Sophomore guard Sam Maniscalco turned in a solid game with 12 points, six rebounds and six assists and Bradley (3-2) turned in its best all-around effort of the season en route to a 80-66 men’s basketball victory against Richmond (3-2) in the final round of the O’Reilly Auto Parts CBE Classic Wednesday evening at Alico Arena.

The Braves scored a season-high 80 points by shooting 52.1 percent from the field, recorded 19 assists on their 25 field goals, outrebounded Richmond 29-23 and committed only 11 turnovers.

Junior guards Dodie Dunson and Chris Roberts shared team-high scoring honors with 13 points, while senior forward Theron Wilson chipped in with 12 points. The Braves also received solid contributions from freshmen reserves Taylor Brown (seven) and Darian Norris (three), who combined for all 10 points during a 10-2 Bradley run that stretched a 51-47 lead to 61-49 with 8:09 remaining. Norris started the surge with a corner 3-pointer with 9:46 left and Brown scored the next seven in a span of just 1-minute, 10-seconds on four free throws and a corner trey of his own.

Dunson opened the game by hitting a 3-pointer on Bradley’s first possession and the Braves held the lead the rest of the way. After a David Gonzalvez triple pulled Richmond to within 25-19 with 5:48 left in the first half, Bradley scored the next nine points to stretch its lead to 34-19 with 3:31 left in the period, before settling for a 40-28 lead at the break.

The Braves came out of the break cold and did not score before the first media timeout of the second half, allowing Richmond to pull within 41-38 with 15:13 remaining. Roberts drained a 3-pointer with 14:52 left for a 44-38 lead and the Spiders got no closer than four points the remainder of the game. After Brown’s outburst, the Braves maintained their double-digit lead the rest of the way, ultimately stretching their lead to 18 points, 75-57, on a Maniscalco drive with 2:52 left.

The Braves will play their fourth game of the week Saturday night by hosting East Tennessee State in a 7:05 p.m. contest at Carver Arena.

Article courtesy: Bradley Sports Information