Thomas scores 19 as Bradley beats Valparaiso 80-71

Jan 4, 2019, 11:47 am

PEORIA, Ill. -- Donte Thomas scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as Bradley beat Valparaiso 80-71 in Missouri Valley Conference action on Wednesday night.

Koch Bar and Nate Kennell added 14 points apiece for the Braves (12-4, 2-1). Darrell Brown had 12 points and seven assists and Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye pulled down 14 rebounds in addition to his six points.

The teams were tied 33-all at intermission and Bradley pulled away on a 16-11 run early in the second half to lead 49-44 with 13:03 to play. The Braves led the rest of the way.

Valparaiso closed to 70-65 with 2:30 left but Thomas, Brown, Kennell and Jayden Hodgson combined to hit 8 of 8 from the line after that to help keep the Braves on top.

Tevonn Walker scored with 25 points and seven rebounds for the Crusaders (9-7, 0-3) who have lost four straight. Markus Golder added 11 points off the bench.