Braves Meet Colorado State at Paradise Jam

Men's Basketball 11/18/2021 10:30:00 AM

Bradley (1-2) vs. Colorado State (3-0)
Game Details	Friday, Nov. 19 • Noon CT • St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands • UVI Sports and Fitness Center
Television	ESPN3
Radio	1470 & 100.3 WMBD
Game Notes	Bradley \| Colorado State
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb

The Bradley basketball team is set to open the Paradise Jam on Friday, beginning the three-game tournament against Colorado State. Tipoff between the Braves and Rams is set for noon CT on ESPN3.

PARADISE JAM
• Bradley is set for its first of two regular-season tournaments this campaign when it opens the Paradise Jam on Friday versus Colorado State.
• The Braves are making their first appearance at the tournament in 2021.
• The three-game tournament is set to take place from Nov. 19 to Nov. 22 at the University of the Virgin Islands.

BRACKET PLAY
• The winner of Friday's game between Bradley and Colorado State advances to face the winner of Brown and Creighton Sunday at 4:45 p.m. CT.
• The losers of both matchups will square off on Saturday at 2:15 p.m. CT.
• All teams are set to wrap up play on Monday for the final day of the tournament.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Bradley is 1-2 through three games of the 2021-22 season and is coming off a 92-66 victory against Missouri S&T on Tuesday.
• Six Braves currently average in double figures with Terry Roberts leading the way with 13.7 points and 5.0 assists per game.
• Senior Ja'Shon Henry returned to the lineup on Tuesday and is second on the team with 13.5 points per game.
• Sophomore Rienk Mast adds 11.3 points to go with a team-leading 11.7 rebounds per game.
• Bradley is averaging 73.7 points through three contests, while allowing 74.3.

SERIES HISTORY
• Bradley and Colorado State are meeting for the first time on a basketball court.

BRAVES VERSUS MOUNTAIN WEST
• Bradley is winless in 10 meetings against the Mountain West since the conference was formed in 1999.
• The Braves last played a conference member in 2018 with New Mexico earning an 85-75 win.

ABOUT THE RAMS
• Colorado State is a perfect 3-0 so far this season – earning wins against Oral Roberts, Arkansas Pine Bluff and Peru State.
• The Rams are currently receiving 15 votes in the AP poll.
• Four Rams average in double figures with David Roddy and Isaiah Stevens leading the way at 17.3.
• Roddy also leads CSU with 10.0 rebounds, while Stevens has a team-best 5.0 assists.
• Colorado State currently ranks seventh nationally with a scoring offense of 96.0, while allowing 71.0 points per game.

REGULAR-SEASON TOURNAMENTS
• The Braves are 80-76 all-time in regular-season tournaments during their history.
• Bradley is looking to continue its strong form in recent in-season tournaments as BU is 12-3 during the last four years.
• Last season, Bradley posted a 2-1 record at the Xavier Invitational – earning wins against Toledo and Oakland with only a one-point defeat to the host Musketeers as its only blemish.
• BU has won five tournaments in its history – most recently at the 2018 Cancun Challenge.

WELCOME BACK
• Bradley was happy to have its two most veteran players back in the lineup in Tuesday's win.
• Senior Ja'Shon Henry and junior Ville Tahvanainen combined to score 27 points in 44 minutes of action against Missouri S&T – shooting 9-of-17 to go with 11 rebounds and five assists.
• Henry is the team's top returning scorer from last season (10.9 points) and missed last Saturday's game with an illness.
• Tahvanainen is BU's second-leading returning scorer (8.6 points) and missed the first two games with an injury suffered in the first official practice.

MULTIPLE THREATS
• Bradley has a number of scoring threats early in the 2021-22 season.
• Six Braves are averaging in double figures so far this year – Terry Roberts (13.7), Ja'Shon Henry (13.5), Malevy Leons (11.3), Rienk Mast (11.3), Jayson Kent (10.3) and Ville Tahvanainen (10.0).
• BU is the only MVC school with six double-figure scorers as Missouri State is second with four.

MAST DOUBLES UP
• Rienk Mast has become a consistent double-double threat in 2021-22.
• The sophomore is one of six players in the nation to register three double-doubles this season. He has already surpassed his total from last season when he had two in 28 games.
• In fact, Mast is the first Brave to collect a double-double in the season's first three games since Joe Allen did it the first four games of 1966-67.
• Overall, Mast is averaging 11.3 points and 11.7 rebounds in 2021-22.

CLEANING THE GLASS
• Overall, Bradley has controlled the glass during the 2021-22 campaign.
• The Braves rank 25th nationally with 46.3 boards per game and ninth with 17.7 offensive rebounds.
• Bradley has collected at least 20 offensive boards in its last two games – the first time doing so in back-to-back contests since 2017.
• Additionally, Bradley's +28 rebound margin on Tuesday is tied for the ninth most in BU history.

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