COLUMN: Redhawks are earning their fan support

Southeast Missouri State fans celebrate in front of guard Chris Harris during a game against Tennessee State on Thursday in the Show Me Center.

Tony Capobianco ~ tcapobianco@semoball.com

In a town like Cape Girardeau, support at high school games comes standard, but support for the college teams must be earned.

And recently, the Southeast Missouri State men’s basketball team has been earning their support.

Scheduling-wise, it was a rough start to the season. The Redhawks didn’t have a home game against a Division I opponent until Dec. 7 against Purdue Fort Wayne and by then they were marred in an eight-game losing streak.

It wasn’t until New Year’s Eve that the Redhawks snapped out of their funk with a win over SIU Edwardsville. Since the new year, SEMO is 5-2 and in a five-way tie for first place in the Ohio Valley Conference and the fans are taking notice.

“In the beginning of the season, we didn’t have that many fans here, but now the crowds are coming in,” SEMO forward Josh Early said. “We’re on a winning streak, we’re looking good there, people like watching us, so it’s a great feeling to have the fans behind us.”

Take Thursday’s game against Tennessee State for example; SEMO was down 17-1 early in the first half but as the Redhawks clawed back, each jump shot to narrow the deficit elicited an eruption of excitement. That excitement came to a climax when freshman forward Adam Larson slammed a dunk in front of the student section to give the Redhawks their first lead of the game in the final minutes of the first half.

“The fans have been amazing,” said SEMO point guard Phillip Russell, who had 30 points and nine assists. “They’re a big part of winning. The atmosphere is wonderful. We’ve been playing wonderful.”

“I think if the Show Me Center is filled, we are a much better team,” SEMO sophomore guard Aquan Smart said. “I feel like we feed off that energy and that energy is huge to our success.”

SEMO (11-11, 6-3) enters Saturday’s road matchup at Eastern Illinois with a chance to climb to above .500 with a chance of staying in the race during a crucial stretch. After that game, the Redhawks will play four of their next six games at home, including two against opponents that are currently among the OVC leaders.

“This has got to become one of the hardest places for teams to come in and play and win,” SEMO head coach Brad Korn said. “We got to keep doing our job in the way that we play and our fans have come out and supported and I think we are gaining momentum in that area.”

With each win and each week the Redhawks are still on top of the OVC, the more crowded the Show Me Center should be. The Southeast Missourian Christmas Tournament is prime evidence of what the arena could look like with a full crowd.

The SEMO players saw a glimpse of that atmosphere during their practices and now want it for themselves.

“That’s really my dream,” Russell said, “to pack the Show Me Center.”