Braves Meet No. 5 Michigan State in NCAA Tournament First Round

Men's Basketball 3/19/2019 10:35:00 AM

Bradley (20-14, 9-9 MVC) vs. No. 5 Michigan State (28-6, 16-4 Big Ten)
Game Details	Thursday, March 21 • 1:45 p.m. • Des Moines, Iowa • Wells Fargo Arena
Television	CBS
Radio	1470 WMBD \| Sirius 135 \| XM 201
Game Notes	Bradley \| Michigan State
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb

For the first time in 13 years, the Braves are in the NCAA Tournament. Bradley opens up on the national stage against second-seeded Michigan State. Tipoff on Thursday in Des Moines is at approximately 1:45 p.m.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Bradley is 20-14 after winning the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Championship.
• The Braves earned the five seed for Arch Madness and defeated No. 4 Missouri State, No. 1 Loyola and No. 6 Northern Iowa to win their third title.
• Bradley was one of the hottest teams down the stretch – claiming 12 of its final 16 games, including a 9-2 record in its last 11 contests.
• Junior Darrell Brown leads the Braves with 14.7 points, 3.1 assists per game and 32 total steals.
• Sophomore Elijah Childs is first on the team in rebounds (7.8) and blocks (47), while ranking second in points (12.2) and steals (27).
• MVC Sixth Man of the Year Nate Kennell is third on the team with 9.4 points, while Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye is fourth with 8.6 points per game.
• BU averages 66.6 points per game, while ranking 34th nationally with a scoring defense of 65.0.

ABOUT THE SPARTANS
• Michigan State enters the tournament with a 28-6 overall record – winning 10 of its last 11 games.
• The Spartans were regular-season co-champions of the Big Ten with a 16-4 record before earning the league's tournament title on Sunday with a 65-60 win versus rival Michigan.
• Two active Spartans average in double figures with Cassius Williams leading the way with 18.9 points, while Nick Ward is second with 14.0.
• Winston also leads Michigan State with 7.6 assists, while Kenny Goins has a team-best 8.9 rebounds.
• Michigan State averages 78.8 points on offense, while allowing 65.5 points defensively.

SERIES HISTORY
• The Braves and Spartans have played four prior times, most recently a three-game series from 2006 to 2008.
• Michigan State has won all four matchups with Bradley coming closest in its lone home game when the No. 9 Spartans rallied for a 66-61 win.

COACHING CONNECTION
• The Braves and Spartans share one coach in their history that led each school to a Final Four.
• Forddy Anderson coached at Bradley from 1948 to 1954, leading BU to the national championship game in 1950 and 1954.
• Anderson then joined the Spartans from 1954 to 1965 with the school's first Final Four trip in 1957.

BRAVES VERSUS THE BIG TEN
• Bradley is 25-50 all-time against the Big Ten.
• The Braves won their only meeting with a Big Ten foe under the leadership of Brian Wardle – claiming a 59-56 victory against Penn State Nov. 21 in the title game of the Cancun Challenge.
• The win over the Nittany Lions ended a four-game losing streak against the conference for BU.

NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
• Bradley is making its ninth trip to the NCAA Tournament and its first in 13 years since 2006.
• The Braves earned the MVC automatic bid for the first time in 31 years by winning the league's tournament. It is the fourth time Bradley claimed the Valley auto bid with a regular-season title in 1950 and tournament titles in 1980 and 1988.
• BU is 11-8 all-time in the tournament – twice reaching the national title game (1950 and 1954).

FIRST-ROUND SUCCESS
• The Braves are hoping to maintain their own trend of first-round success as well as the Valley's recent string of early wins.
• Bradley is 5-3 all-time in its first NCAA Tournament game. In its last appearance, 13th-seeded BU upset No. 4 Kansas, 77-73, in 2006.
• Also, the Valley has had even more recent success as the conference has won its last 10 first-round contests, dating back to the 2012 Tournament.

NEW LOOK BRAVES
• History was against the Braves after a slow start to the Valley season but BU has since responded.
• Bradley started the 2018-19 season with an 8-10 record and 0-5 Valley mark but has rebounded by winning 12-of-16 since and nine of its last 11.
• Since the Valley adopted its current postseason format in 1997, BU became just the fourth team to earn a first-round bye after an 0-4 start and the first to claim the conference crown.

DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
• The Braves proved the saying "defense wins championships" remains true.
• Bradley allowed its three opponents during the Valley Tournament to score only 54.3 points per game without allowing a single foe to reach 60.
• Overall, opponents shot only 37.1 percent from the field – making 37.3 percent of two-point baskets and 36.9 percent of 3-pointers.

A RALLY FOR THE TITLE
• Bradley's strong defense gave the Braves enough time for its offense to catch up and rally for a title against Northern Iowa.
• The Braves completed the largest comeback in Valley title game history, overcoming a 35-17 second-half deficit en route to the 57-54 win.
• BU's 18-point rally topped the previous MVC title game high of 14 (UNI over Illinois State in 2015).
• It also marks Bradley's largest comeback in any game since overcoming an 18-point deficit in an overtime win against Tulsa on Feb. 4, 1996.

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