Braves Take on I-74 Rival Illinois State Saturday on ESPN2

Men's Basketball 2/15/2019 12:30:00 PM

Bradley (14-12, 6-7 MVC) at Illinois State (14-12, 7-6 MVC)
Game Details	Saturday, Feb. 16 • 7 p.m. • Normal, Ill. • Redbird Arena
Television	ESPN2
Radio	1470 WMBD
Game Notes	Bradley \| Illinois State
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb

Enjoying its best stretch in Valley play in 11 years, the Bradley men's basketball makes the short trip down I-74 to play Illinois State on Saturday night. First tip is set for 7 p.m. and can be seen live on ESPN2.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Bradley has won three games in a row and six of its past eight to improve to 14-12 in 2018-19.
• The Braves are currently tied for fifth in the MVC standings with a 6-7 conference record.
• The MVC Player of the Week, Darrell Brown is averaging 25.3 points in his last three games. He now leads the team with 15.3 points and 3.0 assists per game.
• Sophomore Elijah Childs is second on the team with 11.9 points and leads BU with 7.8 rebounds.
• Junior Nate Kennell (9.2) and senior Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye (8.4) rank third and fourth on the team in scoring.
• The Braves are averaging 67.8 points per game, while ranking second in the Valley with a scoring defense of 66.4.

SERIES HISTORY
• In a series that dates back to 1904-05, the nearby rivals are meeting for the 128th time on Saturday.
• Bradley is 65-62 all-time against the Redbirds, while Illinois State has the edge since joining the Valley in 1981, 44-37.
• After suffering an eight-game losing streak to its rivals, BU has won back-to-back games over Illinois State for the first time since 2007-08.
• The Braves posted an 85-68 win against ISU on Jan. 23 earlier this year. Luuk van Bree led BU with 21 points, while Darrell Brown added 20.
• Bradley has lost its last 11 games at Redbird Arena and aims for its first sweep of Illinois State since 2007.

FIRST MEETING DOMINANCE
• Bradley had one of its best games in recent series history the first time the schools met on Jan. 23.
• The Braves' 17-point win against their I-74 rival was its largest since a 64-45 win on Jan. 29, 2014.
• Additionally, Bradley's 85 points in January are its most versus the Redbirds since an 88-67 victory on Jan. 24, 2007.

ABOUT THE REDBIRDS
• Illinois State is currently in fourth place of the MVC standings with a 7-6 record – one game ahead of the Braves – and is 14-12 overall.
• The Redbirds have lost their last three games, coming off a 77-64 setback at Northern Iowa on Wednesday.
• Milik Yarbrough leads the Redbirds with 16.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game.
• Phil Fayne is second on the team with 15.5 points and 6.1 boards.
• The Redbirds average 70.2 points per game and allows 71.1 on the defensive end.

DOMINATING THE PAINT
• One key matchup in Bradley's recent wins in the series is its ability to dominate inside.
• In their two victories the last two years, the Braves have outscored Illinois State by 42 in the paint, 78-36, leading to a pair of double-digit wins.
• In Bradley's win on Jan. 23, the Braves plus-22 differential in the paint (40-18) was the team's largest since 2014.
• Overall, the Braves have outscored their foe in the paint in each of the last seven games, winning the battle inside by an average of 33.7 to 24.0.
• It is the first time BU has outscored its opponent inside in seven-straight since 2008-09. BU is now looking for its first eight-game run since 2005-06.

NEW LOOK BRAVES
• The Braves have looked like a different team the last half of the Valley season than the one that started the conference year.
• Bradley is averaging 72.4 points per game since the first meeting with Illinois State on Jan. 23.
• The Braves entered that game with an offense scoring only 55.0 points in the first six MVC games.
• The result is the best stretch for BU in 11 years as Bradley has won six of eight Valley games for the first time since 2007-08 (and after an 0-5 start).

STAY HOT DARRELL BROWN
• The player most responsible behind Bradley's offensive surge is junior Darrell Brown.
• In Bradley's last eight contests, Brown is scoring 17.0 points per game – shooting 47.5 percent from the field and a blistering 58.7 percent from 3-point range (27-of-46).
• Brown has been even better during BU's three-game winning streak with 25.3 points – shooting 56.5 percent with a 3-point clip of 63.6 (14-of-22).
• The junior is the first Brave with three-straight 20-point games since Walt Lemon, Jr. in 2013-14.
• Overall, Brown leads Bradley with 15.3 points, making 46.4 percent of his 3-pointers.

A LEADER IN VALLEY PLAY
• Senior Luuk van Bree continues to showcase his improved play in Valley action.
• Coming off his first double-double of the year, van Bree averages 7.8 points and 6.0 boards in MVC play – easily surpassing his non-conference numbers.
• Additionally, Bradley is 6-2 since the senior joined the starting lineup (0-5 in MVC games prior).
• In the first meeting with Illinois State, van Bree scored a career-best 21 points on 9-of-13 shooting and a 3-of-4 mark from 3-point range.

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