Under Briley Palmer, Southeast Missouri State eyes March

In a complete overhaul in May, SEMO hired Briley Palmer, the former head coach at Mineral Area College. Palmer had never coached a Division I program before. And, she took over a program where only two players on the current roster are returning from the previous season.

“Probably the other steps other than coaching,” Palmer told The Next about the differences in transitioning from a community college team to DI. “Having more people on the team, more resources, things like that. Just trying to learn what’s best for our group at this time and what we need. … It’s been a good difference. I feel like I’m where I belong.”

The new team consists of the two returners, graduate guard Sophie Bussard and sophomore guard Indiya Bowen, five freshmen and seven transfers.

Though Palmer’s late arrival meant most newcomers had already committed to the program beforehand, the new coach had a hand in finding the best fits for the team, including one of her former Mineral Area College players, Lexy McCully.

“Starting so late in the game, we had two players when I started in May,” Palmer said. “So I had to find kids that were gonna run through a wall for their program and their team, and then we could make them better.”

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One of these new names is Missouri high school state champion Zoe Best. The freshman guard got a start in SEMO’s game against Texas and reached double figures in points.

Best was part of Incarnate Word Academy’s 100-game win streak after transferring from Lima Shawnee High School in Ohio, and Palmer described her freshman star as “fantastic.”

“Going from the high school I came from to college, it just made the transition a little bit easier,” Best told The Next. “Just going from a high-level high school playing against really good girls to college makes me feel like I have an advantage, I’m a bit more ready.”

Palmer and the Redhawks want to make it into the NCAA Tournament, but to get there, they must win the Ohio Valley Conference. For Palmer, playing Power Four teams like Texas and Arkansas is the start to the goal.

“To me, it’s about playing the best and understanding what the best is,” Palmer said. “You gotta watch the best to be able to compete in March.”

SEMO, as expected going into the matchup against one of the best in the nation, struggled against the Longhorns, and fell 119-47 in Austin on Nov. 10.

“It’s gonna be about how we execute,” Palmer said before the game. “How we take getting punched in the nose a few times and how we respond, that’s gonna show a lot about our team.”

In only the second game of a season with all new faces, it could take a moment for the team to find its new style.

The Redhawks are now 0-2 after losing to Dayton 75-70 in the first game. But non-conference is the time to find your footing, as Palmer has all eyes on the OVC and winning the tournament to get the automatic bid to NCAA Tournament.

“We gotta be good by OVC time,” Palmer said. “We gotta make the tournament when we get there, and we gotta win the tournament. It’s these early stages we know that we are behind and with me getting the job and getting players, we’ve all got to just be patient and try to get it right.”

Best, coming from a winning high school program, wants to continue winning championships at SEMO, but one of her biggest motivations goes beyond her personal success.

Bussard has been with the program for six years now and won the conference title as a freshman in 2020. After two ACL injuries resulting in two missed seasons, Best wants to give her teammate a proper sendoff.

For Bussard, it’s about winning for the girls on the 2020 team, who had their March Madness dreams taken away due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I want to play for my teammates and allow them to have that opportunity,” Bussard told The Next. “But also play for my past teammates who got that opportunity taken away from them because of COVID.”

SEMO’s Ohio Valley Conference season will tip off against Eastern Illinois on Dec. 19 at home. The awaited tournament is set to take place from March 5 to 8.

“We do have the team to [win the conference],” Palmer said. “If we grind like we have and have that chemistry continue to grow, sky’s the limit.”

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