In their final test in the month of February, Bradley women’s basketball traveled up north to close out their away schedule against the Flames of UIC.
It was Education Day at the Credit Union 1 Arena, and the building was filled with students from schools around the area. The kids went home happy, but the Braves did not.
The first three minutes of the contest went back and forth between the two teams. Bradley had the 7-6 advantage, but that lead would soon evaporate.
The Flames went on a three-minute, 13-0 run, and while the Braves scored six unanswered points soon after, UIC led 24-13 at the end of the first period. Despite the disadvantage on the scoreboard, Bradley’s offense was quite balanced, with senior forward Amy O’Hara scoring four, fifth-year guard-forward Kaylen Nelson hitting a three and three other players putting up two.
In the second quarter, Bradley was held to single-digits by the Flames’ defense, who also had an 11-point run for five minutes. It wasn’t until there was 3:03 left on the clock that the Braves would score again on a free throw from freshman guard Maya Foz, and even then, their opponents stayed consistent for the final few moments of the half.
Going into the locker room with a 22-point deficit, O’Hara was up to six points and Foz was right behind her with five. The Braves went 10-for-27 in the first half and only made one three-pointer out of their eight attempts. Meanwhile, UIC was 20-for-35 from the field and made all three of their tries from beyond the arc.
Bradley started the third quarter respectably, scoring six points in the first 90 seconds, and they continued to cut the lead piece-by-piece with a wide variety of offensive maneuvers. The Flames were only up by single digits with 1:24 left and the Braves only had to come back from 10 points down by the end of the third.
This period saw Nelson, Foz and O’Hara surpass the 10-point threshold as they had 12, 11 and 10 points, respectively, up to this point. Bradley also improved their field goal percentage by 10 percentage points compared to the second quarter, giving them a solid boost in confidence.
However, in the fourth quarter, they couldn’t outperform the Flames on their home court. Sophomore guard Mya Wardle hit two threes to finish with 12 points, but every time the Braves took a step forward, UIC made a bucket to erase the momentum, which helped them win 66-53.
Along with Wardle, Nelson had 14 points, Foz scored 11 and O’Hara put up 10. The Australian senior also had four assists and three blocks, earning her Ameren Illinois Player of the Game honors.
Bradley ends the season with two home games against Evansville and Illinois State on Thursday and Sunday. If they win both, they can possibly claim second place in the Missouri Valley standings. Tip-off for the Evansville game is at 6 p.m.
