Kukobat's late dunk helps Eastern Illinois to 73-66 win
PEORIA, Ill. -- Rade Kukobat completed a 3-point play off a dunk in the final minute to give Eastern Illinois just enough cushion to hold off Bradley 73-66 on Thursday night for its third straight win.
Bradley had closed to 64-62 following two Darrell Brown free throws with 1:03 left before Kukobat slammed home the dunk. Brown hit a jump shot to trail 67-64 with 45 seconds left. Shareef Smith and Josiah Wallace made six free throws down the stretch to clinch the win.
Mack Smith nailed 6 of 9 from behind the arc to total 20 points with Wallace adding 14 points. Shareef Smith and Ben Harvey added 12 points apiece for the Panthers (6-5).
Eastern Illinois drained 13 of 24 from distance (54 percent) while holding the Braves to 5 of 17 (29 percent) from long range.
Bradley took a 36-33 lead into the break. A Harvey 3-pointer gave the Panthers a 40-38 lead less than three minutes into the second half. The teams swapped the lead until Mack Smith nailed two treys to start Eastern Illinois on an 8-0 run for a 58-48 advantage midway through the second half. The Braves never regained the lead.
Koch Bar had 13 points and Brown 12 for Bradley (7-4).
Game Information
- Referees:
- Gene Grimshaw
- Bobby Daw
- Mike O'Neill
2023-24 Ohio Valley Conference Standings
Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
---|---|---|---|
Morehead State | 14-4 | - | 26-9 |
UT Martin | 14-4 | - | 21-11 |
Little Rock | 14-4 | - | 21-13 |
Western Illinois | 13-5 | 1 | 21-12 |
Tennessee State | 10-8 | 4 | 18-15 |
SIU Edwardsville | 9-9 | 5 | 17-16 |
Eastern Illinois | 8-10 | 6 | 14-18 |
Tennessee Tech | 5-13 | 9 | 10-21 |
Southern Indiana | 5-13 | 9 | 8-24 |
Southeast Missouri State | 4-14 | 10 | 9-22 |
Lindenwood | 3-15 | 11 | 9-22 |
2023-24 Missouri Valley Conference Standings
Team | CONF | GB | OVR |
---|---|---|---|
Indiana State | 17-3 | - | 32-7 |
Drake | 16-4 | 1 | 28-7 |
Bradley | 13-7 | 4 | 23-12 |
Belmont | 12-8 | 5 | 20-13 |
Northern Iowa | 12-8 | 5 | 19-14 |
Southern Illinois | 11-9 | 6 | 19-13 |
Illinois State | 9-11 | 8 | 15-17 |
Murray State | 9-11 | 8 | 12-20 |
Missouri State | 8-12 | 9 | 17-16 |
Evansville | 6-14 | 11 | 17-18 |
UIC | 4-16 | 13 | 12-21 |
Valparaiso | 3-17 | 14 | 7-25 |