Southeast could add key players for Billiken game

Southeast Missouri State University will finally be at as close to full strength this week as it has been all season, although the Indians will still be missing one anticipated key player while the status of another is up in the air because of medical problems.

Coach Gary Garner announced at his weekly media conference Monday that Justin Smith, who could have become eligible for second-semester play that begins with Saturday's game at St. Louis, will instead redshirt and not play at all this season.

Smith, a sophomore guard who transferred from Arkansas State after the first semester last year and was forced to sit out a full season under NCAA transfer rules, will have three years of eligibility remaining starting with the 2002-03 season.

"We talked last year when Justin transferred about maybe sitting out the second semester and that's what he wants to do," said Garner.

Garner said he doesn't always leave the decision to redshirt solely up to the players, although he does give them plenty of input into the decision.

"I think Justin just wants to start off fresh next year, and our record might have something to do with it," Garner said. "He goes on scholarship the second semester but he has paid his own way the last year so he really wanted to be here. We're looking forward to having him the next three full seasons."

Garner, whose squad is 1-5 after picking up its first win of the season Saturday night by beating Division II North Alabama 75-68, said of Smith's decision, "I think it's a decent idea. I could go either way on it."

Meanwhile, another player who is scheduled to become eligible for Saturday's game at St. Louis (3-5), senior forward Monte Gordon, may have his return slowed by continuing problems with a racing heart that plagued him virtually all of last season. Gordon was academically ineligible the first semester.

"Monte is kind of day to day," said Garner. "He had that problem all of last year and Lance McNamara, our trainer, is monitoring him."

Johnson returns

On the plus side, the Indians should get junior point guard Kenny Johnson back for the St. Louis contest. Johnson, who was academically ineligible the first semester, will, like Gordon, be eligible to play beginning Saturday as long as he successfully completes his final examinations this week.

"Kenny is doing well in all of his classes and we feel like there's not much question he's going to be eligible," Garner said. "He'll definitely give us a lift."

One of the Indians' more glaring problems so far has been the lack of a true point guard. Johnson, who has been practicing with the Indians, was expected to fill that void when he was recruited out of Penn Valley Community College last year.

"We're really anxious to see what having Kenny does for our basketball team," said Garner. "We don't want to get too optimistic, but he's a true point guard that can really distribute the basketball and get us into our offense. He's a good passer, a good penetrator. I think we'll get more easy baskets with him in there and I think it will make Brett Hale better.

"I'm sure he'll have some rust because there's nothing like playing in a game, but he'll get five games under his belt before the conference season starts."

Hale honored

Hale, a true freshman recruited as a shooting guard, has been playing out of position at the point, although he is having an overall solid rookie season, averaging 11.2 points per game. Monday, he was named Ohio Valley Conference Rookie of the Week after scoring 31 points and shooting 60 percent from the field in Southeast's two most recent contests.

"Brett is playing really well for a freshman," said Garner. "We've asked him to do things he really shouldn't have to be doing, but he's really hung in there and he's getting better and better."

Hale is the Indians' fourth-leading scorer on the season, behind redshirt freshman guard Derek Winans (15.2 ppg), junior forward Tim Scheer (12.5 ppg) and junior swingman Demetrius King (11.7 ppg).

Winans has tailed off some following his spectacular start but he is still the OVC's seventh-leading scorer, Scheer scored a career-high 23 points against North Alabama and King, a junior college transfer, has been solid recently, scoring 31 points while shooting 55 percent from the field and pulling down 12 rebounds in the last two games.