Evansville, IN -- Bradley battles back and earns an overtime win against the Purple Aces
The Bradley Braves earned a 94-90 overtime victory against Evansville, improving to 13-6 overall and 6-2 in Missouri Valley Conference play. Bradley outscored the Purple Aces 15-11 in overtime to secure the road win.
Jaquan Johnson led all scorers with a career night, pouring in 35 points on 12-of-22 shooting while adding seven assists, six steals, and five rebounds. Ahmet Jonovic delivered a strong all-around performance with 15 points, 12 rebounds, and three blocks. Montana Wheeler provided a key spark off the bench, scoring 17 points on 6-of-9 shooting, including eight points in overtime. As a team, Bradley shot 50 percent from the field, asserted its presence inside with 48 points in the paint, and added 21 fast-break points.
Evansville jumped out to a 13-point lead in the first half and carried a 36-29 advantage into halftime, though Bradley trimmed the deficit to four with just under two minutes remaining in the opening 20 minutes. The teams continued to trade blows throughout the second half, which featured nine ties and 10 lead changes. Leif Moeller paced the Purple Aces with 26 points, while Bryce Quinet added 20 points and five rebounds. AJ Casey chipped in 13 points and six rebounds, and Alex Hemenway knocked down three three-pointers for 11 points.
Neither side was able to gain an edge before the end of regulation. Bradley took control early in overtime with a 6-0 scoring run, but Evansville responded with a 6-0 run of its own to knot the game back up at 85. Bradley went 20-of-26 from the free-throw line overall, including key makes in the extra period, to close out the win. Evansville fell to 5-14 overall and 1-7 in MVC play.
Bradley will now look to Saturday when they make the short trip to Normal, IL to take on their I-74 rivals, the Illinois State Redbirds. The game will be set for a 1:00 p.m. tipoff from CEFCU arena and will be available for streaming and viewing on ESPN2 as well as the ESPN+ app. Bradley fans can also tune into 1470 WMBD to listen to Dave Snell and Chad Kleine on the Bradley Basketball broadcast.