Bradley Downs Missouri State Bears 58-40 at Great Southern Bank Arena

The Bradley Braves pulled away in the second half, defeating the Missouri State Bears 58-40 Saturday night in a Missouri Valley Conference game at Great Southern Bank Arena in Springfield.

Missouri State (4-4) jumped out to a 6-2 lead, but the Braves went on a 12-2 run midway through the first half that gave them a 14-8 lead.

MSU pulled within four, 14-10, when James Graham hit a jumper at the shot clock buzzer, but that’s as close as the home team got the rest of the way.

Bradley went into the locker room at the half with a 26-18 advantage, and the Bears could get no closer than seven as the Braves led for double digits much of the second half.

The Braves led by as many as 22 in the final three minutes of the contest.

Kendle Moore and N.J. Benson scored seven points each to lead Missouri State, while Rienk Mast’s 15 points paced Bradley (6-3). Malevy Leons pulled down ten rebounds for B-U.

The Bears shot only 31% from the field (16-51) and knocked down only two of 15 attempts from beyond the arc.

Bradley out-rebounded MSU 39-27.

Missouri State’s 18 points in the first half are the fewest in a half for the Bears since scoring 16 in the opening 20 minutes at home against Loyola-Chicago on January 31, 2021.

The Braves, who were the preseason pick to finish second in the Valley, improve to 2-0 in league play, while the Bears drop to 1-1 in the MVC.

Missouri State takes a break from league play over the next several weeks, starting with a game at Saint Mary’s Wednesday night.

Tipoff is set for 9:00 p.m. and the game will air on 93-3 AM 560 KWTO.