PEORIA — The Bradley Braves basketball team overcame cold shooting in the first half and put away the San Francisco Dons from the 3-point line in a nonconference game Wednesday at Carver Arena.
The Braves built an 11-point lead and hung on for a Quad 2 win, 66-64, at Carver Arena.
Duke Deen hit a 3 with 43 seconds left to put Bradley up by five, but the Dons came right back with a 3 from Marcus Williams to close within 61-59 with :37.8 left.
The West Coast Conference opponent came in as one of the highest-rated non-conference foes, at No. 53, to visit Carver Arena during Bradley head coach Brian Wardle’s era.
The game was looking for a hot shooter as the under-8 break arrived, with Bradley trailing 13-11.
BU was shooting 22.2% from the field at that point, while the Dons were only at 35.7%.
The Braves overcame that shooting as Zek Montgomery heated up and led them to a one-point lead in the final minute of the half.
San Francisco answered with a 3 from Junjie Wang with 41 seconds left to get out of the half with a 27-25 lead.
Montgomery hit a pair of 3s to open the second half and Duke Deen buried a 3 from the right wing with 16:53 left for 36-30 and the crowd was in it.
Duke Deen hits a 3 from the top of the key for 42-38 at 9:48.
Zek Montgomery misses a free throw, and the Dons players on the bench are yelling “Pizza Pizza” at Montgomery, a reference to a BU promotion when an opponent misses two free throws.
Montgomery makes the second one at 9:25, and 37 seconds later Deen races down the floor, pulls up, and drains a 3 from the left wing for a 46-38 lead with 8:45 left.
San Francisco is 9-2 under coach Chris Gerlufsen and tied with Washington State atop the WCC. The Dons are on a five-game win streak that includes decisions over Saint Louis (78-61) and Loyola (76-66).
Bradley is 8-2 under coach Brian Wardle and tied for first in the Missouri Valley Conference. The Braves saw a seven-game win streak snapped on Saturday by Santa Clara.
Check here for updates during the game and post-game coverage.
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More: How the Bradley Braves got more than a championship trophy from 2024 Myrtle Beach Invitational
Bradley vs San Francisco score updates
TEAMS
1st half
2nd half
—
FINAL
San Francisco
27
00
—
00
Bradley
25
00
—
00
FINAL: Bradley 66, San Francisco 64
Deen and Jonovic step up
Deen hit a 3 off a screen set by Jonovic with 3:31 left for 55-47.
Jonovic on the next possession rolled to the net and jammed the ball home for 57-50 with 2:53 left.
Marcus Williams answered that with a 3 for the Dons to cut BU’s lead to 57-53 with 90 seconds left.
A 3-pointer and foul
Marcus Williams hits a 3 and is fouled by Bradley center Corey Thomas. The game sits at 52-46 Braves with a free throw coming and 5:06 left.
Hannah makes big plays
Almar Atlason blocks a shot, the Braves set up Darius Hannah and he backs down Wang, turns and hit a hook and-1 for 50-41 with 6:52 left.
San Francisco misses on its next possession. The Braves get the rebound and Hannah drives to rim for layin and 52-41 lead with 6:01 left.
Deen makes ’em pay
Duke Deen hits a 3 from the top of the key for 42-38 at 9:48.
Zek Montgomery misses a free throw, and the Dons players on the bench are yelling “Pizza Pizza” at Montgomery, a reference to a BU promotion when an opponent misses two free throws.
Montgomery makes the second one at 9:25, and 37 seconds later Deen races down the floor, pulls up, and drains a 3 from the left wing for a 46-38 lead with 8:45 left.
Montgomery with 11 as Braves lead
Bradley up 39-36 with 11:06 left in the game.
Shooting is cooling again, as Braves are 1 of 8 from field in their last eight attempts, and Dons are 1 of 5.
San Francisco leading 14-6 in the paint, and Bradley sends in 7-foot-1 Ahmet Jonovic coming out of the 12-under break.
Fouls fouls fouls
Darius Hannah and Duke Deen both to the bench with three fouls each at the 14-minute mark.
Hannah, one of the top field goal percentage shooters in the nation, having a tough game at 1 of 8 from the field.
Here comes Duke
Bradley point guard Duke Deen Duke buried a 3 from the right wing with 16:53 left for 36-30 and the crowd is in it.
San Francisco in a three-possession flurry with two missed shots and a turnover.
Montgomery is hot
Zek Montgomery opened the second half with a 3 from the right corner 14 seconds in for a 28-27 lead.
Corey Thomas grabbed an offensive rebound and put it back at 18:41, and Montgomery hit another 3 for a 33-30 lead with 18:14 left.
Halftime numbers
Braves improved to 10 of 28 from the field (35.7%) and stayed alive from 3-point range with a 4 of 9 half.
The Dons shot 38.5% and were just 3 of 12 from 3-point range.
Bradley out-rebounded by Dons, 20-18. Malik Thomas of the Dons leads all scorers with 8. BU has six from Almar Atlason.
Darius Hannah with 5 rebounds and Christian Davis with 4.
HALFTIME: San Francisco 27, Bradley 25
Atlason 3 for the lead under a minute
Almar Atlason left uncovered — no one anywhere near him — and he puts down a 3 from the right corner for 25-24 with 50.4 left in first half.
Montgomery gets ’em rolling
Corey Thomas’ dunk at 6:56 pulled BU into a 13-13 tie.
Demarion Burch then knocked down a jumper from the left wing and Zek Montgomery heated up.
Montgomery’s turnaround jumper from the right baseline gave BU a 17-14 lead, and then Montgomery drained a 3 from left wing at 4:46 for 20-16.
The Dons answered with a 3 from Marcus Williams to tie it at 20-20 with 2:58 left.
Cold shooting
The Braves are shooting 25% from the field while trailing 12-11 with 8:35 left.
The Dons have slid to 38% from the field and are just 1 of 7 from 3-point range.
The game awaits a hot hand.
Davis hits a 3
Braves trying to catch up as Christian Davis hits a 3 from left wing to pull them within 12-8 at the 12-under media break.
Braves are shooting 30% from the field. Dons are 1 of 6 from 3-point range.
Atlason off the bench for 3
The Braves open with a 7-2 deficit, and Almar Atlason comes off the bench for a 3 from the left wing to cut it two.
San Francisco comes off the media break up 10-5 as Malik Thomas finishes and-1.
Starting lineups
Bradley Braves change things up, sending 6-foot-10 center Corey Thomas into the starting lineup in place of Almar Atlason. Braves are looking for more rebounding presence.
Braves roll with: Guards Duke Deen, Zek Montgomery, wing Christian Davis, forward Darius Hannah and center Corey Thomas.
San Francisco counters with: Guards Malik Thomas, Marcus Williams and Tyrone Riley IV, forward Ndewedo Newbury and center Carlton Linguard Jr.
Bradley vs San Francisco by the numbers
Kenpom ranking: Bradley No. 75, San Francisco No. 53
Kenpom says: Bradley 73, San Francisco 72 (54%)
Massey computer says: San Francisco 71, Bradley 69 (56%)
NET ranking: Bradley No. 72, San Francisco No. 45
CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Ranking: Bradley No. 7.
MidMajorBasketball.com Mid-Major Ranking: No. 17
BracketBustersHoops.com Mid-Major Ranking: No. 20
Basketball.realgm.com Mid-Major Rankings: No. 21
Preseason poll: Bradley No. 1 in MVC. San Francisco No. 4 in WCC.
Records: Bradley 8-2 (1st in MVC). San Francisco 9-2 (1st in WCC)
All-time series: Bradley, 4-2
Head coaches: Bradley, Brian Wardle 10th yr (166-140). San Francisco, Chris Gerlufsen 3rd yr (52-28)
More: Missouri Valley basketball preseason poll: Bradley basketball picked as favorite
Bravely Speaking
Bradley’s two losses are to West Coast Conference foes Washington State and Santa Clara. San Francisco comes in tied with Washington State for the lead in that lineup. … The Braves are still No. 1 in the nation in 3-point percentage at 44.6% (115 of 258). … Bradley is 8th in the nation in shooting from the field at 50.5%, and No. 2 in effective FG% at 60.5. … The Braves’ 11.5 made 3-pointers per game ranks 5th in the nation. … Bradley guard Zek Montgomery is shooting 52.8% from 3-point range, fifth-best in the nation. … BU forward Darius Hannah has 30 takeaways (19 steals, 11 blocks) in 10 games. … San Francisco brings in 6-foot-5 senior guard Malik Thomas, who pours in 18.6 ppg, shoots 50.4% from the field and has 24 steals. … San Francisco’s starting five includes four seniors, one of which is a fifth-year 7-footer in Carlton Linguard Jr. … The game against San Francisco will be a Quad 2 game for Bradley.
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Bradley vs San Francisco live stream options
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Bradley basketball vs San Francisco betting odds
Game lines and odds from BetMGM as of Wednesday:
Record: 8-2
Nov. 4: Bradley 88, Southeast Missouri State 60
Nov. 8: Washington State 91, Bradley 74
Nov. 12: Bradley 85, UTSA 72
Nov. 16: Bradley 76, Northern Illinois 60
Nov. 21: Bradley 82, Texas State 68
Nov. 22: Bradley 77, Wright State 74
Nov. 24: Bradley 80, Middle Tennessee 69
Nov. 29: Bradley 107, Judson 41
Dec. 3: Bradley 83, Southern Illinois 60
Dec. 14: Santa Clara 84, Bradley 74 at Jack Jones Classic
Dec. 18: vs San Francisco, 7 p.m. Carver Arena | ESPN+
Dec. 21: vs Canisius, 1 p.m. Carver Arena | ESPN+
Dec. 29: vs Valparaiso, 3 p.m., Carver Arena | ESPN+
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Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men’s basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or [email protected]. Follow him on X.com @icetimecleve.
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