ELEY TO MISS REST OF BASKETBALL SEASON

Luck has certainly not been on Bud Eley's side this season.

Eley, Southeast Missouri State University's standout 6-foot-10 center, will almost certainly miss the remainder of the season after suffering a stress fracture in his left foot during Saturday night's 81-78 overtime loss to Eastern Illinois.

Earlier in the season Eley suffered a broken bone in his right foot and missed seven games. He returned to the lineup on Jan. 13 and has played in Southeast's last four games.

Eley played well during the first half of Saturday's game, scoring 12 points and grabbing seven rebounds. But he experienced discomfort in the left foot and was iced down at halftime. He played only five minutes in the second half and overtime combined.

The foot was then x-rayed late Saturday night and at that time the stress fracture was discovered.

According to Southeast trainer Lance McNamara, the average time for a fracture like Eley's to heal is four to six weeks. The Indians' final regular-season game is scheduled for Feb. 24, with the Ohio Valley Conference Tournament slated to begin Feb. 28. So it's not likely Eley will play any more this year.

"With Bud's right foot it took six weeks to heal and we're looking at about the same time," said McNamara. "The main thing is for Bud to get himself back as healthy as possible."

McNamara said there is no evidence that this stress fracture in the left foot is related to the earlier break in the right foot, although some times an athlete will overcompensate for an injury by relying too much on the other leg.

"We're not real sure why it has occurred, but it makes sense when you spend a lot of time with the left foot while the right foot is healing," said McNamara, who added, "It's a completely different type of fracture. The other one was instantaneous. This is a much smaller fracture."

Eley, who has played in 11 of Southeast's 18 games this season, is averaging 15 points and seven rebounds a contest.

Last year Eley averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds to earn first-team all-OVC honors. He averaged 17 points and nearly 10 rebounds two years ago.

"No question, it's another big blow for us," said Southeast coach Gary Garner. "But I'm just really disappointed for Bud. He came into this year excited to have a good season and he's had a lot of bad luck. I have a lot of empathy for him."

But all the news is not bad for Eley. Even though he is technically a senior, since he entered Southeast as a Proposition 48 academic non-qualifier and was forced to sit out his freshman season, Eley will be able to take advantage of the fairly new NCAA rule that rewards a final season of eligibility for Proposition 48 athletes as long as they graduate within four years.

Eley is reportedly on schedule to graduate this year. And he recently said that he definitely would like to return for a final season even though he has been mentioned as a potential professional prospect.