Fighting for First Place

Bradley visits Indiana State

(St. Louis, MO) – Two teams fighting for first place face one another on the Missouri Valley Conference’s ‘Game of the Week’ on Matrix Midwest. Bradley (11-2, 2-0) visits Indiana State (8-5, 2-0). Game time is set for 6 pm.

These two teams are offensively efficient. We typically think of Bradley’s defensive prowess, but this year’s team is the nation’s top three-point shooting team.  The Braves are also among the country’s top ten in effective field goal percentage. Under first year head coach Matthew Graves, the Sycamores have continued to play high level offense.

Thoughts from the Coaches

Indiana State is tenth in effective field goal percentage and play at college basketball’s fifteenth fastest offensive pace. These are the Valley’s top two scoring teams and its two most prolific three-point shooting squads.

Graves admits his team has struggled defensively (eleventh in the Valley) and knows Bradley presents a big challenge to his Sycamores.

The MVC’s top five scorers are transfers or freshmen and Indiana State’s Samage Teel is third in the scoring race (17.6 ppg). Teel is fourth in assists (4.4). Bradley’s ‘Big Three’ of Duke Deen (15.2), Zek Montgomery (13.5) and Darius Hannah (12.7) rank inside the league’s top twenty.

Bradley head coach Brian Wardle says his team will have to slow down the high-powered Sycamore offense inside the Hulman Center. Wardle says the Trees shoot the ball very well at home.

Sycamore sophomore Jaden Daughtry has been emerging as a Valley force. The 6’7 forward racked up 25 points against Ohio State and has accumulated seven double-digit scoring performances. Three times Daughtry has reached the  twenty-point plateau.

Graves says the league’s third leading field goal percentage shooter (.604) and fifth best long distance sniper (.483) has become more effective offensively by diversifying his game.

This week’s full schedule of games represent the third league game for all the Valley teams. So, all of twelve teams are fighting for first place. Drake, Northern Iowa and these two teams are 2-0 and can make an early statement about fighting for first place with a head-to-head win tonight.

Watch our entire conversation with coach Graves on YouTube. See and hear our conversation with coach Wardle here.

Do Good

 

Editor: Cover photo of Zek Montgomery, courtesy of BradleyBraves.com.