EVANSVILLE, Ind. ? Bradley senior point guard Daniel Ruffin turned in team-highs with 19 points, six rebounds and six assists, leading the streaking Braves (13-10, 6-5 MVC) to a 72-59 Missouri Valley Conference road win at Evansville (6-15, 1-10 MVC) Saturday night at Roberts Stadium.
Bradley has won five straight overall, including the last four since Ruffin returned to action from sports hernia surgery, and the Braves secured their third consecutive Valley road win for the first time since the 1996-97 season. Coupled with results from around the league, the Braves have climbed into a four-way tie for third place in The Valley standings with Creighton, Southern Illinois and UNI.
Bradley struggled to get its offense untracked early in the game and fell behind 14-10 on a dunk by Evansville's Shy Ely with 8:12 left in the first half. Freshman guard Sam Maniscalco answered with a 3-pointer on Bradley's ensuing possession, however, triggering a 25-5 run to end the half. Sophomore guard Andrew Warren gave the Braves the lead for good, 15-14, by sinking a pair of free throws with 7:57 left and the Bradley defense forced turnovers on the next three Evansville possessions to take control.
Back-to-back steals by senior guard Jeremy Crouch and Ruffin swung the momentum. Crouch turned his steal into his own transition basket and Warren buried a 3-pointer following Ruffin's steal for a 20-14 lead with 6:52 left in the half. Kevin Lacey hit a jumper with 5:09 left in the half to pull Evansville to within 20-16, but the Purple Aces managed only three free throws the rest of the half as Bradley cruised into the intermission with a 35-19 lead.
In addition to forcing Evansville into nine first-half turnovers, Bradley limited the Purple Aces to just 5-for-25 (.200) shooting from the field in the first 20 minutes, including an 0-for-10 effort from 3-point range.
The Braves maintained a double-digit lead throughout the second half, relying more on their offense to keep the Purple Aces at bay. After Evansville used a 7-0 run to close within 43-31 with 13:22 remaining, Bradley quickly countered with a Sam Singh layup and Warren trey to push the advantage back to 48-31 with 12:10 left.
Following some back-and-forth play, Evansville used a 10-2 push to pull within 57-47 with 6:49 left, but Ruffin halted the comeback bid with a corner 3-pointer for a 60-47 advantage with 5:09 left. With the Aces again within 10 , 52-62, following a Jason Holsinger 3-pointer with 3:47 left, Ruffin ran the shot clock down then drove the baseline and dished to Matt Salley for an easy layup and a 64-52 lead with 3:11 remaining. Maniscalco and Warren combined to make 8-of-10 free throws the rest of the way to maintain a comfortable margin.
Warren finished with 13 points in support of Ruffin's effort and Maniscalco chipped in with 11. The freshman guard also added five assists against just one turnover in his 30 minutes off the bench. Evansville was paced by Shy Ely's game-high 22 points, while backcourt mate Jason Holsinger added 12.
In addition to limiting Evansville to 39.6 percent (21-53) shooting from the field, the Braves outrebounded their hosts 35-27. The guard trio of Ruffin, Warren (five rebounds) and Crouch (three) combined for 14 boards.
Bradley will shoot for its sixth consecutive win Wednesday when the Braves host Missouri State in a 7:05 p.m. contest at Carver Arena. The popular magic duo Quick Change will perform at halftime Wednesday. Tickets for Wednesday's game range from $8-18, based on location, and may be purchased in person at the Robertson Fieldhouse Box Office, the Carver Arena Box Office or online at www.BradleyBraves.com. The Bradley Braves Club will host their final Game Day Luncheon of the year Wednesday at the new Embassy Suites in East Peoria. Head coaches Jim Les and Barry Hinson will be the featured speakers. For luncheon tickets, contact the Braves Club Office at (309) 677-2667.
