The Bradley Braves (4-23) will have their chance to beat the Missouri Valley’s best team when they face off against the Southern Illinois Salukis (20-7) at SIU Arena. Action gets underway at 8:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Feb. 17 and can be seen on ES3.
The Salukis defeated Drake 75-60 on Saturday. Anthony Beane was the game’s high scorer with 31 points on 12-for-20 shooting. The Braves are coming off a 75-60 loss against Illinois State on Sunday. Ronnie Suggs had a game-high 16 points.
Beane has been playing at a high level as of late for the Salukis, averaging 23.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 0.6 steals, and 2.6 three-pointers over the last five games.
It could be an error-filled game for the Bradley offense, which ranks 351st in the nation in ball security (TO% of 25.4%). It’ll be facing the disruptive Southern Illinois defense, which forces the 31st-most turnovers in the nation (21.7%).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Salukis won the first game 65-44. Tyler Smithpeters had a stellar game with 10 points, three rebounds, four assists, four steals, and two three-pointers.
The Salukis have gone 20-7 Straight Up (SU) and 14-11 Against The Spread (ATS). Southern Illinois has averaged 55.9 points per game over the last 10 games, lower than its season average of 75.2.
In the other locker room, Bradley has a SU record of 4-23 and an ATS record of 11-14. Bradley has been playing better lately, averaging 73.1 PPG, significantly more than their season average of 54.9.
Southern Illinois beat Bradley in their most recent meeting this season, bringing the head-to-head record to an even 5-5 SU over their most recent meetings. On the other hand, Southern Illinois leads the matchup ATS with a record of 6-4. Neither team was able to hold the edge in field goals, rebounds, or three-pointers over the course of their latest five contests.
Predictions: SU Winner – SIU, ATS Winner – SIU
Notes
The Southern Illinois Salukis have a defensive rating of 99.6 (ranked 93rd), while the Bradley Braves have an offensive rating of 82.5 (ranked 351st).
Bradley has an average field goal percentage of 37.1%. Southern Illinois is a winning 15-7 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Southern Illinois Salukis rank higher based on their field goal percentage (60th) than their effective field goal percentage (80th), while the Bradley Braves rank the same for both metrics (349th).
Bradley makes an average of 4.7 steals per game. Southern Illinois has a winning 16-6 record when it allows at least 4 steals.
