EVANSVILLE, Ind. - Peter Van Tongeren made Evansville's last basket with 6:06 left in the game and two free throws with 7.8 seconds left for the game's final margin, helping the host Purple Aces (10-9, 4-5 MVC) hold on for a 70-67 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball victory versus Bradley (6-14, 0-9 MVC) Sunday afternoon at Roberts Stadium.
Bradley's top three scorers all fouled out of the game - Dodie Dunson with 6:00 remaining, Andrew Warren with 4:22 to go and Will Egolf with 2:22 left - but the Braves still managed two chances to tie after trailing 65-59 following Egolf's fifth foul. Jordan Prosser scored on a putback basket, but failed to convert the free throw of the 3-point play opportunity at 68-67 with 9.8 seconds left, and Walt Lemon Jr.'s tying 3-point attempt on the final possession hit off the back iron.
Prosser shared game-high honors with eight rebounds and scored a career-best 12 points, one of three Braves to finish with a dozen. Egolf and Warren also scored 12 and sophomore guard Jake Eastman contributed 10 points off the bench. Denver Holmes scored a game-high 14 points, leading four Purple Aces in double-figures. Colt Ryan, van Tongeren and Kenneth Harris each added 11 points for Evansville.
Evansville came into the game averaging just 6.3 3-pointers per game and finished the game with six triples, but the Aces drained all six in a span of less than eight minutes midway through the first half that allowed them to turn a 7-6 deficit into a 28-15 lead with 6:08 left in the period. Freshman forward Jordan Jahr came into the game averaging just 3.3 points per game, but scored his only eight points off the game during the surge.
Bradley's defense tightened up the rest of the half, however, as Evansville managed just two more field goals the rest of the period, allowing the Braves to close to within 32-24 at the break.
The Braves closed the gap to 42-41 on a Dyricus Simms-Edwards basket with 12:42 left, only to see the hosts open the gap back up to as many as 12 points, 62-50, with 4:54 remaining. Evansville did not score from the field after van Tongeren dunked and was fouled with 6:06 left and the Purple Aces struggled from the free throw line, too, down the stretch. Evansville missed 7-of-14 charity shots in the final 4:54 before van Tongeren hit two with 7.8 seconds left to complete the game's scoring.
Bradley will return home Wednesday for the first installment in this year's Interstate 74 Rivaly versus Illinois State. Wednesday's 7:05 p.m. game will be a White Out at Carver Arena as the first 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a white Bradley Basketball t-shirt.
Wednesday's game versus Illinois State also will be preceded by the second Braves Club Gameday Luncheon of the year. Sponsored by the Foster College of Business Theresa S. Falcon Executive MBA Program, the Gameday Luncheon will feature head coaches Jim Les and Tim Jankovich. Doors will open at 11:15 and the luncheon program will begin at noon. A limited number of tickets are available for $25 for the general public and $20 for Braves Club members.
