Illinois State ILS 11-9, 4-3 MVC

Bradley BRAD 10-10, 2-5 MVC

Illinois State ILS

11-9, 4-3 MVC

Final

Jan. 23, 2019

Bradley BRAD

10-10, 2-5 MVC

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Illinois State ILS	26	42	68
Bradley BRAD	43	42	85

Box Score

Braves Run Past Illinois State to Claim I-74 Victory, 85-68

Box Score (PDF)

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 1/23/2019 9:56:00 PM

Peoria, Ill. – Senior Luuk van Bree and junior Darrell Brown scored 21 and 20 points, respectively, as the Bradley men's basketball team cruised to victory in the I-74 rivalry, posting an 85-68 win against Illinois State on Wednesday. The Braves improve to 10-10 on the year with a 2-5 Missouri Valley Conference record, while the Redbirds drop to 11-9 and 4-3 versus conference foes.

Bradley now owns back-to-back wins against its rival for the first time since 2007-08 with its 17-point margin of victory the most in five years against the Redbirds and its 85 points the most since 2007.

Van Bree led the BU charge with a career-best 21 points – connecting on 9-of-13 field goals and 3-of-4 from 3-point range. The senior also added seven boards and one block in the rivalry win. Not to be outdone, Brown made 6-of-11 field goals and 5-of-7 from beyond the arc for his third 20-point game of the season.

Senior Luqman Lundy also set career highs with 11 points and five assists in the winning effort.

Bradley did not waste much time jumping on the Redbirds, taking control during the first half and never looking back. After ISU grabbed an early 9-2 lead, it was all BU for the remainder of the opening period as Bradley answered with 14-3 run for a 16-12 advantage.

Illinois State would only be as close as two points the rest of the game as the Braves took complete control with a 20-6 run to finish the opening 20 minutes of action for a 43-26 intermission lead. Bradley shot 70.0 percent during the final seven-minute stretch with six different Braves scoring as Brown finished the period with a 25-foot triple in the closing seconds for the 17-point halftime advantage.

The Braves shot 55.2 percent in the first 20 minutes of action, while holding the Redbirds to just 31.3 percent shooting.

That was fun! 🅱️🏀

Relive Bradley's 1⃣7⃣ point win over the Redbirds with tonight's highlights! #TheArrival pic.twitter.com/kmxBFZntSf
— Bradley Basketball (@bradleyumbb) January 24, 2019

Bradley picked up right where it left off in the second half and pushed its lead to 22 less than three minutes into the period. Van Bree scored eight points during a 10-2 Bradley run, connecting on his second triple of the game to cap the early stretch that resulted in a 53-31 advantage.

Illinois State would make a run of its own and slowly crept back into the contest. A 10-1 Redbird stretch pulled ISU within four, 66-62, with seven minutes remaining in the game. Bradley, however, would end any thoughts of a comeback when Brown hit a 3-pointer on the next possession, Lundy forced a turnover on the defensive end and senior Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye added another triple for a double-digit lead, 72-62. From there, the Braves would coast to the 17-point victory over their rival and their second-straight conference win.

Bradley made a season-best 57.4 percent of its field goals in the dominating win, including a 10-of-17 clip from 3-point range. Meanwhile, Bradley held the Redbirds to just 37.7 percent shooting and a 7-of-25 mark from beyond the arc.

The Braves also dominated the paint to the tune of 40-18 from close range.

Bradley looks to maintain its winning ways with a road game at Missouri State on Saturday. Game time in Springfield is set for 3 p.m.

Game Notes: Bradley's 85 points are the most in a Valley game since defeating Drake, 90-64, on Feb. 26, 2011 … van Bree's previous career high was 20 points against Northern Iowa in 2017 … Bradley had two players each score 20 points in a game for the first time since Tyshon Pickett had 25 and Walt Lemon Jr. had 24 against Loyola on March 6, 2014 … Bradley 22-point edge in the paint was its largest since a 32-10 advantage against Drake on Jan. 4, 2014 … The Braves have outscored the Redbirds in the paint, 78-36, in the last two games in the series (both wins) … Bradley eclipsed its season average in Valley games by 30 points on Wednesday – entered the contest averaging 55.0 points in six MVC matchups … The 17-point win against Illinois State is the team's largest versus its rival since a 64-45 victory on Jan. 29, 2014 … BU's 85 points are its most versus ISU since an 88-67 win on Jan. 24, 2007 … The Braves continue to be the only Valley school to not allow 70 points in a conference game this season with their streak reach seven games – longest since 1997-98.

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