Braves Play Xavier in Thanksgiving Matinee Game

Men's Basketball 11/25/2020 10:36:00 PM

Bradley (1-0, 0-0 MVC) vs. Xavier (1-0, 0-0 Big East)
Game Details	Thursday, Nov. 26 • 11 a.m. CT • Cincinnati, Ohio • Cintas Center
Television	FS1
Radio	1470 WMBD
Game Notes	Bradley \| Xavier
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb

After claiming a victory in its season opener Wednesday, Bradley continues action at the Xavier Invitational on Thurdsay with a road game against the host Musketeers. Tipoff is set for 11 a.m. CT on FS1.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Bradley opened the 2020-21 season on Wednesday with a 61-59 victory against Toledo in the Xavier Invitational.
• Four Braves scored in double figures, led by 14 points from senior Elijah Childs.
• Junior Ari Boya added 11 points, while classmates Ja'Shon Henry and Terry Nolan Jr. chipped in 10 points apiece.
• Nolan keyed the Braves win by making the game-winning field goal with 0.8 seconds remaining to break a 59-59 tie.
• Sophomore Sean East II added eight points, eight assists and six rebounds in the victory.

XAVIER INVITATIONAL
• The Braves are opening the 2020-21 season by competing at the Xavier Invitational in Cincinnati.
• Thursday's matchup pits the two winners from the first day of the invitational as Xavier earned a 101-49 victory against Oakland on Wednesday.
• The Braves will finish the invite on Friday against Oakland with a 2:15 p.m. CT tipoff.

SERIES HISTORY
• Bradley and Xavier have met four times but will play for the first time in 63 seasons on Thursday.
• Overall, BU owns a 3-1 edge in the all-time series.
• The series began in 1938 when Bradley swept a home-and-home matchup.
• The schools then met in two-consecutive NIT Quarterfinals with the advancing team eventually winning the title. Bradley earned the win in 1957 before Xavier returned the favor in 1958.

BRAVES VERSUS BIG EAST
• Bradley is 10-5 all-time against the Big East Conference since it was created in 1979.
• The Braves have lost their last two meetings versus conference schools, falling to Seton Hall in 2015 and South Florida in 2013.
• BU's last win over a Big East school was against Cincinnati in the 2008 CBI, 70-67, while its last victory on a Big East school's home court came in 2005 against DePaul, 75-60.

ABOUT THE MUSKETEERS
• Xavier won its season opener on Wednesday with a dominating 101-49 victory against Oakland.
• Five Musketeers scored in double figures in the victory with Zach Freemantle leading the way with 21 points and 12 rebounds.
• KyKy Tandy was second on the team with 18 points off the bench.
• Paul Scruggs led Xavier with 10 assists.
• Xavier posted a 19-13 record one season ago with an 8-10 conference mark.
• Scruggs was the team's top returning scorer, averaging 12.7 points per game last year.

MAKING AN IMMEDIATE IMPACT
• Playing for the first time in 623 days, junior transfer Terry Nolan Jr. did not waste any time making an immediate impact with the Braves.
• Nolan scored the game-winning basket in his first game at Bradley, scoring a contested layup with just 0.8 seconds remaining.
• A transfer from George Washington, Nolan sat out the 2019-20 season due to NCAA transfer rules.
• Nolan totaled 607 points, 240 rebounds and 135 assists in his two seasons with the Colonials.

AT HIS BEST AGAINST THE BEST
• Senior Elijah Childs has saved his best basketball for the teams from the biggest conferences.
• In seven career games against schools from the top seven conferences (AAC, ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, SEC and Pac-12), Childs has averaged 15.4 points on 50.6 percent shooting to go with 7.9 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game.
• Childs has scored at least 12 points in each his last six games versus a school from a top-seven conference, tallying at least 18 points in four of the six.

REGULAR-SEASON TOURNAMENTS
• Bradley is looking to continue its strong play in regular-season tournament as of late.
• Dating back to the start of the 2017-18 season, Bradley is 11-2 during its regular-season tournament – including a championship at the 2018 Cancun Challenge.
• The 2018 title in Cancun marked BU's first in-season title since the 1983 River City Shootout.
• Last year, Bradley placed third at the Fort Myers Tip-Off – earning victories against Kansas State, Radford and Norfolk State, while falling to Northwestern in the semifinals.
• Overall, BU is 79-73 all-time in regular-season tournaments, having finished first or tied for first six previous times.

LENDING A HELPING HAND
• After graduating a player that ranked fifth all-time at Bradley in assists (Darrell Brown), Sean East II quickly showed he has the ability to fill his void.
• The sophomore transfer led Bradley with eight assists in the opener against Toledo.
• Last year at Massachusetts, East ranked 57th overall and fourth among rookies with 4.9 assists per game.

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