PEORIA, Ill. -- Sophomore Mahri Petree scored a game-high 19 points and added nine rebounds in the first home start of her career, helping Bradley Women's Basketball to a convincing 86-52 victory over Indiana State Friday at Renaissance Coliseum.
Bradley (13-11 overall, 9-8 MVC) took over sole possession of fifth in the Missouri Valley Conference standings with the victory, extending its win streak in the series with Indiana State (5-13 overall, 2-11 MVC) to five games. The Braves also assured themselves one of the top six spots in next week's MVC Tournament with BU still able to earn as high as the #4 seed heading into the final day of the regular season.
Petree scored 11 of her game-high 19 points in the first quarter, helping Bradley take control early on. She knocked down a three-pointer on the opening possession as the Braves scored the first 14 points of the contest. Junior Tatum Koenig scored seven of Bradley's 14 points during the opening spurt. Indiana State scored four of the next nine points, before Bradley ended the first quarter with an 18-0 run to build a 37-4 commanding lead just 10 minutes into the game.
Mahri hit a pair of three-pointers, scoring eight points during the 18-0 run that was capped by a four-point play by senior Gabi Haack at the buzzer. The Braves were 13-for-19 (68.4 percent) from the floor in the first period, which included 6-for-8 (75 percent) from beyond the arc.
After taking a 48-19 halftime lead, Bradley came out red hot again in the third; shooting 64.3 percent (9-for-14) in the frame. The Braves extended their lead to as many as 42 points (72-30) in the last stages of the third and cruised to the 86-52 win.
Joining Mahri in double figures was her sister Lasha, who had 13 points to go with three assists and three blocks in 23 minutes. Koenig finished with 12 points and a game-high five assists.
Senior Emily Marsh nearly notched her first career double-double, collecting nine points and nine rebounds, helping Bradley to a 53-34 rebounding advantage.
Haack scored all eight of her points in the first quarter, moving up two spots on Bradley's all-time scoring list into fourth. She passed Sara Bailey (1,541 career points) and Judy Burns (1,544 points) on the BU scoring chart and is now fourth all-time with 1,547 points during her time on The Hilltop. Entering the final game of the regular season, Haack is 27 points from moving into third in career scoring for the Braves.
Bradley closes out the regular season Saturday with a 4 p.m. game against Indiana State as the Braves try to sweep the regular-season series with the Sycamores for a third consecutive year.