Final score: Bradley 61 Illinois State 57

[bradleyfan124]

I want to give a shout out to Tommy and thank him for putting all the games on YouTube. I enjoy rewatching the games they win plus I rewatch the games over the summer to satisfy my Bradley fix in the off season..

[BengalFan14]

Oh wow. How do we access that?

[molar50]

Got an email yesterday from Bradley saying there was a pregame party at Jacks on Adams Saturday before the game. Anyone been in there and know if there is plenty of room for everybody? Cant imagine any of those places on Adams having alot of room

I signed up. It is $10 per person. As of now, I think 26 people registered. I have never been there before.

[Bradley3342]

I signed up. It is $10 per person. As of now, I think 26 people registered. I have never been there before.

Thanks for the update molar50!

[Big Mike]

Wow Braves win in an ugly...slow moving game with no rythm on offense....18-3 and 9-1 in Valley!

[Big Mike]

Attendance 9646

[yoda]

Attendance 9656

That is the kind of game that builds toughness. It felt just like a post-season game, back and forth and overcoming a scary dry spell after grabbing a 10 point lead.
ISU falls to 4-6 in MVC play but 5 of their 6 league losses are close losses, either in OT or by 2 possessions or less. They could be dangerous the rest of the way.

[Big Mike]

Man they can hit 3 really quick....probably lucky we came away with a W!
Still do not understand why that wasn't called a foul by isu bulldozing Davis to the floor after review....announcers thought it was clearly a foul?

[Big Mike]

For the record.....Bradley does not play well in front of a large home crowd!

[Bradley8792]

Strange officiating today. Seemed like only one ref blowing his whistle. Nice that they let them play, but some of the calls or missed calls seemed pretty obvious.

[PattonMD]

For the record.....Bradley does not play well in front of a large home crowd!

The game against Drake for the reg season championship 2 yrs ago was certainly an exception.

[Da Coach]

One way to look at the game today is to note that in their last 2 home games, Bradley has won by an average margin of victory of 28.5 points!

As Coach Wardle pointed out in the post-game show, ISU played an active 2-3 zone for the entirely of today's game, something they haven't played all season. They did a lot of switching defenders, and it gave the Bradley guards problems getting open shots. Combined with the threes not falling, it kept the game close.
When a team that relies a lot on three pointers shoots 22% from the arc, the end result isn't usually good. But, fortunately, the Braves hit their free throws (15-17) and outrebounded ISU 39-34. And with the help of a 10-0 run in less than 2 minutes midway through the 2nd half (from 13:56 to 12:02), they were able to pull ahead and held on to win by four, 61-57.

Box score- https://bradleybraves.com/sports/men...boxscore/22356
Attendance- 9,646

Bradley is now 18-3, and 9-1 in the MVC
Standings- https://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...ngs/_/group/18

[BUSongwriter]

I was really pleased with the way Meta competed this afternoon, how he muscled up on defense against Chase Walker. Our 3-headed center of Meta, Corey, and Almar has to be the envy of the Valley. I was so happy to see Almar contribute in the second half. His 3 and his FTs were needed and hopefully will give him a confidence boost.
Bully seems a lock on the all-MVC freshman team, and if he keeps this up in the second half, the freshman POY. We're winning without Demarion in the rotation, but I hope he's feeling OK and gets some court time again soon. He's exciting as well. We have great depth!
Great to see a nearly filled arena. It was a great atmosphere. The 12-year-old violinist who played the National Anthem was awesome. I would still vote for less piped-in noise and more Bradley band. The DJ guy screamed something near the end for about 15 seconds and I had no idea what he said!
18-3 should make a few more Top 25 voters at least give us a look.

[daveineureka]

What a game, ISU Red had a game plan that resulted in us in coming close to losing this game. Their zone is have us a hard time in finding rhythm during the game. Good to see Almar finally hit a 3 pointer. Hope he can build off that and get some of his confidence back. What is up with Burch not playing again? Figured he would be feeling better by now. He has not played in the last three games. Or maybe four now. Hope he gets back to playing as he will be needed going down the stretch. Just has me scratching my head as to why he is not playing.

[BengalFan14]

It’s hard to see where to find minutes for Burch between injury, illness and Dillon playing well.