Bradley Hosts Valparaiso on Senior Day

Men's Basketball 2/25/2022 4:00:00 PM

Bradley (16-13, 10-7 MVC) vs. Valparaiso (13-16, 6-11 MVC)
Game Details	Saturday, Feb. 26 • 7 p.m. • Peoria, Ill. • Carver Arena
Television	ESPN3
Radio	1470 & 100.3 WMBD
Game Notes	Bradley \| Valparaiso
Game Coverage	Live Stats \| Twitter: @bradleyumbb \| Instagram: @bradleyumbb
Tickets	Ticketmaster \| (309) 677-2625

Bradley is set to wrap up the 2021-22 regular season with a home contest against Valparaiso, presented by OSF HealthCare. The Senior Day contest is set for a 7 p.m. tipoff on Saturday night at Carver Arena.

ABOUT THE BRAVES
• Bradley enters the final game of the regular season with a 16-13 record, including a 10-7 mark in Missouri Valley Conference play.
• BU has won eight of its last 11 games but are coming off an 83-67 setback to Missouri State.
• Junior Terry Roberts leads Bradley with 14.8 points and 4.1 assists per game.
• Sophomore Rienk Mast is second on BU with 11.3 points, while leading the MVC with 8.2 rebounds.
• Junior Malevy Leons also scores in double figures with 10.3 points to go with 6.1 rebounds.
• Bradley averages 70.9 points per game, while allowing 65.5 defensively.

ARCH MADNESS SEEDING
• The Braves are currently in fifth place of the MVC standings with a 10-7 conference mark.
• With a win Saturday or a Southern Illinois loss, Bradley will officially clinch the five seed for the MVC Tournament.
• Possible opponents for the Braves as a four seed include Drake, Loyola or Missouri State.
• Bradley will fall to the six seed only if it loses, Southern Illinois defeats Drake and the Salukis make up 36 spots in the NET rankings.

SERIES HISTORY
• Bradley leads the series with Valpo, 8-5, as the schools first met during the 1980-81 season.
• The Braves have won all five meetings in Peoria with the schools last playing in Carver Arena in 2020 – an 80-69 Bradley victory.
• BU has also won the last two matchups – both at Valparaiso. Earlier this season, the Braves cruised to a 71-56 victory as Rienk Mast led the Braves with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting.

ABOUT THE BEACONS
• Valparaiso is seventh in the MVC standings with a 6-11 conference record.
• Overall, the Beacons are 13-16 this season.
• Valpo had its two-game winning streak snapped Wednesday in a 71-65 setback to Drake.
• Ben Krikke leads the Beacons with 14.7 points.
• Kobe King is second with 14.1 points, while Kevion Taylor adds 12.8.
• The Beacons average 71.4 points on offense, while allowing 70.8 defensively.

DOUBLE-DIGIT VALLEY WINS
• Bradley has clinched a winning MVC record with a 10-7 mark in 2021-22.
• It marks the second time in the last three years Bradley has won at least 10 Valley games after not reaching the mark in the previous 10 seasons.
• If BU defeats Valpo Saturday, the Braves will match their best MVC record during the last 21 seasons. Bradley also won 11 games in 2005-06 and 2019-20 – earning NCAA bids in both seasons.

SENIOR DAY
• Prior to Saturday's game, Bradley will honor its four players earning their degrees during a Senior Day ceremony.
• Ari Boya, Riley Burger, Ja'Shon Henry and Mikey Howell will all be honored at the game.
• The four players have combined to appear in 209 games with 1,151 points, 761 rebounds, 168 assists and 123 blocks.

FINISHING STRONG
• The Braves have been one of the better Valley teams over the last six weeks.
• BU owns an 8-3 record in its last 11 games – tied for the best mark in the league during that span.
• It is tied for BU's best 11-game stretch in Valley play the last 25 seasons (was 2-4 prior to the run).

FIRST-HALF IMPORTANCE
• The biggest key for the Braves during the last six weeks is getting off to a good start.
• In the 11-game stretch, BU is outscoring its foe by seven points in the first half in its eight wins and has won every game it has a lead at any point in the second half.
• However, in its three losses during the stretch, Bradley was never closer than five points of its foe in the second half, facing an average 13-point halftime deficit.
• Overall, BU is 14-3 this season with a halftime lead and 2-10 when trailing at the intermission.

TAKING CARE OF THE BALL
• Another key for Bradley is limiting its turnovers.
• In Valley games, Bradley is a perfect 7-0 this season with 13 or fewer turnovers – averaging 11.3 per victory.
• On the opposite end, the Braves are 3-7 versus conference foes with 14 or more turnovers – averaging 15.6 in their setbacks.
• BU committed 15 miscues in Wednesday's loss to Missouri State, leading to 18 points off turnovers.

LEADER OF THE PACK
• Sophomore Rienk Mast has controlled the glass during the 2021-22 season.
• Mast ranks first in the Valley and 61st nationally with 8.2 rebounds.
• In 70 seasons as a member of the Valley, only three Braves have previously led the league in rebounds – Chet Walker (1961-62), Luke Jackson (1988-89) and Marcellus Sommerville (2003-04).

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