PEORIA, Ill. -- Playing with his shooting hand wrapped in a heavy bandage, Bradley senior forward Marcellus Sommerville (Peoria, Ill./Central H.S.) recorded team-highs with 15 points, nine rebounds and two blocked shots, leading the Braves (2-0) to a 68-58 men's basketball victory versus Chicago State (0-2) in the home opener Saturday afternoon at Carver Arena.
Senior guard Tony Bennett (Chicago, Ill./Westinghouse H.S.) added 12 points, five rebounds, four assists and four steals for the Braves. Guard Royce Parran led Chicago State with 26 points, 10 rebounds and six assists, but he also committed seven of his team's 25 turnovers. Cougars forward Camron Clay was the only other player to score in double-figures, chipping in 14 points.
Chicago State got off to a hot start, racing to a 16-4 lead in the first 3:54. Parran did most of the early damage with 10 of Chicago State's first 16 points. After a Zach Andrews putback pulled the Braves within 20-13 with 10:41 left in the half, Bradley completed its rally primarily from the free throw line. With the defense finally holding the Cougars down, Bradley's next eight points came from the free throw line to pull within 22-21 with 6:45 left. After a Clay dunk with 5:44 to go made it 24-21, Bennett drained a 3-pointer to force a 24-24 tie with 5:05 left in the half. Sommerville gave the Braves the lead for good, 33-32, by sinking his only 3-pointer in six attempts with 2.9 seconds left in the half.
After allowing Chicago State to shoot an even 50 percent (14-28) in the first half, Bradley put the clamps on the Cougars in the second half, limiting the visitors to a 10-for-33 (.303) effort after the break. Although the Braves remained cold from the field themselves, finishing the game by shooting 35.2 percent (19-54), Bradley steadily pulled away in the second half. Leading 42-38 after a Parran layup with 13:57 left in the game, Bradley used a 9-2 burst to finally claim a double-digit lead, 51-40. Jeremy Crouch started the run with a 3-pointer and freshman Ray Brown created a 10-point cushion, 50-40, with a steal and breakaway slam. The lead did not dip below double-digits the remainder of the game.
Although Bradley committed 17 turnovers in the game, the Braves benefitted from a +8 turnover margin by forcing the Cougars into 25 turnovers. Bradley's depth also was a factor as the Braves bench outscored the Cougars reserves 24-6. Nine of the 10 Braves that played in the game had scored by halftime. Chicago State also went 0-for-9 from 3-point territory, the first Bradley opponent to complete a game without making a 3-pointer since Hawai'i on Dec. 27, 1999, a span of 171 games.
Bradley, which opened with a 75-60 victory last Saturday at DePaul, will complete its three-game set against Chicago teams to begin the season by visiting Loyola-Chicago Wednesday night The Braves will be trying for their first 3-0 start since the 1998-99 season and will be shooting for consecutive road victories for the first time since beating Wichita State and Drake in the final two road games of the 2002-03 campaign.
