PEORIA, Ill. – Bradley Men's Basketball will host the 144th edition of the I-74 Rivalry this Saturday, Feb. 21, against Illinois State.
GAME INFORMATION
Bradley Braves 18-10 (11-6 MVC) vs. Illinois State Redbirds 18-10 (10-7 MVC)
Date & Time: Saturday, February 21st | 7:00 p.m.
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Location: Carver Arena in Peoria, Ill.
All Time Series: Bradley leads 76-67
The game will be aired live on ESPN2, with a 7:00 p.m. tipoff live from Carver Arena. Fans can also tune in to 1470/100.3 WMBD to listen to the radio broadcast featuring Dave Snell and Chad Kleine.
THE VALLEY
Belmont remains atop the Missouri Valley Conference at 14-3. Despite being idle on Wednesday night, the Bruins secured at least a share of the MVC Regular-Season Championship after Bradley's loss to Valparaiso. The Braves and UIC sit three games back and enter Saturday tied at 11-6, with UIC holding the tiebreaker. Murray State is 3.5 games back at 11-7 and in fourth, and Illinois State and Northern Iowa are four games back, tied at 10-7. Illinois State currently holds the tiebreaker and final bye position over Northern Iowa.
The Braves rank at or near the top of the MVC in several categories. Possessing the league's third-best scoring offense at 76.93 points per game, Bradley also has the second-best three-point percentage in the conference at 36.4 percent. Defensively, Bradley leads the conference turnover margin at forcing over four more turnovers per game than it commits. The mark also ranks in the top 10 in the country.
THE BRADLEY BRAVES
Bradley is coming off a road loss to Valparaiso on Wednesday night, falling to the Beacons, 79-72. The Braves were led offensively by
Alex Huibregtse, who scored 22 points. The graduate student from Grafton, Wis., continued to be on fire from long range, making six of nine three-point attempts.
Jaquan Johnson followed with 14 points, while
AJ Smith recorded 10 points and 11 rebounds for his first double-double as a Brave.
Bradley hit 12 three-pointers against Valparaiso, marking the fifth time in the last six games it has hit at least nine threes in a game. The Braves are shooting 71-for-157 (45.2 percent) from long range over that span. Individually, Huibregtse is 31-for-50 (62 percent) from three and has scored at least 20 points three times in the last six games. Huibregtse's hot shooting has elevated him to the 14th-best scorer in the MVC (12.4 PPG) and the conference's second-best outside shooter by percentage (43.9 percent) and made three-pointers (86).
Elsewhere in the conference,
Jaquan Johnson remains the conference's second-leading scorer at 16.9 PPG and is fourth in assists per game at 3.5. Johnson also is the conference's leader in steals per game by a full steal (2.68 SPG).
Montana Wheeler possesses the best assist-to-turnover ratio in the league at 3.42.
THE ILLINOIS STATE REDBIRDS
The Illinois State Redbirds earned a home victory over Murray State, 78-61, on Wednesday night. The Redbirds were led by bench players Ty'Reek Coleman and Ty Pence. Coleman was 10-for-16 from the field, scoring 22 points, while Pence was six-of-eight from the field with three made three-pointers for 15 points.
Illinois State is led by junior Chase Walker, who has missed the last two games due to injury and is averaging 13.7 points per game. Four Redbirds average over 10 points per game -- Johnny Kinziger (11.4 PPG), Ty'Reek Coleman (11.0) and Boden Skunberg (10.1). Ty Pence leads the team in field goal percentage at 53.8 percent, while Skunberg leads the team in three-points made (49) and percentage (42.6 percent).
HISTORY SAYS!
The Braves hold the advantage in this historic rivalry, leading 76-67. Illinois State has taken the last two games in the series, most recently winning 88-62 in Normal on Jan. 17.
Demarion Burch led the Braves in scoring in the prior meeting, scoring 12 points while shooting five-for-nine from the floor. Bradley has won the last four meetings at Carver Arena and is 7-1 at home in the last eight meetings in Peoria.
Brian Wardle enters Saturday with 299 career victories between his tenures at Green Bay and Bradley.
HONORING THE GREATS
Prior to Saturday night's game versus Illinois State, Bradley Athletics will induct the Hall of Fame Class of 2026 at Renaissance Coliseum. The class -- the 2000 Men's Soccer Team, Jim DeRose, Madeline Lynch-Crumrine and Wojciech Wojcik -- will be inducted in a formal ceremony beginning at 4:00 p.m. at the Renaissance Coliseum practice gym. Tickets are still available on FEVO for those interested in attending. The class will also be briefly recognized at halftime of the game.
