NORMAL - Boo Richardson likes to rack up assists. The more the merrier for Illinois State's 5-foot-8 point guard.

Yet Richardson knows it might be awhile before anything approaching a double-digit assist game for him happens this season. He's cool with that.

"We care about offense. That wins games, too, but defense is our big thing right now," he said.

ISU has come out slowly on the offensive end in the early going of its exhibition game victory over Quincy (82-61) and regular season-opening win against Missouri-St. Louis (70-37). The Redbirds hope to get off to a quick start on both ends of the court today when they meet Southeast Missouri State (0-1).

The 7:05 p.m. game at Redbird Arena is part of the Chicago Invitational Challenge. So is ISU's 2:05 p.m. home game Sunday against North Carolina-Wilmington before the Redbirds head to the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates for two games, starting with No. 8-ranked Indiana on Nov. 23.

ISU first-year coach Tim Jankovich figured it would take some time for the Redbirds to become a polished offensive team while learning a new system. He wanted his team to adopt a defense-first mentality which really showed while forcing Division II Missouri-St. Louis into a Redbird Arena-record of 34 turnovers.

"Offense is a difficult thing to master for any college or pro player. There are a lot of ingredients," said Jankovich. "Defense you choose to play like that. I really appreciate that."

Whether it is nerves or trying to get their first basket out of the way as soon as possible, the Redbirds' halfcourt offense has settled for quick shots in the first 10 minutes against Quincy and UMSL. Many of its early baskets have come from turnovers leading into dunks or layups.

Richardson knows what the Redbirds must focus on offensively after the national anthem.

"We need to get the ball inside more and let the big guys work inside-out," he said. "The guards have to knock down our shots. We've had shots the last couple games. They haven't fell, but as time goes on we're going to make more shots and that will loosen us up more as a team on the perimeter."

Jankovich said ISU isn't alone in starting slowly on offense. He sees that in many teams across the country during November and December.

Only a portion of ISU's offensive system has been installed in practice. Jankovich plans to keep it that way for the foreseeable future.

"If we keep adding then we won't get more comfortable with what we're doing. I would rather stay with what we're doing and let them get more and more familiar," he said. "I'll judge it off their comfort. I haven't set up the calendar for the next month saying when we're going to add this or that because I don't think that's the best way to do it.

"I want to let a couple things evolve and watch where our strengths and maybe some weaknesses emerge and then tweak some things."

While the prospect of facing Indiana and freshman standout Eric Gordon is only nine days away, Richardson said the Chicago Invitational Challenge isn't the tourney he's really worried about.

"We're trying to build momentum for the (Missouri Valley Conference) tournament at the end of the year, so each game and each practice is going to count for us whether it's a D-II school or a big-time program like Indiana," he said.

Southeast Missouri State is the first Division I opponent of the season for ISU and enough of a challenge for Jankovich at this point of the season.

"They're very athletic and have got one of the biggest human beings, I hope, that comes into this building," said Jankovich, referring to 6-10, 300-pound freshman Will Bogan. "They play a style that's difficult to play against. It's a changing defense and a lot of helter-skelter, but there's a definite method to the madness. If you're not on your game, they can make you look really bad."

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Redbird essentials

Southeast Missouri State vs. Illinois State

Time: 7:05 p.m.

Site: Redbird Arena, Normal

Radio: WJBC-AM (1230), WJEZ-FM (98.9)

Records: Southeast Missouri State 0-1, ISU 1-0

Series history/last meeting: ISU leads 5-1 (ISU won 79-73 on Nov. 23, 1985)

Coaches: Southeast Missouri State's Scott Edgar has an 11-21 record in two seasons and a 119-116 record in nine seasons as a head coach. Illinois State's Tim Jankovich is in his first season at ISU and has a 104-71 record in seven seasons as a head coach.

About the Redhawks: Southeast Missouri State, which went 11-20 last season, was picked to finish fifth in the 11-team Ohio Valley Conference. Brandon Faust, who transferred from Oklahoma two years ago, was Southeast Missouri's leading scorer last season with a 12.1 average. Will Bogan, a 6-foot-10, 300-pound freshman, came off the bench to contribute seven points and a team-high 10 rebounds in Sunday's 90-59 loss to Xavier that was part of the Chicago Invitational Challenge. Senior post player Michael Rembert, who played at Bradley for two years before transferring, is recovering from two off-season knee injuries and isn't expected to play.

Next up: Illinois State meets North Carolina-Wilmington at 2:05 p.m. Sunday at Redbird Arena.

Probable starters

SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE

Player……Pos….Ht….PPG…RPG

Brandon Foust…F…6-6…6.0…4.0

Calvin Williams…F…6-9…7.0…7.0

Roderick Pearson…G…6-2…13.0…3.0

Marcus Rhodes…G…6-2…11.0…3.0

Jaycen Herring…G…6-5…4.0…1.0

ILLINOIS STATE

Player……Pos….Ht….PPG…RPG

Anthony Slack……F…6-7…12.0…7.0

Dinma Odiakosa…F…6-8…9.0…5.0

Osiris Eldridge…G…6-3…8.0…2.0

Boo Richardson…G…5-8…3.0…2.0

Dom Johnson…G…6-0…11.0…0.0