Walden scores 17 as Eastern Kentucky tops SE Missouri St. 84-76 to advance to OVC semifinal
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Corey Walden scored 17 points and third-seeded Eastern Kentucky held off No. 6 seed Southeast Missouri State 84-76 Thursday in a quarterfinal matchup of the Ohio Valley Conference tournament.
Glenn Cosey added 15 points and Tarius Johnson 12 for the Colonels (22-9). Eastern Kentucky jumped to a 39-25 halftime lead and outlasted SE Missouri St. (18-14) during a second half in which the Redhawks scored 51 points.
After trailing by double digits for most of the second half, the Redhawks cut the lead to 79-73 with 31 seconds left on a 3-pointer from Jamaal Calvin. But Eastern Kentucky hit 5 of 6 from the line in the final 30 seconds to preserve the win.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jarekious Bradley led the Redhawks with 18 while Calvin and Tyler Stone had 17 each. Nino Johnson added 10 and 11 rebounds.
Eastern Kentucky will play No. 2 seed Murray State in a semifinal contest Friday.