Madison, WI. The Bradley Braves 25-10 (16-4) historic season has come to a close with a first-round NIT exit to the Wisconsin Badgers 18-11 (9-11).
Game Recap
Bradley and Wisconsin met for just the sixth time ever despite being located just a three-and-a-half-hour drive apart with the last matchup coming in 2011 in the Chicago International Invitational. This matchup would see much more scoring than the prior with over 120 total points being scored
Bradley's defense had its moment in the matchup vs Wisconsin but a couple of 8+ point scoring runs for Wisconsin put the Badgers out in front early. BU hung around for the majority of the first half and mounted a 7-0 scoring run to cut the deficit to just five at halftime following a fade-away jump shot by Duke Deen. Bradley was led into the locker rooms by Zek Montgomery with eight points and Rienk Mast with six points.
The second half would prove to be a tough 20 minutes for Bradley as Steven Crowl continued his hot first half, ending the game with a career-high 36 points. It wasn't all doom and gloom for BU down the stretch as Rienk Mast found a little bit of a rhythm connecting on a hook shot while being foul, Mast would make the ensuing free throw.
It didn't take long for Mast to find another opening as he sank a pick-and-pop three-pointer which gave him 1,001 career points. Mast became the 52nd one-thousand-point scorer in Bradley Men's Basketball history, joining Ja'Shon Henry as both joined the 1K point club this season.
Wisconsin would ratchet up the defensive pressure holding Bradley scoreless for nearly three minutes. This allowed the Badgers offense to pull away from BU with a 15-point advantage with just 4 minutes remaining. Wisconsin would extend the lead slightly up to 21 but a pair of Goanar Biliew free throws trimmed the Badger lead back to 19. Wisconsin held serve at home winning 81-62. They will take the Liberty Flames in the 2nd round of the NIT later this week.
What's Next
Bradley will now enter the initial portion of the offseason and begin preparations for the summer. Bradley Men's Basketball would like to thank all of its fans for their support this season. The Braves will be back in action in the fall when the 2023-24 season opens.