One last game to hear the home crowd chant “Luuuuuuk.”
One last night to hear Peoria scream pure elation when senior Peter Hanley approaches the scorer’s table to enter the game.
The Bradley basketball team celebrated the career of its four seniors and one redshirt-junior in the final regular season home game with a 67-42 win over Valparaiso on Wednesday.
Valparaiso did not have much to celebrate that night after losing one of its top scorers, forward Ryan Fazekas, to a broken thumb before the game. The lack of scoring showed itself as the Crusaders shot a miserable 2-for-22 from 3-point range.
Valpo’s struggles became Bradley’s advantages. The Braves ended the first half on top 31-22 and continued into the second half with a 10-0 run and a 12-3 run to end the game. They shot a crisp 50 percent from the field.
Junior guard Nate Kennell said the Braves capitalized on defense, recording seven blocks and seven steals, and generated offensive production from there.
“Our defense really set the tone,” Kennell said. “It wasn’t really high scoring. Our defense’s intensity just kept it that way … That led to our transition and we just started hitting some shots and hitting some buckets.”
Kennell led the Braves with 20 points on 7-for-11 shooting with three 3-pointers. He said he followed Valparaiso’s defense and adjusted to take smarter shots.
Besides Kennell, sophomore Elijah Childs and junior Darrell Brown played efficiently. Childs poured in 18 points and grabbed eight rebounds. He hit two 3-pointers to tie his season high.
Even with effective production from the younger players, Bradley’s seniors still managed to make a mark on the game.
Seniors Luuk van Bree, Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye, Luqman Lundy, Peter Hanley
Hanley, a Peoria native, hit two free throws towards the end of the game after a shooting foul. According to Lautier-Ogunleye, though Hanley hit only his fifth and sixth points of the season, the influence he brings to the team is undervalued.
“I’m so happy for him and the team is so happy for him because he always used to tell us how he grew up going to Braves’ games,” Lautier-Ogunleye said. “He taught us from day one, he wants to help us get the program back to where it was … He helps us every single day in ways people don’t even know.”
Bradley head coach Brian Wardle spoke highly of Lautier-Ogunleye’s play following a three points, eight-rebound and seven-assist performance from the forward.
“He affected the game in a lot of areas and that has been DLO’s career,” Wardle said. “Some games he scores, but he is always there rebounding, getting assists, being tough and being physical.”
Lautier-Ogunleye reflected on his four years at Bradley, playing as a freshman on a five-win team and growing as a player within the program.
“I just want to win,” Lautier-Ogunleye said. “I’m willing to do anything to win and sometimes it’s not scoring; sometimes it’s rebounding, distributing and just doing all the little things. I am thankful to have the opportunity to do it here at Bradley University.”
With one regular season left against Loyola-Chicago tomorrow, the team will then prepare for gameplay in the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament next week.
For the Braves, a chance to face Loyola in the last regular season game, the team they lost to in the MVC Tournament last year and may possibly face again this year, is a challenge to look forward to.
“We love going on the road,” Lautier-Ogunleye said. “We love competing. People don’t want us to win and we like silencing crowds. This is the fun part. This is the moment we’re waiting for and it’s exciting to finally be here.”
The Braves will look to avoid a seventh-seed in the conference to bypass the opening round of the tournament on Thursday. They are currently tied with three other teams for fourth place.
“It’s exciting. You want to be a part of a race,” Wardle said. “You want to be in meaningful games down the stretch. We are and everybody is. Anyone could win this conference tournament. It is gonna be wide open.”
