The Eastern women’s basketball team will have its hands full tonight as it hosts the first-place Southeast Missouri Redhawks today at 5:15 p.m. in Lantz Arena.

This will be the second meeting between the two teams this season, as the Redhawks (15-6, 9-1 Ohio Valley Conference) defeated the Panthers 87-70 on Jan. 11 in Cape Girardeau, Mo.

SEMO junior center Tatiana Conceicao led the Redhawks with 20 points the first time around, and she is the player who keys its attack, Eastern head coach Brady Sallee said.

“Conceicao is probably the best player in the league,” he said. “If we can limit a little bit of what she’s capable of doing, then we’ll give ourselves a chance.”

Sallee said that senior center Chandra Brown is also another player who will give the Panthers trouble in the post. Brown came off the bench to score 10 points during the first meeting, but is now a regular in the Redhawk starting line-up.

“Brown is a player that can start for any team in this league,” Sallee said. “They are playing a lot together now, so in the post, they are going to be tough.”

SEMO comes into today’s game winner of eight straight and are currently in a first-place tie with Eastern Kentucky. Conceicao is the OVC leader in points (17.9 ppg) and steals (2.90 ppg).

Sallee said his Panthers (9-12, 2-8) will have to control the pace of the game on the defensive end and not let SEMO dictate the flow.

“We can’t run with them, and we can’t let them get six or eight points in a row,” he said. “That’s when they’re really good, when they can make runs like that.”

The Panthers are led by senior center Pam O’Connor. O’Connor enters today’s game averaging a team-high 14.9 points per game, and is second in the OVC in field-goal percentage, shooting .574.

If the Panthers are to upset the conference’s top team, one player that needs to get back on track is junior guard Megan Sparks.

Sparks has scored in single-digits in each of the last two games. She scored nine in a loss at Murray State on Thursday, and four during Saturday’s win at Tennessee-Martin. The win snapped a four-game skid.

On the season, Sparks is scoring 11.1 points per game.

Sallee said the Panthers are relieved to have ended their four-game losing streak, but knows the Redhawks present a big challenge for his team.

“They’re a heck of a team, and are playing really well right now,” he said. “If we can take care of the ball and do a good job of rebounding, then we will give ourselves a chance.”