PEORIA, Ill. -- Wichita State made five 3-pointers in its first six field goal attempts of the second half and the second-ranked Shockers (30-0, 17-0 MVC) rode the hot second-half start to a historical, 69-49 win against host Bradley (12-18, 7-10) Tuesday night at Carver Arena.

Wichita State becomes the first-ever team to start 30-0 in the regular season and the Shockers moved to within one game of dethroning Bradley's 1985-86 team (16-0) as the last undefeated Missouri Valley Conference regular-season champion.

Fred Van Vleet finished 3-for-3 from behind the arc and the Wichita State point guard started the long-range assault by draining two in a row to turn a 35-27 lead into a 41-27 bulge with 17:20 remaining. He finished as Wichita State's fourth double-digit scorer with 11 points. Ron Baker led the Shockers with 15 points, while Tekele Cotton added 13 and Cleanthony Early 12.

Walt Lemon Jr. scored a game-high 18 points and tied Blake Ahearn for 45th on The Valley's all-time scoring list with 1,677 career points. Tyshon Pickett added a double-double with 13 points and a career-best 15 rebounds. The two Bradley scoring leaders each took 20 shots, however, combining for 40 of Bradley's 59 field goal attempts. Auston Barnes completed the double-digit scoring with 10 points for the Braves.

The Braves felt the key to pulling off the upset would be to limit their turnovers and control Wichita State on the offensive glass. Bradley committed just six turnovers and Wichita State managed only seven offensive rebounds, but Bradley's 16-for-59 (.271) shooting effort proved too cold to overcome. And despite managing the focal points, Wichita State still finished with a 10-8 advantage in points off turnovers and 12-10 edge in second-chance points.

Bradley will wrap up the regular-season Saturday by visiting Drake for a 2 p.m. game at the Knapp Center in Des Moines. Wichita State will host Missouri State in its bid to complete an undefeated regular-season.