Similarities between Eastern and the Southeast Missouri squad that will be playing on Tuesday at Lantz Arena can be drawn from both of the teams performances early on in conference competition.

Both teams had golden opportunities to win their last game in the OVC. The Panthers (3-9, 1-1), who lost to Austin Peay in the final minutes, could have started off 2-0 in the conference but lost by seven points as the team faltered in the final few minutes of regulation .

SEMO (7-6, 0-2) also lost its last matchup in the OVC, and it was also a game that they could have won but did not play as well as needed in the second half to get a victory.

The SEMO loss was especially troubling for the team because last year they struggled in conference play. The Indians went 5-11 last year in the OVC, and two losses early this year have put the team in a tough position in the conference because they now travel to Lantz Arena in danger of losing their third in a row.

While Eastern has been tough to beat in Lantz, they still could not beat Austin Peay in a crucial conference meeting.

“Well, obviously, we want to take care of business at home and get victories,” Eastern head coach Rick Samuels said. “Going into the conference season we weren’t playing well, but we have turned that around and it was disappointing that we didn’t get that victory against Austin Peay.”

In both of the teams’ recent losses, the lack of experience in both squads showed as the pressure was on in the second half. The Panthers allowed a 7-2 run over the last two minutes of the game against the Governors, while the final two minutes didn’t matter for SEMO as Tennessee Tech started their run with 10 minutes left in the game.

In that game, Tennessee Tech came back from a 10-point deficit at halftime to take a 3-point lead at the 10 minute mark of the second half. From then on TTU went on a 13-0 run to cap the game and finish off the Otahkians.

“SEMO is a team we have to be careful with because they have improved from last year,” Samuels said. “There two losses at home will make them a very hungry team by the time they get here, and there is no doubt they will want that first conference victory.”

One factor that will put the Panthers at a disadvantage will be the fact that they will have to play without junior forward Andy Gobczynski, who will not play against SEMO due to an inflamed right elbow injury. The seriousness of the injury is uncertain, as Samuels even thought that his forward would be back in action by Tuesday night.

“Its hard to tell about the length of the injury because it is something I have been playing with since before Christmas,” Gobczynski said. “I’ve had to get it drained three times so far, and it still is pretty painful.”

Gobczynski had worked this season to put himself back into the team’s rotation, so this set back in his progress hurts the team as they continue to look for people step into leadership positions.

The OVC contest will start at 7:35 p.m. and is the second in a series of five straight games at home for Eastern.