The Bradley men’s basketball team (28-9, 15-5 MVC) has been in several close games this season, and they’ve pulled through time after time.
The Braves have had overtime thrillers, game-winning shots and comeback wins. So when Bradley was tied at 64 against Chattanooga in the National Invitational Tournament (NIT) quarterfinals with their season on the line, someone was bound to step up, right?
Wrong.
With 15 seconds to play, Mocs guard Honor Huff drove into the paint, kicked the ball out to the three-point line, and senior Trey Bonham knocked down a go-ahead three to take a 67-64 lead.
On the ensuing possession, Bradley tried to set up a shot to win the game, but Chattanooga elected to foul and send senior Duke Deen to the free-throw line. Deen made the first free throw to cut the deficit to two and intentionally missed the second in an attempt to get a game-tying shot. Unfortunately, the Braves could not secure the rebound and had to foul with two seconds left.
The Mocs intentionally missed their free throw, and Deen was forced to heave a full-court attempt toward the rim.
It fell short.
The Duke makes his exit
The shot was the last of Deen’s storied career at Bradley. After the game, he stayed on the court to take it all in. Deen, the Braves’ all-time leader in three-point makes, embraced fans one last time and thanked them for their support over the last three seasons as they serenaded him with cheers.
“I just told all of them thank you for everything and for always supporting us,” Deen said. “I love Bradley fans with all of my heart. It’s been a great three years here. I just wanted to show my appreciation.”
It was a disappointing loss, as Bradley led the game by 16 points at one point, but turnovers, poor defensive rebounding and three-point defense ended the Braves’ season before they could advance to the NIT semifinals in Indianapolis.
“We might regret this one a little bit one day,” head coach Brian Wardle said. “The opportunity to go to a final four in Indy would have been really special for this group to experience. I hate to lose, so I’m in no mood right now. It’s disappointing to lose that game because it was all controllable. It was things that we could control. It’s frustrating. But you know, the next few days, we’ll be able to reflect on a great year.”
Braves in control
Bradley controlled every aspect of the game in the first half. Offensively, the team worked seamlessly off their ball screen actions and found quality looks around the rim and the three-point line. The Braves shot 15-of-25 (60%) from the field and four-of-eight (50%) from three. Nine of their 15 field goals were assisted, and seven players scored.
Sophomore guard Demarion Burch led the way, with eight points on 80% shooting. The six-foot-four guard did most of his damage attacking closeouts or isolating in the mid-range. He used his strong frame, change of pace and touch to deliver buckets when Bradley needed them.
Burch finished with 14 points and showed why many in Peoria think he is primed for a breakout season next year.
“I think he’s got tons of talent,” Wardle said about Burch’s potential. “I think everyone knows that, especially offensively. I think he’s improved defensively over the year. His basketball IQ is improving, and that’s just being focused, coming in every day with the same mentality.”
“That’s what you’ve got to find now: the consistency, practice and work,” Wardle continued. “He’s gotten better there, and I think if he makes another jump there, you know, he’s got a big upside. I think it’s going to be fun to see him grow this offseason. It’s a big offseason for him.”
Bradley’s offense translated to stingy defense. The Braves swarmed Chattanooga, running the team off the three-point line and being physical on the glass. The Mocs shot 11-of-32 (34.4%) from the field and three-of-18 from three (16.7%). Their two-way dominance led to a 38-25 lead at halftime.
“In the first half, they manhandled us every which way,” Chattanooga head coach Dan Earl said. “Bradley has a heck-of-a team; they are hard to play. I wrote that up on the board at halftime.”
A tale of two halves
Earl’s message to the Mocs was received, and the team responded quickly.
Chattanooga started the second half on an 8-0 run to cut their deficit to five and prompt a timeout from Wardle. After the timeout, Deen hit a pull-up to stop the bleeding and build Bradley’s lead, but the Braves had lost the momentum.
After getting manhandled in the first half, the Mocs were much more physical than Bradley to close the game. Chattanooga had six offensive rebounds, which led to open threes that eventually started to fall. On defense, the team forced Bradley into turnovers, which disrupted their offensive flow.
The Mocs took their first lead since 2-0 with 5:10 left. From that point on, it was Bonham time. The senior made three three-pointers down the stretch, including the go-ahead shot to put the Braves away.
“They just had more fight in the second half than we did,” Wardle said. “They hit threes, and we lost vision. We didn’t talk, we didn’t block out. It was just a bad half by us. It’s been kind of that way the whole tournament. First half is good, and then let teams back in the second half. It’s frustrating.”
So, what now?
Bradley had a frustrating end to the season, but there’s always a silver lining. The Braves won the most games since 1986, went the farthest in the postseason since 1993-1994 and finished second in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) standings.
Above all, the team created lifelong relationships with each other that will transcend a game of basketball.
“I think we proved that we’re a connected group,” senior forward Christian Davis said. “We proved that we like to work with each other, that we like to play with each other, that we went out and worked very hard for each other, you know, I think we proved that we were winners.”
“We proved that we love this game and we’ll do anything for it,” Davis continued. “And I’m just incredibly proud of the group we have. It’s been a pleasure playing with these guys and these coaches this season. This is the year that I’ll remember for the rest of our lives.”
At some point, Davis, his teammates and coaches will have time to reflect on this season, but the transfer portal is calling right now, and Wardle must pick up.
“You can’t relax,” Wardle said concerning the transfer portal. “You can’t really even reflect on the season much anymore. You gotta dive right into it. We’ve obviously lost a lot and we gotta get some vets and some older guys to mix in with our good young talent. We’ll get to it as a staff probably tonight actually.”
