CEDAR FALLS, Iowa -- Northern Iowa junior forward Grant Stout put up a double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds and led six Panthers (20-9, 10-7) in double-figures en route to an 81-72 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball victory versus Bradley (13-13, 6-11) Saturday afternoon at the UNI-Dome.
Bradley freshman center Patrick O'Bryant (Blaine, Minn./Blaine H.S.) led four Braves in double-figures by contributing 20 points, nine rebounds and five blocked shots. Junior forward Marcellus Sommerville (Peoria, Ill./Peoria H.S.) earned his fifth double-double of the season with 13 points and 10 rebounds. Junior forward Lawrence Wright (Beale A.F.B., Calif./Wheatland H.S.) scored 13 points off the bench and freshman point guard Daniel Ruffin (Peoria, Ill./Peoria H.S.) added 12 ponits for the Braves.
Bradley opened the game with a 9-4 push, then took a 14-12 lead on a Ruffin 3-pointer with 14:21 left in the first half. Chris Foster countered with his second straight 3-pointer with 14:03 left, giving the Panthers the lead for good. Foster's second trey triggered a 16-3 Panther run, which was capped by an Erik Crawford 3-pointer with 8:42 left in the first period for a 28-17 UNI lead. O'Bryant and Sommerville each scored four points during an 8-0 Bradley spurt that cut the deficit to 28-25, but another 14-6 surge by the hosts to close the half created a 42-31 Panther lead at halftime.
Norhern Iowa shot 57.1 percent (16-28) from the field in the first half. In addition, UNI owned a 7-2 advantage in points off turnovers and a 6-2 edge in second-chance points at the break.
Northern Iowa was never able to extend its lead in the second half, but Bradley also struggled to make a serios run at the Panthers. The margin hovered between six and 11 points until Wright made a pair of free throws with 6:26 to go to pull the Braves within 60-56. UNI ran a set play to free Stout for a dunk on the next possession and Foster drained his third 3-pointer with 5:08 to go for a 65-56 Panther lead. Bradley got as close as five points three occassions, but UNI made 9-of-10 free throw attempts in the final minute to prevent a Braves rally.
Saturday's loss locked Bradley into Friday's night's first round of action at the State Farm MVC Tournament in St. Louis. With only Monday night's home game versus Drake remaining, the Braves still could finish with any one of the bottom four seeds. While Bradley does not have a senior on the roster, the Braves will honor senior team managers Beau Doty, Antonio Johnson and Ben Mooney in a pregame ceremony before Monday's 7:05 p.m. regular-season finale at Carver Arena.
