Chris Hines scored 16 points and Drake defeated Bradley 81-66 Thursday in the opener of the Missouri Valley Conference tournament at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO. The ninth-seeded Bulldogs (15-16) earned a quarterfinal game against the Valley regular-season champion Creighton University on Friday at 12 pm. Joey King scored 15 and Gary Ricks added 14 points for Drake. The Bulldogs led by as many as 17 points in the first half, though the Braves scored the last eight of the half to cut Drake’s lead at the break to 41-32. Jake Eastman had 15 points and eight rebounds for the eighth-seeded Braves. Will Egolf also scored 15 points, Walt Lemon Jr. scored 14 and Tyshon Pickett added 11 for Bradley, which improved nine games from last season’s 7-25 finish.
-Bob
Sophomore Michelle Young and senior Katie Yohn each had 18 points and five steals to pace five Bradley University players in double figures and the duo helped the Braves pull away down the stretch to top Drake 93-84 Thursday at Renaissance Coliseum. Bradley (11-13 overall, 5-8 MVC) found itself down early as Drake (8-17 overall, 3-11 MVC) opened the game with a 10-2 spurt and built an 18-6 lead less than four minutes into the contest. The Braves chipped away at the Bulldog advantage and trailed 44-42 at the half. Drake maintained the lead through most of the second half, but Bradley stayed within striking distance and took its first lead since the midway point of the second half when Yohn grabbed a defensive rebound and went coast-to-coast for a layup to give Bradley a 75-73 lead with 5:35 to play. The score was knotted at 83-83 closing in on the two-minute mark, when junior Catie O’Leary opened a 10-1 BU run to close the game with a put-back basket. Bradley returns to the court Saturday, hosting pre-season Valley favorite Creighton in a 2 p.m. game at Renaissance Coliseum. Saturday’s game will be the Braves’ annual “pink” game, helping promote breast cancer awareness.
-Bob
Bradley guards Dyricus Simms-Edwards and Walt Lemon Jr. combined for 43 points and 10 steals, leading the Braves to a 67-57 win versus Drake in the MVC opener for both teams at Carver Arena Saturday night before 7,534 fans. Lemon paced the Braves offensively with a season-high 23 points, while Simms-Edwards added 20. The backcourt combo also spearheaded a defensive effort that forced Drake into 18 turnovers and led the Braves to a 23-6 advantage in points off turnovers. Together, the duo combined for 43 points, 10 steals, eight rebounds, six assists and just four of Bradley’s eight turnovers. Simms-Edwards, who entered the game tied for eighth nationally with 3.0 steals per game, finished with eight thefts, one shy of the school and MVC single-game record. Simms-Edwards also provided the bulk of the defensive work against the Bulldogs season scoring leader Ben Simons, who managed 13 points, but was 4-for-18 from the field and 1-for-8 from 3-point range.
-Bob
Derek Nesbitt scored twice in regulation and once in the shootout for the Rivermen getting a hard fought 4-3 win over the Hamilton Bulldogs Tuesday night at Carver Arena. The win was Peoria’s fifth straight and moved them into a first-place tie in the AHL’s Midwest Division. The Bulldogs Stefan Chaput opened up the scoring at 12:04 of the first period. Nathan Beaulieu took a shot that Chaput tipped past the left pad of Jake Allen, who had lost his stick on the play. The goal was Chaput’s first of the year and first of two in the game. After a scoreless second period, Peoria scored two goals in a span of 2:02 early in the third period to take a 3-1 lead. Scott Ford fired a slapshot from the point that beat for his first goal of the season. Mark Cundari and Jaden Schwartz assisted on Ford’s first goal of the season. Nesbitt scored his second of the night at the 3:38 mark of the period to increase Peoria’s lead to two goals. Nesbitt tipped a Cundari wrist shot into the net for his team-leading tenth goal of the year. Hamilton tied the game with two of their own goals in the third frame. Brendan Gallagher scored his eighth goal of the season to cut Peoria’s lead in half at 4:53 of the first. Chaput scored his second of the night to tie the contest at 3-3. Chaput one-timed a shot past the glove of Allen for his second of the year.
-Bob
Drake (17-14) scored the game’s first 12 points and never looked back, downing Bradley (7-25) with a 65-49 victory in the first round of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament Thursday night at Scottrade Center. Rayvonte Rice scored a game-high 18 points, while Ben Simons added 16 for the Bulldogs. Walt Lemon, Jr. led the Braves with 16 points and shared team-high honors by matching his career-high with seven rebounds. Dyricus Simms-Edwards was the game’s only other double-digit scorer, finishing with 14 points. Click here for complete game stats.
-Bob
