Peoria, IL. The Bradley Braves and Illinois State Redbirds are set to add another chapter to the I-74 Rivalry when the Redbirds make the 40 minute trip to Peoria on Wednesday night.
40 miles and 118 years of history
Bradley and Illinois State have played each other 134 times according to Bradley's record book with 49 of those meetings being decided by five points or fewer (37% of the rivalry). The first meeting came back in 1905 with Illinois State claiming the first game between the two schools at final score of 39-13. Fast forward 118 years to the present day, Bradley now owns a 69-65 edge in the all-time series after claiming the last match up 72-64 in Peoria. Illinois State is coming in with first year head coach Ryan Pedon along with many first year players to the Illinois State program. In fact 10 players from Illinois State combine to have played at 27 different schools.
Setting the Table
Bradley is coming off a tough home loss to Belmont 78-76 with the Bruins scoring in the final three seconds of the game to secure the win. While the loss may sting for BU fans, their Braves are still right in the thick of a eight team race for the Valley regular season title. BU now sits with the one of the hardest stretches of games on their schedule behind them, and with the reemergence of
Rienk Mast (who is averaging 20.5 PPG and 12 RPG in his last two contests) the Bradley faithful should feel optimistic about BU's chances. On the flip side, Illinois State is currently 9th in the MVC standings after a home loss to Valparaiso. The Redbirds are led by Senca Knight and Darius Burford who are averaging a shade of 22 PPG, 10 RPG, and both are shooting 46% from the floor.
HOW THE TEAMS STACK UP
|
PPG |
RPG |
APG |
FG% |
3P% |
FT% |
| Bradley |
71.0 |
36.2 |
13.2 |
46.0 |
35.9 |
67.8 |
| Illinois St |
65.5 |
33.3 |
10.3 |
42.6 |
32.7 |
80.1 |
Series History
All-Time Series, BU leads 69-65
at Bradley, 46-22
at Illinois St, ISU leads 41-20
Neutral Site, ISU leads, 3-2
Current Streak, BU W-1
Last 10 Games, BU 6-4
Where to Watch/Listen
You can stream Bradley vs Illinois State on Bally Sports as apart of MVC-TV or on ESPN+ if your outside the MVC footprint. You may also listen over the radio with 1470 WMBD. The game is slated for a 7 p.m. start time from Carver Arena.
Bradley vs Illinois State Ticket Link:
Here
