Box Score ST. CHARLES, Mo. - Bradley led from start to finish and controlled play on the inside as the Braves cruised to a 64-47 victory against #9 seed Evansville Thursday night at the Family Arena to advance to the quarterfinals of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. BU used a 16-4 run early in the second half to pull away and will face #1 seed Northern Iowa Friday at noon.
Bradley (15-15 overall) scored the first six points of the game and jumped out to an 14-6 lead behind six points and two steals by sophomore Katie Yohn (Elgin, Ill./St. Edward).
The Purple Aces (8-22 overall) went nearly six minutes between field goals and the Braves stretched the lead to 29-13 with seven minutes remaining in the first half. Evansville chipped away at the Bradley advantage and ended the opening period with a 9-2 run to trail 35-30 at the break. Yohn finished the first half with 11 points on 5-of-8 shooting to go along with three steals.
Evansville pulled within two points at 37-35 in the early stages of the second half, when freshman Kelsey Budd (Prairie du Sac, Wis./Sauk Prairie) and senior Raisa Taylor (Decatur, Ill./Eisenhower) helped Bradley score nine consecutive points to open a decisive16-4 Bradley run. Taylor scored six of her team-leading 13 points, while Budd collected two points, three assists and three steals to help highlight the spurt which pushed the lead to 53-39 with nine minutes to play.
The Purple Aces got no closer than nine points down the stretch as the Braves picked up their fifth consecutive victory in the series against Evansville with the 64-47 win.
Taylor and junior Leah Kassing (Mt. Sterling, Ill./Brown County) paced four Bradley players in scoring with 13 points each. Yohn and junior Latasha Hollingshed (Bellwood, Ill./St. Joseph/Illinois Central) each added 11 points. Taylor passed Eileen Yerkes (1,120 career points) for 10th in career scoring at BU with the 13-point effort to push her career total to 1,122 points and tallied nine boards, six assists and two blocks to help highlight the victory.
In addition to forcing 26 Evansville turnovers, Bradley dominated inside and scored 42 of 64 points (66 percent) in the paint. BU also held a 45-24 rebounding advantage, which included 18 offensive boards, and owned a 14-4 edge in second-chance points.
After cutting Bradley's lead to two points early in the second half, Evansville went 12 minutes between field goals to help fuel the Braves run. BU held the Purple Aces to 30.2 percent shooting in the contest. Stephanie Bamberger connected on 3-of-4 three-point attempts to pace UE in scoring with 13 points.
Bradley advances to Friday's noon quarterfinal game against #1 seed Northern Iowa at the Family Arena in St. Charles, Mo. A free video stream will be available on the Missouri Valley Conference website (www.mvc-sports.com). Fans attending the tournament are encouraged to a team send off Friday at 10 a.m. at the Sheraton Westport Lakeside Chalet at 191 West Westport Plaza in St. Louis.
