Bradley Braves men's basketball

Bradley Braves
Bradley Braves
	2016–17 Bradley Braves men's basketball team
University	Bradley University
Head coach	Brian Wardle (2nd season)
Conference	Missouri Valley Conference
Arena	Carver Arena ; (capacity: 11,442)
Nickname	Braves
Colors	Red and white;
Uniforms
Home	Away ;
NCAA tournament runner-up
	1950, 1954
NCAA tournament Final Four
	1950, 1954
NCAA tournament Elite Eight
	1954, 1955
NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen
	1954, 1955, 2006
NCAA tournament second round
	1986
NCAA tournament appearances
	1950, 1954, 1955, 1980, 1986, 1988, 1996, 2006
Conference tournament champions
	1980, 1988
Conference regular season champions
	1950, 1962, 1980, 1982, 1986, 1988, 1996

The Bradley Braves men's basketball team represents Bradley University, located in Peoria, Illinois, United States, in NCAA Division I basketball competition. They currently compete in the Missouri Valley Conference. The team last played in the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament in 2006, reaching the "Sweet Sixteen". The Braves are currently coached by Brian Wardle.

Bradley has also appeared in the National Invitation Tournament 21 times; have an all-time NIT record of 26–18, with four titles (1957, 1960, 1964, and 1982). Until the introduction of the Vegas 16 Tournament in 2016, the program held the distinction of being invited to the initial offering of every national postseason tournament.

The Bradley Braves men's basketball team plays their home games at Carver Arena (11,442).

Post-season

NCAA Tournament results

The Braves have appeared in 8 NCAA Tournaments and have advanced to two final fours and two national championship games. Their combined record of 11–8.

Year	Seed	Round	Opponent	Result/Score
1950		Elite Eight Final Four National Championship Game	UCLA Baylor CCNY	W 73–59 W 68–66 L 68–71
1954		Round of 24 Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National Championship Game	Oklahoma City Colorado Oklahoma A&M Southern California La Salle	W 61–55 W 76–64 W 71–57 W 74–72 L 76–92
1955		Round of 24 Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	Oklahoma City Southern Methodist Colorado	W 69–65 W 81–79 L 81–93
1980	#11	Round of 48	#6bTexas A&M	L 53–55
1986	#7	Round of 64 Round of 32	#10 UTEP #2 Louisville	W 83–65 L 68–82
1988	#9	Round of 64	#8 Auburn	L 86–90
1996	#8	Round of 64	#9 Stanford	L 58–66
2006	#13	Round of 64 Round of 32 Sweet Sixteen	#4 Kansas #5 Pittsburgh #1 Memphis	W 77–73 W 72–66 L 64–80

NIT results

The Braves have appeared in 21 National Invitation Tournaments and are four-time champions (1957, 1960, 1964, and 1982). Their combined record is 25–18.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result/Score
1938	Quarterfinals	Temple	L 40–53
1939	Semifinals	Long Island	L 32–36
1947	Quarterfinals	West Virginia	L 60–69
1949	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Third Place Game	NYU Western Kentucky Loyola (IL) Bowling Green	W 78–66 W 82–72 L 61–69 L 77–82
1950	Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship Game	Syracuse St. John's CCNY	W 78–66 W 83–65 L 61–69
1957	Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship Game	Xavier Temple Memphis State	W 116–81 W 94–66 W 84–83
1958	Quarterfinals	Xavier	L 62–72
1959	Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship Game	Butler NYU St. John's	W 83–77 W 59–57 L 71–76
1960	Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship Game	Dayton St. Bonaventure Providence	W 78–64 W 82–71 W 88–72
1962	Quarterfinals	Duquesne	L 85–88
1964	Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship Game	St. Joseph's Army New Mexico	W 83–81 W 67–52 W 86–54
1965	First Round	NYU	L 70–71
1968	Sweet Sixteen	Long Island	L 77–80
1982	First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four Championship Game	American Syracuse Tulane Oklahoma Purdue	W 76–65 W 95–81 W 77–61 W 84–68 W 67–58
1985	First Round	Marquette	L 68–77
1994	First Round Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	Murray State Old Dominion Siena	W 66–58 W 79–75 L 62–75
1995	First Round Sweet Sixteen	Eastern Michigan Canisius	W 86–85 L 53–55
1997	First Round Sweet Sixteen	Drexel Connecticut	W 66–53 L 47–63
1999	First Round	Butler	L 50–51
2001	First Round	Detroit-Mercy	L 49–68
2007	First Round Sweet Sixteen	Providence Mississippi St.	W 90–78 L 72–101

CBI results

The Braves have participated in one College Basketball Invitational in 2008 where they advanced to the 3–game series final. Their combined record is 4–2.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result/Score
2008	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals Game 1 Finals Game 2 Finals Game 3	Cincinnati Ohio Virginia Tulsa Tulsa Tulsa	W 70–67 W 79–73 W 96–85 L 68–73 W 83–74 L 64–70

CIT Results

The Braves have participated in two CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournaments (CIT). In 2009 where they advanced to the championship game. Their combined record is 5–2.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result/Score
2009	First Round Quarterfinals Semifinals Championship	Austin Peay Oakland Pacific Old Dominion	W 81–74 W 76–75 W 59–46 L 62–66
2013	First Round Second Round Quarterfinals	Green Bay Tulane Northern Iowa	W 75–69 W 77–72 L 77–90

NCIT Results

Bradley participated in the 1974 National Commissioners Invitational Tournament where they advanced to the semifinals. Their record is 1–1.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result/Score
1974	First Round Semifinals	Kansas State Southern California	W 68–64 L 73–76

National Campus Basketball Tournament results

The Braves appeared in, and hosted, the only National Campus Basketball Tournament. Their record is 2–1.^[2]

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1951	Quarterfinals Semifinals Finals	Western Kentucky Wyoming Syracuse	W 75–71 W 77–63 L 75–76

I-74 Rivalry

The I-74 Rivalry (also known as The War on I-74) is an annual rivalry game between the Illinois State and Bradley University.^[3]

Notable players

References

^ "Bradley University Athletics Official Athletics Brand Identity - Usage and Style Guide" (PDF). March 30, 2016. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
^ http://www.luckyshow.org/basketball/campustourney.htm
^ http://www.goredbirds.com/news/2015/1/16/MBB_0116154237.aspx

External links

[1] "Bradley University Athletics Official Athletics Brand Identity - Usage and Style Guide" (PDF). March 30, 2016. Retrieved February 26, 2023.

[2] ttp://www.luckyshow.org/basketball/campustourney.htm

[3] ttp://www.goredbirds.com/news/2015/1/16/MBB_0116154237.aspx

[1]

[2]

[3]

v t e Bradley Braves men's basketball
Venues	Peoria YMCA (1902–1909) Hewitt Gymnasium (1909–1925) Peoria Armory (1925–1941) Woodruff High School Gymnasium (1941–1943) Peoria Armory (1945–1949) Robertson Memorial Field House (1949–1982) Carver Arena (1982–present)
Rivalries	Illinois State
Culture & lore	Longest game in Division I history Point-shaving scandal Gambling scandal
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

v t e Bradley University
Athletics	Baseball Men's basketball Women's basketball Football Men's soccer
Buildings	Carver Arena Dozer Park Markin Family Student Recreation Center Renaissance Coliseum Robertson Memorial Field House Shea Stadium
People	Lydia Moss Bradley
Media	WCBU

v t e Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball
Teams	Belmont Bruins Bradley Braves Drake Bulldogs Evansville Purple Aces Illinois State Redbirds Indiana State Sycamores Missouri State Bears Murray State Racers Northern Iowa Panthers Southern Illinois Salukis Valparaiso Beacons UIC Flames
Tournament & awards	MVC Basketball Tournament MVC Coach of the Year Larry Bird Player of the Year
Seasons	1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23