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OVC Basketball outlook in 2021-22 after shakeup of members

By Chris Smith

The Morehead State Eagles celebrate their victory over the Belmont Bruins in the Ohio Valley Conference Basketball Championship at the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind., Saturday, March 6, 2021. The Eagles defeated the Bruins 86-71 to win the championship title and a bid to the 2021 NCAA tournament.Ovc Mens Championship 8
The Morehead State Eagles celebrate their victory over the Belmont Bruins in the Ohio Valley Conference Basketball Championship at the Ford Center in Evansville, Ind., Saturday, March 6, 2021. The Eagles defeated the Bruins 86-71 to win the championship title and a bid to the 2021 NCAA tournament.Ovc Mens Championship 8 /
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Southeast Missouri’s Nygal Russell Morehead State Eagles OVC Basketball Ovc Mball Semo Vs Morehead 22
Southeast Missouri’s Nygal Russell Morehead State Eagles OVC Basketball Ovc Mball Semo Vs Morehead 22 /

Southeast Missouri

The Redhawks are looking to build off of an (11-16), which was under first-year head coach Brad Korn.  Korn who is now entering his 2nd year will be looking for more consistency out of his team.  SEMO showed signs of strong play a year ago, with dominating wins over Eastern Kentucky and Eastern Illinois, but also struggled to close out games.

The Redhawks played in five overtime games, with one going to double OT.  SEMO went 2-3 in such games. The Redhawks bring back leading scorer Chris Harris, as he recorded 12.3 points on average. Semo will be looking for an increase in production from Nebraska transfer Nana Akenten.

Akenten recorded 9.0 points per game in his first season as a Redhawk. Eric Reed Jr. torched teams from distance a season ago, knocking down a blistering 46 percent from 3 point range. He drained 61 from distance.

Tennessee State

The Tigers struggled during the 20-21 campaign, finishing in the cellar of the OVC with a record of (4-19). Tennessee State is under the direction of Brian Collins.  The Tigers lost their best player from last season, as Mark Freeman transferred to Illinois State.  Markus Fitzgerald Jr. is the leading returning scorer from last season.

Fitzgerald Jr. totaled 12.5 points per game while connecting at an 82.8 percent clip from the charity stripe.  Coach Collins and Tennessee State did add Georgia transfer Christian Brown in the offseason.