Braves Host Evansville Saturday and Sunday

Men's Basketball 1/15/2021 10:00:00 AM

Bradley (7-4, 1-1 MVC) vs. Evansville (6-6, 4-2 MVC)
Series Details	Saturday, Jan. 16 • 3 p.m. \| Sunday, Jan. 17 • 3 p.m. \| Peoria, Ill. • Carver Arena
Television	ESPN3 \| ESPN 3
Radio	1470 WMBD
Game Notes	Bradley \| Evansville
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb

The Braves are back at Carver Arena for the first time in 28 days, hosting Evansville in Missouri Valley Conference action. The schools are set to begin a two-game series on Saturday at 3 p.m.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Bradley enters the weekend with a 7-4 record, including a 1-1 mark in Valley action.
• The Braves returned to action for the first time in 19 days last weekend, splitting a pair of games at Northern Iowa.
• Senior Elijah Childs leads the Braves with 14.6 points, 7.8 rebounds and 17 total blocks.
• Two additional Braves average in double figures with Ja'Shon Henry ranking second on the team with 11.7 points and Terry Nolan Jr. right behind with 11.5 points.
• Sean East II chips in 9.0 points, while also leading the Braves with 4.3 assists per game.
• The Braves are averaging 74.6 points per game in 2020-21, while ranking 28th nationally with a scoring defense of 62.3

SERIES HISTORY
• The Braves own a 33-23 all-time edge versus the Purple Aces.
• BU is also 22-5 against Evansville in Peoria, winning its last four in the series at Carver Arena.
• Bradley has won seven of the last eight overall versus Evansville. The Braves have won five-straight over the Aces – its longest since a seven-game run from 2006-09.
• BU swept a pair of games against Evansville last season, earning a 72-52 road victory before posting a 69-58 home win.

ABOUT THE PURPLE ACES
• Evansville enters the weekend with a 6-6 overall record, posting a 4-2 mark in Valley play.
• The Purple Aces have won four of their last five games. The team's winning streak was snapped on Sunday, falling 73-68 to Illinois State.
• Four Aces average in double figures, led by 13.5 points from Shamar Givance.
• Jawaun Newton is second with 12.2 points with Noah Frederking (12.1) and Samari Curtis (10.8) following closely.
• Givance also leads the Aces with 4.2 assists, while Jax Levitch has a team-best 5.8 rebounds.
• Evansville is averaging 65.8 points per game, while allowing 68.1 on the defensive end.

NO RUST IN OFFENSE
• Bradley picked up right where it left off on the offensive end before its 19-day break.
• The Braves finished the non-conference season averaging 74.9 points per game. It marked BU's highest scoring offense against non-league foes since 2006-07 (80.8 points).
• The Braves then eclipsed 70 points in their first two Valley games of the season. It is the first time BU scored at least 70 in its first two conference games since 1993-94.
• Bradley has not scored at least 70 in its first three Valley games since 1989-90.

VALLEY NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
• Redshirt freshman Rienk Mast enjoyed the two best games of his young career last week and was rewarded with MVC Newcomer of the Week honors.
• In his first two collegiate starts, Mast averaged 13.5 points and 5.0 rebounds at Northern Iowa – shooting 50.0 percent from the field and 54.5 percent from 3-point range (6-11).
• Mast had only scored in double figures once prior to the weekend with three made triples in his first nine combined games.
• The rookie is now averaging 5.6 points and 4.2 rebounds per game in 2020-21.

A LEADER IN CHILDS
• The first player on opposing teams' scouting reports is senior Elijah Childs.
• Childs leads BU in points (14.6), rebounds (7.8) and total blocks (17). He is fifth in the MVC in points, second in rebounds and fourth in blocks.
• Childs is the only Brave and one of three Valley players to score in double figures in each of his team's games this season, leading BU in points on seven occasions.

TOP-RANKED DEFENSE
• Bradley is already showcasing an elite defense to start the 2020-21 season.
• The Braves currently rank 28th nationally (of 338 teams) by holding teams to just 62.33 points.
• Additionally, Bradley's 59.33 points allowed during its non-conference schedule were its lowest since allowing 58.13 points in 1998-99.

FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE DEFENSE
• The key to Bradley's early-season success on the defensive end is its field goal percentage defense and, specifically, its defense inside the arc.
• The Braves are ninth nationally by allowing foes to make just 36.9 percent of their shots this season.
• BU is also allowing schools to make only 37.9 percent of their 2-point attempts, including 39.1 percent versus Division I teams – which ranks second nationally and is more than 10 percent better than the national average (49.8).

QUICK BOUNCE BACK
• Bradley is a team that is primed to take advantage of the Valley's new back-to-back game policy.
• During the last four seasons, Bradley is 9-2 when playing one day after another game, including two MVC Tournament titles.
• BU is 2-1 this year, splitting a pair of games at the Xavier Invitational plus a 1-0 record in the MVC.

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