Braves Host Missouri State on Saturday

Men's Basketball 1/11/2019 10:15:00 AM

Bradley (8-8, 0-3 MVC) vs. Missouri State (7-9, 1-2 MVC)
Game Details	Saturday, Jan. 12 • 7 p.m. • Peoria, Ill. • Carver Arena
Television	ESPN+
Radio	1470 WMBD
Game Notes	Bradley \| Missouri State
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb
Tickets	Ticketmaster \| (309) 677-2625

The Bradley men's basketball team is back in action at Carver Arena when it hosts Missouri State in a Valley contest. Just the Braves' second home MVC game of the season tips off at 7 p.m. on Saturday.

PROMOTIONS
• The K9 Crew Frisbee Dogs will perform at halftime on Saturday.
• The Braves Club Pre-Game Party is set for 5 p.m. in Civic Center Hall 401-404.
• In Kaboom!'s Korner is inflatables from Fun on the Run, including a Bounce House.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Bradley has lost its first three conference games of the season and is 8-8 on the year following a 61-50 setback at Valparaiso on Tuesday.
• Junior Darrell Brown leads the Braves with 15.3 points and 3.1 assists per game.
• Sophomore Elijah Childs is second on the team with 11.8 points per game, while leading Bradley with 7.5 boards per game.
• Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye (8.9), Nate Kennell (8.9), Koch Bar (8.6) and round out the team's top five in scoring.
• Bradley is scoring 67.6 points per game in 2018-19, while owning the Valley's second-best scoring defense at 67.1.

SERIES HISTORY
• The Braves and Bears have played 59 times since Missouri State joined the MVC in 1990.
• Missouri State owns a 37-22 advantage versus the Braves.
• Bradley, however, has won three-straight games in the series for only the second time (also in 2008-09). With a win on Saturday, BU will post its first four-game winning streak against Missouri State in series history.
• Last year, the Braves posted its largest MVC win in seven years with a 72-52 home win against the Bears before following with an 82-78 road victory in February.

ABOUT THE BEARS
• Missouri State owns a 7-9 overall record with a 1-2 mark in Valley play.
• The Bears won their first MVC game of the season on Tuesday, posting a 72-57 win at Indiana State.
• Tulio Da Silva leads Missouri State with 15.5 points and 6.4 rebounds per game after missing the first five games of the season.
• Jarred Dixon (14.6) and Keandre Cook (13.4) also average in double figures for the Bears.
• Josh Webster averages a team-leading 5.5 assists.
• Missouri State is scoring 76.2 points per game in 2018-19, while allowing 74.7.

DEFENSE LEADING THE BRAVES
• The Braves are once again showing that they own one of the top defenses in the Missouri Valley Conference this season.
• Bradley currently ranks second in the MVC with a scoring defense of 67.1 – a number that lowers to 63.7 in three conference games.
• Overall, the Braves rank in the top three of four defensive categories in the Valley – leading the league in field goal percentage defense (41.5), ranking second in steals (6.6) and turnovers forced (15.3) and placing third in blocks (3.8).

2-POINT DEFENSE
• The strength of the Valley's second-ranked scoring defense is Bradley's 2-point defense this season.
• The Braves lead the MVC and rank 42nd nationally by allowing opponents to make only 45.7 percent of their shots inside the arc (national average is 50.3 and SIU ranks second in Valley at 47.6).
• Bradley is on pace for its best 2-point defense since the 2005-06 team owned a mark of 44.9 percent.

DEFENSIVE LEADER
• Sophomore Elijah Childs is enjoying a breakout season and his defense is a big reason why.
• Childs leads the Braves in both blocks (24) and steals (21) in 2018-19, ranking third in the MVC in blocks per game and fifth in steals.
• No Brave has led the team in both blocks and steals since Anthony Parker in 1995-96.
• The sophomore is also the only player in the MVC to rank in the top 10 of both categories this season and the first since 2016-17.

OFFENSIVE DIP
• While the defense has improved during Valley play, Bradley has seen its offensive performance dip in league action.
• After showcasing its offensive potential with its highest-scoring non-conference season in 11 years (71.2 points per game), Bradley has posted 52.3 points in three Valley contests so far.
• Overall, Bradley is averaging 67.6 points per game this season – which is still an increase of last year's 67.4 points per game.

A LEADER IN VALLEY PLAY
• One player that has raised his game in MVC play is senior Luuk van Bree, increasing both his scoring and rebounding against Valley foes.
• The senior is averaging 7.3 points and 6.3 rebounds since MVC action began, needing just two games to surpass his rebound total from the entire non-conference season (18 to 16).
• Overall, van Bree is averaging 5.8 points and 2.7 rebounds per game in 2018-19.

Print Friendly Version