Hickman leads Bradley against Missouri State after 28-point game

Published Jan. 6, 2024 3:43 a.m. ET
Associated Press

Missouri State Bears (9-5, 1-2 MVC) at Bradley Braves (9-5, 1-2 MVC)

Peoria, Illinois; Saturday, 4 p.m. EST

FANDUEL SPORTSBOOK LINE: Braves -4.5; over/under is 138.5

BOTTOM LINE: Bradley hosts the Missouri State Bears after Connor Hickman scored 28 points in Bradley's 86-61 win over the Valparaiso Beacons.

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The Braves have gone 5-2 at home. Bradley has a 4-1 record in games decided by at least 10 points.

The Bears are 1-2 in MVC play. Missouri State ranks eighth in the MVC shooting 32.8% from 3-point range.

Bradley averages 8.4 made 3-pointers per game, 2.5 more made shots than the 5.9 per game Missouri State allows. Missouri State has shot at a 44.4% rate from the field this season, 4.1 percentage points above the 40.3% shooting opponents of Bradley have averaged.

The Braves and Bears match up Saturday for the first time in conference play this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Malevy Leons is averaging 13.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.1 steals for the Braves. Duke Deen is averaging 12.0 points over the last 10 games for Bradley.

Alston Mason is averaging 18.3 points and 3.7 assists for the Bears. Donovan Clay is averaging 15.0 points over the last 10 games for Missouri State.

LAST 10 GAMES: Braves: 5-5, averaging 70.9 points, 35.3 rebounds, 11.6 assists, 7.9 steals and 3.8 blocks per game while shooting 44.5% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 67.7 points per game.

Bears: 6-4, averaging 75.0 points, 39.8 rebounds, 11.8 assists, 4.2 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 45.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 69.0 points.

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

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