In their closest win of the year, the Bradley men’s basketball team went toe-to-toe in a difficult 63-61 win against Evansville on Saturday afternoon at Carver Arena. The Braves improved to a 16-13 overall record and 8-8 in Missouri Valley Conference play.
After having their four-game win streak snapped against MVC leaders Drake last Wednesday, the Braves were looking to get back to their winning ways at home against an opponent they’ve beaten in the past. Bradley defeated Evansville, 81-73, in their last meeting in January.
Bradley head coach Brian Wardle said it wasn’t the Bradley’s strongest performance, but he believed the team’s first-half performance deserved its credit to get the win.
“It’s a good win. We survived and advanced,” Wardle said. “It wasn’t our best game. We did not shoot the ball well. I thought first half our offense was good, we just didn’t finish at the rim. We just made enough plays in the second half to win the game.”
The Purple Aces took an early 8-0 lead from the tipoff. The Braves, however, rallied quickly and responded with a 10-0 run of their own, highlighted by a layup and 3-pointer from senior guard Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye.
The battle continued as Evansville retook their lead twice to go up by six points, 25-19, with three minutes to play in the first half. Bradley then went on an 11-0 spurt in the remaining minutes to finish the half with a five-point lead, 30-25.
Junior guard Darrell Brown felt the shots weren’t connecting for the team and that their game plan wasn’t being followed.
“Shots don’t fall all the time,” Brown said. “You just gotta keep on running your game plan. We weren’t executing our game plan and felt like guys were turning down shots they could make.”
Bradley’s momentum carried into the beginning of the second half with a 10-3 lead to go up 40-28 with 18 minutes to play. Lautier-Ogunleye made a 3-pointer during that run to usher him into Bradley’s 1,000-point club.
Sophomore forward Elijah Childs was impressed by his teammate’s achievement.
“It’s fantastic. I’m so happy for DLO,” Childs said. “He brings a lot to the table and he attributes to it everyday.”
Wardle added that he was also happy for Lautier-Ogunleye reaching 1,000 points.
“It was a great achievement for DLO,” Wardle said. “He’s such an energetic, competitive, tough guy, and he plays both ends of the floor. And he’s not just a one-sided player when it comes to offense. He’s had to play multiple positions, and it’s a hell of an accomplishment to get 1,000 points.”
With around nine minutes remaining, Evansville pulled the game within one point, 46-45, led by Peoria native Shea Feehan.
Feehan connected from outside the arc and scored three free throws to help cut away at Bradley’s lead. Bradley reclaimed its lead, 61-51, with just over four minutes left on the clock.
Evansville wasn’t done, after going on a 9-0 run to pull the game back to a one-point difference with only 30 seconds remaining. A free throw from both Childs and freshman guard Ja’Shon Henry pushed back the Aces’ last attempts.
Feehan had two opportunities to tie and take the lead for the Aces. He missed a game-tying 3-pointer and a game-winning tip-in seconds after a timeout. The Braves withstood Evansville’s pressure to finish the game out.
Wardle said he didn’t believe the team shot well overall but still found a way to battle through the foul trouble and offensive struggles.
“I thought we got stops when we needed to,” Wardle said. “And during the second half, when we struggled to score, I felt we guarded very well. And we battled foul trouble. I mean we had Elijah and DLO out for a long segment. They had four fouls and I thought we did the best we could offensively.”
Brown led the game’s overall scoring with 19 points, while Childs completed his sixth double-double of the season with 13 points and 13 rebounds.
“I just try to go out there everyday and do my job,” Childs said. “I just want to bring something to the team everyday, whether it be rebounding, points, setting screens or getting it to people open. I just try to get out there and do my part.”
The Braves return to Carver Arena on Wednesday at 7 p.m. to take on Valparaiso in its final home game of the season.
