CEDAR FALLS, Iowa ? Bradley senior guard Jeremy Crouch scored 20 of Bradley's last 26 points in the final 13:27, leading the Braves (8-9, 1-4) to a 75-73 Missouri Valley Conference road victory at UNI (10-6, 2-3) Saturday night at the McLeod Center.
The win snapped Bradley's six-game losing streak and sent the Panthers to their third consecutive loss.
Sophomore guard Andrew Warren carried the Bradley offense in the first half by scoring 11 of his 14 points in the first 20 minutes. Crouch took over in the second half, scoring 23 of his game- and season-high 28 points after the break. In addition to making all eight of his free throw attempts in the second half, Crouch drained 6-of-8 3-point tries to become the third player in school history to knock down 200 treys in his career, following Aaron Zobrist (233) and Phillip Gilbert (223).
Led by Crouch's effort, Bradley hit a season-high 14 3-pointers in the game. Shooting 53.8 percent (14-26) overall from behind the arc in the game, eight of Bradley's 10 second-half field goals were treys. The Braves also continued their hot shooting at the free throw line, making 17-of-18 (.944) with the only miss coming on their last attempt with three seconds left.
Bradley came into the game having been outrebounded by nearly 12 boards per game in its first four Valley games, but the Braves held a 31-28 advantage Saturday, improving to 8-2 on the season when they win the rebound fight. In his first game as a reserve this season, senior center Matt Salley pulled down a team-high eight rebounds, including five on the offensive end.
With its overall losing streak snapped, Bradley will try to halt a four-game Carver Arena skid Wednesday night when the Braves host Valley co-leader Drake in a 7:05 p.m. contest. The game against the Bulldogs will open a season-long three-game home stand for Bradley, which will continue next Saturday versus Evansville and will conclude Jan. 23 against Interstate 74 rival Illinois State.
Tickets still remain for each of the next three home games and may be purchased in person at the Robertson Fieldhouse Box Office and the Carver Arena Box Office or online at www.BradleyBraves.com.
