Finished Mag

ack-2-
ack
Braves Down
Valpo, Secure
Second
Valparaiso (19-16) led 48-42 before the
Braves took charge. Tahvanainen hit a big
3-pointer to cap a 7-0 run that put the Braves
ahead for good 56-51.
Bradley rallied from an 18-point second-half
deficit to beat Northern Iowa 57-54 in last
year’s MVC final. The six-point hole Sunday
was nothing for the Braves, who have won
eight of their last 10.
Back for More
2018-19 2019-20
20-15 (9-9, 5th in MVC) 23-11 (11-7, 3rd in MVC
PS/G: 66.5 (312th of 353) PS/G: 71.7 (156th of 353)
PA/G: 65.3 (35th of 353) PA/G: 65.9 (75th of 353
SRS: -0.08 (157th of 353) SRS: 5.33 (107th of 353)
SOS: 0.33 (138th of 353) SOS: -0.90 (168th of 353)
Consecutive Bid to
Bradley guard Darrell Brown was not
happy with his selection to the Missouri
Valley’s all-conference second team earlier
in the week.
He displayed his displeasure in a big way
Sunday.
Brown scored 21 points and Elijah Childs
added 17 to lead fourth-seeded Bradley to
its 10th NCAA
Tournament with an 80-66 win over
seventh-seeded
Valparaiso in the MVC championship
game.
Ja’Shon Henry scored 16 points for the
Braves, Nate
Kennell had 14 points and Ville Tahvanainen
added 10.
Javon Freeman-Liberty paced Valparaiso
with 24 points and 10 rebounds.
Bradley (23-11) claimed its fourth MVC
Tournament title and became the ninth
team in conference history to defend its
tournament crown.
It’s the first time the Braves have
qualified for back-to-back NCAA Tournaments
since 1954 and ’55.
Brown, who came into the game averaging
15.3 points, was certain he deserved
first-team all-conference honors.
NCAA
By Steve O’Berbey
The perceived snub bothered him.
Bradley coach Brian Wardle made sure
to keep Brown properly
motivated. He jokingly called Brown
“Second Team” at every opportunity.
“In the hotel he kept calling me that,”
Brown said. “I thought it was funny. But
I’m a self-driven person.
He really didn’t have to do that.
I felt disrespected. So I took it upon myself
to prove everybody wrong.”
Wardle’s actions paid off.
“He came in with a chip on his
shoulder and he proved it,” Wardle said.
“There’s nothing better than when you
see true hard work pay off. He let everyone
see what he was made of — it was
great.”
Brown hit 6 of 14 shots,
including 4 of 6 from 3-point range, and
kick-started a 38-18 run over
the final 12 minutes, 2 seconds with a
jumper that tied the score at 49.
His 3-pointer pushed the lead to 62-52.
He also had nine assists.
“He can carry us when he gets hot like
that,“ Childs said.
“It’s one possession at a time and everyone
contributing,” Brown said. “It’s not like we
panic when we get down. We knew what we
had to do and we did it.“
Valparaiso used a 9-2 blitz over the last 3:37
of the first half to take a 38-36 lead into the
break.
“We’ve got a locker room full of guys that just
laid it out on the line,” Crusaders coach Matt
Lottich said. “When you give your hearts into
something and it doesn’t work out, it hurts.”
Valparaiso played its fourth game in as many
days for the first time in its postseason tournament
history.
“I wouldn’t blame it all on fatigue,“ Freeman-Liberty
said.
The Braves seem to thrive in the underdog
role. They were seeded fifth when they upset
Northern Iowa in last year’s championship
game.
“We like it better when no one expects anything
from us,” Childs said.
Bradley’s 23 victories are the program’s most
since the 1993-94 team went 23-8 under
coach Jim Molinari.
The Braves were a No. 15 seed in last year’s
NCAA Tournament and lost to Michigan
State 76-65 in the first round.
“I already told the guys, this is the year we
want to go make some noise,” Wardle said.
March 2020 5