Braves Put Winning Streak on the Line at Northern Iowa

Men's Basketball 2/1/2022 11:32:00 AM

Bradley (12-10, 6-4 MVC) at Northern Iowa (11-9, 7-3 MVC)
Game Details	Wednesday, Feb. 2 • 7 p.m. • Cedar Falls, Iowa • McLeod Center
Television	ESPN+
Radio	1470 & 100.3 WMBD
Game Notes	Bradley \| Northern Iowa
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb

The Bradley men's basketball team takes its four-game winning streak on the road with a Missouri Valley Conference contest at Northern Iowa. Tipoff on Wednesday is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN+.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Bradley is 12-10 during the 2021-22 season with a 6-4 record in Missouri Valley Conference action.
• BU has won its last four games, including two-straight contests on the road.
• Junior Terry Roberts leads BU with 15.7 points and 4.5 assists per game.
• Sophomore Rienk Mast is second on the team with 11.6 points per game, while leading the Valley with 8.4 rebounds.
• Junior Malevy Leons also scores in double figures with 10.4 points per game.
• Bradley averages 72.0 points per game, while allowing 65.9 defensively.

SERIES HISTORY
• In 69 all-time meetings between the two schools, Northern Iowa holds a slight edge, 35-34.
• Northern Iowa holds a 22-10 advantage in Cedar Falls and a 14-3 edge at the McLeod Center but BU has won two of its last four meetings at UNI.
• Bradley earned a 71-69 victory at Carver Arena earlier this season on Dec. 1. Terry Roberts led BU with 20 points, including the go-ahead basket with 4.5 seconds remaining.
• Overall, the teams have split the regular-season series in five of the last six seasons.

ABOUT THE PANTHERS
• Northern Iowa enters with an 11-9 record and is 7-3 in Missouri Valley Conference action.
• The Panthers have won 7-of-9 games with their only two setbacks both in overtime.
• AJ Green leads UNI with 18.6 points with 2.1 assists per game.
• Noah Carter (14.0) and Nate Heise (10.1) also average in double figures, while Heise leads the team with 5.1 rebounds.
• The Panthers average 74.6 points per game, while allowing 69.9.

METRICS ON THE RISE
• If there was a Most Improved Award from the early season, the Braves would be among the contenders.
• BU has seen its KenPom ranking rise by 118, while its NET ranking has risen 137 places since the first release.
• In fact, Bradley's 137 rise in the NET rankings is the second-largest increase in the nation.

WE'RE GOING STREAKING!
• Bradley is playing its best basketball of the season right now, having won its last four MVC games.
• BU has outscored teams 72.8 to 60.2 during the streak. Bradley has also trailed for only 4:58 during the four-game run and has held the lead for the entirety of the second half.
• Rienk Mast has led BU during the run with 18.5 points – shooting a blistering 70.5 percent (31-44).
• With a win Wednesday, Bradley would earn five-straight MVC wins for the first time since 2007-08.

MAST ON FIRE
• Overall, sophomore Rienk Mast has become one of BU's top offensive weapons.
• In the last eight games, Mast is averaging a BU-best 18.4 points – shooting 58.4 percent from the field and 42.3 percent from 3-point range.
• Mast is now second on the team with 11.6 points overall and first with 15.8 points in Valley play.

MAST DOUBLES UP WITH BOARDS
• Rienk Mast's recent offensive surge makes him a threat in multiple ways.
• Mast leads BU and ranks 31st nationally with seven double-doubles this season.
• In fact, Mast's seven double-doubles are tied for the most by a Brave in the last 15 seasons and are the third most in the last 32 seasons.
• In Sunday's win versus Indiana State, Mast tallied 20 points to go with 14 rebounds.

DEFENSIVE STRENGTH
• The Braves have once again been anchored by their defense in 2021-22.
• Of 358 schools nationally, Bradley ranks among the top 15 percent in field goal percentage defense, 2-point defense and blocks.
• In fact, BU has forced its opponent to shoot under its season average in 19-of-22 games (and all 10 Valley games), including eight contests of at least eight percent lower.

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Players Mentioned

#51 Rienk Mast: F; 6' 9"; Sophomore

#14 Malevy Leons: F; 6' 9"; Junior

#0 Terry Roberts: G; 6' 3"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#51 Rienk Mast
: 6' 9"; Sophomore
: F

#14 Malevy Leons
: 6' 9"; Junior
: F

#0 Terry Roberts
: 6' 3"; Junior
: G

Braves Put Winning Streak on the Line at Northern Iowa

Players Mentioned

#51 Rienk Mast

#14 Malevy Leons

#0 Terry Roberts

Players Mentioned

#51 Rienk Mast

#14 Malevy Leons

#0 Terry Roberts