Eastern Illinois EIU 2-5

Bradley BRAD 7-1

Eastern Illinois EIU

2-5

Final

Dec. 01, 2017

Bradley BRAD

7-1

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
Eastern Illinois EIU	22	34	56
Bradley BRAD	25	42	67

Box Score

Braves Win Fifth-Straight, Defeat EIU, 67-56

Box Score (PDF)

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 12/1/2017 10:42:00 PM

Peoria, Ill. – The Bradley men's basketball team claimed its fifth-straight victory on Friday night, posting a 67-56 win against visiting Eastern Illinois at Carver Arena. Winners of five-consecutive games for the first time since the 2008-09 season, the Braves improve to 7-1 on the year, while the Panthers drop to 2-5.

Junior Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye registered his first collegiate double-double in the winning effort, scoring 13 points to go with 10 rebounds. The junior guard also led the charge on the defensive end as he helped to hold EIU's leading scorer to just four points on 1-of-8 shooting – nearly 13 less than his season average.

Freshman Elijah Childs matched his career high and led the Braves with 14 points, while just missing a double-double with nine rebounds. Sophomores Jayden Hodgson and Darrell Brown also scored in double figures with 12 points and 11 points, respectively, while combining for seven assists.

Bradley has now won 5? straight games for the first time since the 2008-09 season #TheMovement ???????
— Bradley Basketball (@bradleyumbb) December 2, 2017

The nation's sixth-ranked defense was once again the story of the first half for the Braves as a long field goal drought for the Panthers would give BU the lead for good. With Eastern Illinois ahead by four points, 13-9, Bradley forced 12-straight misses on the defensive end during a 7:17 stretch as a 12-1 run gave the Braves a 21-14 advantage.

The Braves then headed into the locker room with a 25-22 edge thanks to holding EIU to just 25.8 percent shooting, while making 45.8 percent of their own shots.

In the second stanza, it was the offense's turn to take the lead and finish off the victory. Bradley made its first eight shots of the period and in doing so, stretched the advantage to 11 points, 44-33. Eastern Illinois would never pull closer than seven after the midpoint of the half and the Braves didn't let any thoughts of a comeback materialize thanks to a 13-of-16 performance from the free throw line in the second half.

The Braves shot a season-best 52.2 percent from the field in the winning effort with a 6-of-16 performance from beyond the 3-point arc. Bradley once again proved too strong on the defensive end as EIU's 56 points are 18 fewer than its season average and the Braves allowed the Panthers to shoot just 32.8 percent from the floor and 17.4 percent from 3-point range.

Bradley looks to continue its winning ways with a road contest against San Diego State in the Mountain West – Missouri Valley Conference Challenge Series. The Braves and Aztecs are set to meet on Sunday at 5 p.m. CT with a sixth-straight win for BU on the line.

Game Notes: The Braves last won five-straight games from Dec. 23, 2008 to Jan. 6, 2009 … Bradley also won five-straight non-conference games for the first time since the 2006-07 season … BU has won seven-straight games at Carver Arena for the first time since a 15-game run in 2006 … The Braves entered the contest with the nation's sixth-ranked scoring defense of 58.3 … Bradley also remains one of five schools nationally to not have allowed 70 points in a game this season … The Braves have not allowed a team to score more than 28 points in the first half of any game … Bradley has won the rebounding battle in all eight contests, matching the team's longest streak since a nine-game run during the 2000-01 season … The Braves are now 8-5 all-time against Eastern Illinois and have won their last eight games against teams from the Ohio Valley Conference.

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