Bradley BRAD 1-0

Toledo UT 0-1

Bradley BRAD

1-0

Final

Nov. 25, 2020

Toledo UT

0-1

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Bradley BRAD	20	41	61
Toledo UT	28	31	59

Box Score

Last-Second Basket Leads Bradley Past Toledo in Season Opener

Box Score (PDF)

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 11/25/2020 6:37:00 PM

Cincinnati, Ohio – Playing his first game in more than 20 months, junior Terry Nolan Jr. wasted no time making a splash in the Red & White, hitting a game-winning shot with less than one second remaining to lead the Bradley men's basketball team to a 61-59 victory over Toledo in its season opener at the Xavier Invitational.

The Rockets tied the game at 59 with 38.5 seconds remaining. After a Bradley timeout, Nolan had a chance to put the Braves ahead with less than 20 seconds left but missed a tough inside shot as the game remained tied. The junior, however, collected the rebound and threw it out of bounds off a Toledo player, giving BU one final chance with 13.5 ticks left in regulation. Nolan would take advantage this time and his driving layup with 0.8 seconds remaining hit off the backboard and through the hoop to put Bradley in front, 61-59. Toledo's heave down the court was knocked away, preserving the opening-day victory for BU.

Senior Elijah Childs led four Braves in double figures, scoring 14 points to go with six boards and four blocks. Junior Ari Boya added 11 points, while Nolan and junior Ja'Shon Henry each chipped in 10 points.

Sophomore Sean East II also had an impressive debut for the Braves, scoring eight points to go with eight assists and six rebounds.

TERRY NOLAN JR!!!!!!!

🅱️🏀 pic.twitter.com/92nTRhggKg
— Bradley Basketball (@bradleyumbb) November 25, 2020

The teams traded runs in the first half, leading to Toledo heading into the locker room with an eight-point advantage. Bradley started the contest strong and raced out to a 10-2 lead less than four minutes into the game. The Rockets, however, responded with an 11-0 spurt to grab the advantage for the first time and would lead by as many as 12 points in the opening period, 28-16. The Braves would score the final four to cut the deficit down to eight, 28-20, at the break.

Bradley again started the second half strong and further cut its deficit down to just a single point, 32-31, five minutes into the period. Childs completed a thunderous dunk over a Toledo player to finish off a 15-4 run that started at the end of the first. Bradley then took its first lead of the second half with just under 13 minutes remaining when sophomore Ville Tahvanainen made his first triple of the game for a 39-38 Bradley advantage.

The teams then traded the lead four times with Toledo eventually holding a 50-46 edge with seven minutes remaining. Bradley responded with a 12-3 stretch for a 58-53 advantage with Nolan scoring on a deep three with 3:24 left to give the Braves back their lead. Toledo, however, would chip away at the advantage and eventually tied the game at 59 with under 40 seconds remaining, setting up Nolan's late heroics.

Bradley finished with a shooting percentage of 40.7 in the winning effort, which included making 5-of-10 3-pointers during its second-half rally. The Braves defense, meanwhile, held the Rockets to 33.3 percent shooting with an 11-of-29 clip from beyond the arc.

Bradley continues play at the Xavier Invitational on Thursday, playing the host Musketeers. First tip is at 11 a.m. CT and can be seen live on FS1.

Game Notes: Bradley improved to 84-33 all-time in season openers, including a 5-1 mark under Coach Wardle … The Braves won their first opener away from Carver Arena since 2005 against DePaul … Bradley has won its last seven meetings against Toledo and is now 7-2 versus the Rockets … Nolan, who sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules, last played a game on March 14, 2019 against George Mason … With his six rebounds, Childs moved into a tie for 13th place in school history with former teammate Koch Bar, raising his total to 673 … The Braves have won three-straight games when trailing at the half dating back to last year's MVC Tournament.

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