PEORIA, Ill. -- Bradley Women's Basketball shot a Renaissance Coliseum record 63.8 percent from the field and three Braves scored 20 or more as BU completed the regular-season sweep of Southern Illinois with an 80-68 home victory Saturday afternoon.
Winning its third straight game, Bradley (7-4 overall, 3-1 MVC) moved into a tie for first in the Missouri Valley Conference standings with Drake and Northern Iowa. Three Braves scored at least 20 points in the same contest for the first time dating back to an 87-76 home win over Valparaiso on Feb. 28, 2019 and Bradley completed its first sweep of the regular-season series from Southern Illinois (5-4 overall, 2-2 MVC) for the first time since the 2012-13 campaign.
Bradley's 63.8 field goal percentage broke the Renaissance Coliseum record of 61.7 percent set against Saint Louis on Dec. 4, 2010 and ranks as the fourth-best single-game field goal percentage in school history. The last time the Braves shot better was Jan. 21, 2018 at Evansville (64.4 percent).
Junior Lasha Petree had one of the most efficient efforts of her career, connecting on 8-of-11 from the field and finished with a game-high 24 points to go with three assists, three blocks and a steal. Petree, who became the fifth junior in Bradley history to reach 1,100 career points, passed former teammate Chelsea Brackmann for 14th on BU's all-time scoring list and now has 1,111 career points.
Seniors Gabi Haack and Nyjah White each added 20 points each to help lead the Braves. Haack tied for game-high honors with nine rebounds, while White dished out a game and season-high seven assists to go with her season-best 20 points.
Bradley shot a blistering 69.2 percent in the first quarter, closing the period with an 11-2 run to take a 23-13 lead after the opening stanza. Petree scored five of her 10 first-quarter points during the spurt to close the first.
SIU answered by scoring 26 points in the second quarter and briefly took the lead in the closing minutes of the half thanks in part to a 10-2 run, as the Salukis led 39-36 with just under a minute to play. The Braves "cooled off" to 53.8 percent shooting in the second quarter, tying the game on a Haack three-pointer and eventually taking a 41-39 lead into the locker room after a pair of Uche Ufochukwu free throws with 3.4 seconds remaining.
The teams traded punches early in third with four ties and three lead changes in the first 5:30 of play after the break. Bradley, which shot 71.4 percent (10-for-14) in the third quarter, took control of the contest with a 12-0 run that was part of a 23-4 spurt over an eight-minute stretch between the closing minutes of the third and early moments of the fourth period.
With Bradley trailing 50-48, junior Tatum Koenig got things started with a driving layup. White had a block on the defensive end and assisted a fastbreak layup by Haack to give Bradley the lead for good.
Petree then followed up a jumper in the lane with a block on the defensive end and layup to force the Salukis to burn a timeout. After a blocked shot by sophomore Mahri Petree, sister Lasha found junior Chloe Rice for a corner three-pointer that led to a four-point play that gave the Braves a 60-50 advantage.
Owning a 65-54 lead heading to the fourth quarter, Bradley scored the first six points of the period to put the contest out of reach. Senior Emily Marsh had a pair of free throws and White found Haack for a layup after a defensive stop. A Marsh steal on the next SIU possession led to a White jumper from the wing as the BU lead ballooned to 71-54 less than three minutes into the fourth.
SIU managed to make a little run, pulling within eight at the three-minute mark, but White once again found Haack for a fastbreak hoop that pushed the lead back to double digits and the Braves cruised to the 80-68 victory.
Makenzie Silvey led Southern Illinois in scoring with 17 points. The Salukis shot 40.6 percent from the field and committed just nine turnovers.
The Braves have won 14 consecutive home games against in-state opponents and improved to 16-1 in their last 17 MVC home contests.
Bradley returns to action next weekend, opening a two-game series at Evansville Friday, Jan. 15 with a 6 p.m. contest against the Purple Aces.