No 3 – Southeast Missouri
SEMO head coach Brad Korn is still salty about his team being snubbed by the National Invitation Tournament, but he is also excited about his 2025-26 team. The sixth year coach just signed an extension and is building for the present and the future.
SEMO led the OVC in attendance, defensive three-point percentage and won the regular season title. Their top two scorers and ballhandlers hit the portal, but Korn has a solid core coming back.
Returning forward Brendan Terry (11.2 ppg & 4.5 rebounds) is a 6’7 power forward who would like his game to expand to the perimeter, but his 65 percent shooting percentage served the Redhawks just fine last season.
Veteran guards Braxton Stacker (8.9), B.J. Ward (8.4 & 51 triples), Troy Cole Jr (5.8) and Marqueas Bell (3.4) all played significant minutes last year.
Louisiana Tech transfer Landren Blocker is a Little Rock, Arkansas native that somehow escaped the recruiting clutches of LR’s Darrell Walker. After one season at LA-Tech, the uber-athletic Blocker has arrived in Cape Girardeau.
Oh, and the Redhawks have serious size. They have three, seven-footers. Korn expects returners Elliot Lowndes and David Idada to take major strides this season while they groom freshman Trace Sadler. If the veterans who each averaged just two points and two rebounds per game can become legitimate inside scoring threats, SEMO will be tough to beat.
Sadler’s high school teammate P.J. Farmer is a 6’2 guard who will compete for playing time with the aforementioned veterans.
One intriguing newcomer is NAIA transfer Luke Almodovar. The 6’3 guard averaged 20 points per game and made over 41 percent of his long-distance shots for Saint Francis (IN). He would be the fourth SEMO backcourt player to average 35 percent or better from the arc.
Korn’s teams are known for the defense and grit. He was a part of the famed “Floor Burn U” era at Southern Illinois (Carbondale) and his teams abide by his defensive emphasis.
SEMO opens the season at Saint Lous, on November 3.
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