said. “It’ll be a big, tough game for us. I mean, they're picked to win their league. Coach Wardle does a great job. It's going to be well-attended; they'll have eight-to-10,000 people in there. So, it's going to be a great game out the gate.”