Bradley Hosts SIU Edwardsville Saturday

Men's Basketball 12/3/2021 12:00:00 PM

Bradley (3-5, 1-0 MVC) vs. SIU Edwardsville (3-5, 0-0 OVC)
Game Details	Saturday, Dec. 4 • 2 p.m. • Peoria, Ill. • Carver Arena
Television	ESPN3
Radio	1470 & 100.3 WMBD
Game Notes	Bradley \| SIU Edwardsville
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb
Tickets	Ticketmaster \| (309) 677-2625

The Bradley men's basketball team looks to extend its winning streak when it hosts SIU Edwardsville on Saturday afternoon. First tip at Carver Arena is scheduled for 2 p.m. on ESPN3.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Bradley is 3-5 through eight games of the 2021-22 campaign with a 1-0 record in MVC play.
• The Braves have won their last two games and are coming off a 71-69 MVC victory versus Northern Iowa on Wednesday.
• Junior Terry Roberts led BU with 20 points against the Panthers and leads the team with 14.5 points and 3.9 assists per game.
• Senior Ja'Shon Henry and junior Malevy Leons also average in double figures with Henry posting 10.6 points per game and Leons adding 10.0.
• Sophomore Rienk Mast leads BU with 8.9 boards per game, totaling four double-doubles in just eight games this season.
• Bradley is averaging 69.4 points through eight contests, while allowing 67.5.

SERIES HISTORY
• The Braves and Cougars have faced off on three previous occasions with BU winning all three meetings in Peoria.
• The schools last met in 2008 with Bradley posting a 67-61 victory.

BRAVES VERSUS OVC
• Bradley is 30-14 all-time against schools in the Ohio Valley Conference, including a 25-8 mark in Peoria.
• The Braves have won 11 of the last 12 meetings with OVC foes but were defeated last time out – falling to Eastern Illinois, 73-66, in 2018.

ABOUT THE COUGARS
• SIU Edwardsville is 3-5 during the 2021-22 season.
• The Cougars are coming off a 75-65 victory against Omaha on Tuesday.
• Ray'Sean Taylor leads SIUE with 16.4 points per game and 3.9 assists per game this season.
• Shaun Doss, Jr. is second with 12.0 points to go with a team-leading 6.4 rebounds, while Shamar Wright also scores in double figures at 10.8.
• The Cougars average 68.8 points per game, while allowing 68.6 on defense.

COACHING CONNECTIONS
• The coaching staffs at Bradley and SIU Edwardsville are very familiar with each other.
• The Cougars' head coach, Brian Barone, played two seasons at Marquette with Brian Wardle and Mike Bargen. He then served as Wardle's assistant and associate coach at Green Bay.
• Now an assistant coach at SIUE, Troy Pierce spent three years on the BU staff from 2016 to 2019 as Coordinator of Player Development and Video Operations, helping BU to an MVC title in 2019.
• SIUE assistant coach Colin Schneider also spent four years with Wardle at Green Bay as Director of Basketball Operations.

ROBERTS LEADS THE WAY
• Junior college transfer Terry Roberts has had a strong start to his Division I career.
• Roberts tallied 20 points in Wednesday's win – the second time he's reached the mark this year.
• Overall, Roberts leads Bradley with 14.5 points and 3.9 assists per game in eight contests.
• In fact, Roberts' 116 total points are tied for the most by a Brave in the first eight games since Warren Jones had 117 to start the 2014-15 year.
• Overall, Roberts has led BU in scoring in 4-of-8 games this season and in assists five times.

AT HIST BEST WHEN IT MATTERS
• Perhaps most impressive about Terry Roberts' strong start is his play with the game on the line.
• Roberts has scored 70.7 percent of his points this season in the second half – averaging 10.3.
• In Wednesday's MVC win over UNI, Roberts sunk the go-ahead basket with 4.5 seconds left to lead Bradley to the victory.

DEFENSIVE TRADITION
• Bradley is once again proving to be a difficult team to score on.
• The Braves are one of only eight schools in the nation to hold their opponent under 42 percent in each of the last five seasons – joining Florida State, Houston, Maryland, Norfolk State, Old Dominion, UC Irvine and Virginia.
• Bradley's first eight opponents in 2021-22 have shot just 38.9 percent from the field, ranking first in the Valley (Loyola ranks second at 41.1 percent) and 63rd nationally.

44 PERCENT
• With such a strong defense, the Braves just need to aim for 44 percent on offense.
• Bradley is a perfect 3-0 this season when shooting 44 percent from the field but winless in five games when held under the number.
• Overall, Bradley is making 42.6 percent of its field goals this season.

3-POINT TURNAROUND
• After a slow start to the season, the Braves are starting to hit their 3-pointers.
• Bradley has made 43.1 percent of its shots from beyond the arc in the last three games (28-65).
• During the season's first five contests, BU made just 25.2 percent of their outside shots (33-131).
• Bradley has received a boost as the team's active leader Ville Tahvanainen returned from an injury – the junior tallied a season-best 14 points and four 3-pointers in Wednesday's win.

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