Wichita State rolls over Bradley 85-58 (+video)

There are 12 posters commemorating big home victories outside the Bradley locker room in Carver Arena. Wins over schools such as Villanova, Michigan, Iowa State, Northern Iowa and Illinois State are celebrated with pictures and text.

There is no such poster for a win over Wichita State, not that Bradley hasn’t defeated the Shockers plenty of times. Those wins, however, are increasingly removed from the current state of the rivalry. The Shockers routed Bradley 85-58 on Sunday, its 12th straight win in the 138-game series, eight of which are by 20 or more points.

By the second half, Sunday’s game took on the air of an exhibition. WSU coach Gregg Marshall wanted to get it over without injury and save his team’s legs for Wednesday’s game against Evansville and a trip to Southern Illinois on Saturday. Bradley coach Brian Wardle is ready for a break after starting his Missouri Valley Conference schedule against Northern Iowa (an 80-44 loss) and the Shockers.

“You have a bad six-to-eight-minute stretch against them and they did what good teams do,” Wardle said. “They put you away. They go up 20 quick on you.”

The Shockers (8-5, 2-0 MVC) did almost exactly that with defense that exploited Bradley’s freshman-dominated lineup. WSU ran off 19 unanswered points in the first half to build a 39-18 lead on its way to a 48-24 halftime lead. Bradley (2-13, 0-2) committed 10 of its 13 first-half turnovers after a three-pointer cut WSU’s lead to 20-18.

The Shockers pressed and Bradley struggled to move the ball up court. In the half-court, the Shockers forced Bradley out of its offense and regularly pushed the Braves late into the shot clock. The Braves finished the game with 23 turnovers, leading to 29 WSU points, and shot 37.8 percent from the field.

“We definitely wanted to come out of the gate and defend,” WSU center Shaq Morris said. “We had a lot of energy.”

The Shockers went up 26-18 by making 6 of 7 shots. They followed that with a five-point trip, featuring two free throws, two rebounds after a missed free throw, and a three-pointer by Conner Frankamp for a 31-18 lead.

“Wichita State does that little things, that maybe people don’t catch, that make them really good,” Wardle said. “We worked on it, but had a bad stint blocking out. Boom, the score turns quickly.”

Bradley then threw the ball away before crossing half-court. The Shockers scored again for a 33-18 lead, thanks to seven points scored without Bradley crossing the center line.

WSU freshman Markis McDuffie scored nine points in the first half. He made the biggest impression on Marshall with his defense and hustle. He finished the game with 14 points and a team-high six rebounds in 19 minutes.

“He was all over the place, diving on the floor, getting rebounds off free throw situations,” Marshall said.

With WSU up 27-18, McDuffie rebounded a missed foul shot by Anton Grady and was fouled. McDuffie made one of two and Ron Baker rebounded the miss. After Frankamp’s three-pointer, McDuffie found Rashard Kelly for a layup and a 33-18 lead.

“I just wanted to play like a winner, I wanted to be like these veteran guys, learn how to win,” McDuffie said. “I’m trying to learn how to slow down and play my game, make the game easier. I’m constantly watching Fred (VanVleet) and Ron, learning how they play in a mature way.”

VanVleet, playing in front of around 25 family members from Rockford, Ill., added 13 points and five assists. Morris scored 11 points, making 4 of 5 shots. WSU made 27 of 49 shots (55.1 percent) for its best shooting game of the season.

Dwayne Lautier-Ogunleye scored nine points to lead Bradley, which has lost 12 straight games against NCAA Division I opponents.

WSU’s 12-game win streak in the series is its longest against an MVC opponent. That ties Bradley’s streak against Drake from 1993-99 for fifth-longest in MVC history.

This story was originally published January 3, 2016 at 3:16 PM with the headline "Wichita State rolls over Bradley 85-58 (+video)."