Miami (Ohio) MIAMI 3-3

Bradley BRAD 6-2

Miami (Ohio) MIAMI

3-3

Final

Dec. 19, 2020

Bradley BRAD

6-2

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Miami (Ohio) MIAMI	37	31	68
Bradley BRAD	35	34	69

Box Score

Late Run Leads Bradley Past Miami

Box Score (PDF)

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 12/19/2020 10:57:00 PM

Peoria, Ill. – The Bradley men's basketball team scored the final nine points of the contest, capped by a game-winning field goal with 18.7 seconds remaining by Terry Nolan Jr., as the Braves earned a 69-68 victory against Miami (Ohio) on Saturday night. The Braves improve to 6-2 with the victory, while the RedHawks see their record evened at 3-3.

Trailing by eight points, 68-60, with four minutes remaining in the game, the Braves rallied to earn their third-straight victory. Sophomore Ville Tahvanainen started the run by hitting his second 3-pointer of the contest with 3:18 remaining before sophomore Sean East II sunk a jumper with 1:51 left to bring Bradley within three, 68-65.

Nolan then began his late-game heroics with a layup with 68 seconds remaining as Bradley trailed by just one. After getting a needed defensive stop, the Braves called a timeout with 27.9 seconds left to set up one final play. Redshirt freshman Rienk Mast received the ball at the top of the 3-point arc and found Nolan on a back-door pass for the go-ahead dunk with 18.7 ticks remaining. The Braves then forced a pair of 3-point misses in the closing seconds to secure the one-point victory. Overall, Bradley forced Miami into four turnovers and three missed field goals in the RedHawks' final six possessions.

East led the Braves with 14 points in the winning effort to go with a team-leading five assists and two steals. Senior Elijah Childs added 13 points and a BU-best eight rebounds with Tahvanainen and junior Ari Boya chipping in 10 points. Boya also added seven boards and three blocks in the winning effort.

Miami rode hot shooting from beyond the arc to grab the early lead in the game. The RedHawks sunk seven of their first 10 triples on the night and used a 20-8 run to turn a 15-13 deficit into a 33-23 advantage. The Braves, however, closed the gap with a late 9-1 strech before a 3-pointer from Childs right before the buzzer sent the teams into the locker room with Miami ahead by two, 37-35.

The schools then played a back-and-forth second half that featured six ties and 11 lead changes with neither team leading by more than a single possession until less than eight minutes remained. The RedHawks were finally able to gain some cushion with an 8-0 run, breaking a 60-60 draw for the eight-point lead. However, Bradley answered with its 9-0 stretch and Nolan's late heroics earned BU its sixth win of the non-conference season.

Bradley shot 45.0 percent in the winning effort with a 6-of-23 mark from 3-point range, while the RedHawks finished with a 50.0 percent shooting effort, including a 13-of-24 mark from beyond the arc.

The Braves are back on the road on Tuesday with a matchup against nationally-ranked Missouri. Bradley and the No. 16 Tigers are set to battle on SEC Network, beginning at 6 p.m.

Game Notes: Nolan has hit two game-winning field goals with less than 30 seconds remaining in the first eight games of his time at Bradley … The Braves had lost their last seven games when allowing their opponent to make half of their field goals … Bradley evened the series with Miami at one game apiece … The Braves also improved to 21-1 all-time against MAC schools in Peoria.

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