Braves Meet Loyola in Regular-Season Finale

Men's Basketball 3/1/2019 10:34:00 AM

Bradley (17-13, 9-8 MVC) at Loyola (18-12, 11-6 MVC)
Game Details	Saturday, March 2 • 5 p.m. • Chicago, Ill. • Gentile Arena
Television	ESPN2
Radio	1470 WMBD
Game Notes	Bradley \| Loyola
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb

Bradley men's basketball wraps up regular-season play against Loyola on Saturday. The Braves are aiming to secure a first-round bye against the first-place Ramblers with the game set for a 5 p.m. start on ESPN2.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Winners of six of its last seven games and nine of its last 12, Bradley is coming off a dominating 67-42 win against Valparaiso on Wednesday night.
• The winning run has moved the Braves to 17-13 on the year with a 9-8 record in Valley action.
• Junior Darrell Brown leads the Braves with 15.0 points and 3.0 assists per game.
• Sophomore Elijah Childs – the reigning Valley Player of the Week – is second on the team with 12.4 points to go with a BU-best 8.1 rebounds.
• Nate Kennell scored a season-best 20 points in Wednesday's win and is third on the team with 9.4 points, while Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye is fourth with 8.5 points per game.
• The Braves are averaging 67.5 points per game, while ranking second in the Valley with a scoring defense of 65.5.

ARCH MADNESS SEEDING
• Bradley is currently in a four-way tie for fourth in the Missouri Valley Conference standings at 9-8.
• The Braves can place anywhere from fourth to seventh in the final standings.
• If the season ended today, BU would finish fourth (first of four tied teams) due to a mini-conference tiebreaker and play fifth-seeded Southern Illinois.
• Bradley is still looking to clinch a first-round bye in the MVC Tournament. BU needs either a win on Saturday, a Southern Illinois victory over Illinois State or an Indiana State win versus Northern Iowa to secure a top-six seed.

SERIES HISTORY
• The Braves hold a 35-26 all-time advantage against the Ramblers in a series that dates back to 1928. However, Loyola has won 9-of-14 games since joining the MVC in 2013.
• The schools have split four meetings in the last two seasons. Loyola won 2-of-3 games in 2017-18, including in the MVC Semifinals, while the Braves posted a 61-54 victory earlier this year.
• Darrell Brown led BU in the win on Feb. 13 with 21 points, while Luuk van Bree added a double-double with 11 points and 10 boards.

ABOUT THE RAMBLERS
• Loyola is currently tied for first in the Missouri Valley standings at 11-6 and can clinch the top seed for the tournament with a win on Saturday.
• Overall, the Ramblers are 18-12 this season with a 12-4 record at home.
• Marques Townes leads Loyola with 15.6 and 3.5 assists per game.
• Cameron Krutwig is second on the team with 14.9 points, while leading Loyola with 7.4 boards.
• Saturday's game features the top two defenses in the Valley as Loyola ranks first with a scoring defense of 60.7. Offensively, the Ramblers average 65.7.

NEW LOOK BRAVES
• Bradley has turned around its season after a slow start in Missouri Valley play.
• After a winless run its first five games, Bradley has gone 9-3 in its last 12 games – tied with Drake for the best record in the league during that span.
• BU has now gone from two games behind ninth in the Valley standings to tied for fourth.
• Bradley is looking to become just the second team in Valley history to start 0-5 in conference play and finish with a winning record – joining Oklahoma in 1924-25, who posted a 9-7 record 94 years ago.

FEBRUARY TURNAROUND
• The Braves were sad to see February end as the Braves completed the month with their best MVC record in more than 20 years.
• BU won six of its final seven games in the month for a 6-2 overall record after entering February with a 3-6 Valley record.
• It marks Bradley's most wins in Valley play in February since completing a 7-2 month during the 1996-97 season.

OFFENSIVE RESURGENCE
• The biggest difference in Bradley's run is on the offensive side.
• Bradley is averaging 70.0 points per game in its last 11 contests.
• In their first six Valley games of the year, the Braves averaged only 55.0 points per game – increasing their output by 15.0 points.

SIX BRAVES WITH 20 POINTS
• An offensive key for BU is its number of weapons as six different Braves have all scored at least 20 points in a game this season.
• Koch Bar, Darrell Brown, Elijah Childs, Nate Kennell, Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye and Luuk van Bree have all reached the threshold in 2018-19.
• Bradley's six 20-point scorers are its most since also having six players eclipse the mark during the 2006-07 campaign.

CHILDS FINDS HIS RHYTHM
• Elijah Childs has been one of the key factors in the Braves' turnaround this season.
• In the last nine games, Childs is averaging 14.3 points, 8.8 rebounds and 1.2 blocks – shooting 53.8 percent from the field.
• It has been a nice rebound for Childs as he averaged just 9.8 points and 7.1 boards, while shooting 38.8 percent in the first eight games of Valley play.
• Overall, the sophomore ranks second on BU with 12.4 points to go with a team-best 8.1 rebounds.

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