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Peers and Seers

Game 7-038: Missouri State at Bradley
January 18, 2011 3:04 pm ET by Kyle Whelliston

Missouri State Bears at Bradley Braves

January 16, 2011 8:00 pm
Carver Arena
BBState Stats/Recap

If one were to choose the city in the United States most victimized in jokes and anecdotes by theatrical personalities, the selection of Peoria, Illinois, would be a popular, if not likely choice. Two of the more popular quips are: "Say, I hear you got married. How did that ever happen?" "I was playing a split-bill in Peoria--and it rained!" and "Have you ever played Peoria?" "Peoria? Oh, yes--I spent four years there one night!" The widespread appeal of this verbal maligning by comics, actors and other performers suggests Peoria as a paramount example of the dull, banal, and provincial theatrical road stop. But the popularity of the "put down" suggests as well that the city possesses a theatrical heritage of considerable longevity.
Don Marine, Illinois Central College
Peoria was named for a Native American tribe, but somehow became a symbol for everything that is central and Caucasian about the United States. (The Canadian equivalent, I think, is Moose Jaw.) Peoria is a very pretty word, and fun to say, but it's such a workout for the mouth that the rest of one's face has plenty of opportunity to do its own gymnastics -- mostly sneering. It's all those vowels... four of them, all except "u." Peoria is missing you. (Sometimes. Why?)

The streets of Peoria are always so quiet on weekends. The gigantic rectangular Civic Center complex, which sits in the dead center of the city, is never silent. It holds over 375 events per year, which suggests that it can handle more than one per day, and it can because there's an arena, theater and multiple exhibit halls under one roof. So has it played in Peoria? You bet!


The largest part of the Civic Center is Carver Arena, where the Bradley Braves play. They went to the Sweet Sixteen in 2006. Since then, they've been the overall 20-win, 10-8 Valley team that nobody wants to play in the first round at Arch Madness. This season, everyone will want to play them in Saint Louis, as many times as possible. The starting lineup has been decimated by injuries, and the Braves came into Sunday night at 6-11, 0-6 in the MVC. Not even the tactical skill of head coach Jim Les can save this season.


To their eternal credit, many Bradley students haven't given up. They still show up and scream their lungs out, hoping for that first MVC win. But against 6-0 first placers Missouri State, Bradley lost 78-67, and sunk to 5-6 at Carver. A small contingent of Missouri State fans, family and friends behind the visitors' bench began a "this is our house" chant as the last minutes ticked away.

"Just because you won doesn't mean it's your house," said one philosophical chap in the student section. "We're just bad."

Bradley hasn't finished a season below .500 in Peoria-based games since the final year of the sad Jim Molinari era (2001-02, 9-20 overall record, 6-7 at home). That administration peaked with an NCAA appearance in 1996, then spun out with downward-fluttering records and three-letter national postseason appearances. As of January 16, these Braves hadn't yet won a road game (0-5). In 2010-11, they move through the Valley like ghosts.


Ghosts.

@midmajority Game Tweets

19:54 Game 7-038: Missouri State at Bradley. Peeeeeorrrrrrrriaaaa!!!!!!!!!
19:56 "Where's Kirk Wessler?" asks @ballybasketball. http://img.ly/2ONy
19:58 Great to be here! RT @ValleyHoops: We've got a special guest in Peoria! Follow @midmajority! http://twitpic.com/3qqnig
19:58 RT @WillhiteHerald: He hustled out of Soldier Field press box to run to you. RT @midmajority: "Where's Kirk Wessler?" asks @ballybasketball. http://img.ly/2ONy
20:01 Missouri State is in Valley-first at 14-3 (6-0), on a W8 streak. Bradley: 6-11, 0-6 in MVC play, six straight losses. #youareinformed
20:02 Apparently, the 3000th person to show up at the Civic Center wearing a red seat cushion received a HyVee gift certificate. Hard times.
20:04 Threes by Kyle Weems and Adam Leonard open the accounts, and Andrew Warren answers with two. Mo State 6-2 at 18:35 2H.
20:06 Weems, a junior, is the only non-transfer in the Mo-State starting lineup. There are former representatives of Eastern Ky. and Boston U.
20:07 Last year, pretty much this exact Bears team got throttled here by 18. Older and tougher, and faster in getting back on D. 9-5 MOST, 16 1H.
20:08 Another difference between last year's MOST@BRAD game and this one: no @ZOOperstars this time. #sadz
20:11 Also keeping an eye on the Horizon League Sunday nighter between Butler and Wright State. Tied at the half at 34.
20:14 MOST 15-5, forcing a Bradley timeout. Bears really getting to work on the inside now after starting with a few #superhoops.
20:16 MOST: Higher concentration of transfers than you'll find on most Valley teams. 6-10 Caleb Patterson, formerly of Colorado, in for a few.
20:18 Senior guard Jermaine Mallett, ex-juco, with 8 for Missouri State. After eight minutes, 19-9 Bears.
20:20 Kirk Wessler, hero of the PJ Star, now in the house after the drive from Chicago. To most, I'm the "Other KW." Others call me "RP."
20:21 RT @WillhiteHerald: @midmajority Is KW still wearing that slick, rich-guy adventurer hat? You can tell him I'm wondering.
20:23 KW wearing hipster glasses and, I think, a corduroy suit. Looks like he came from indie rock band practice, not a Bears game. @WilhiteHerald
20:27 Bradley fighting injuries this year, and they're struggling in the standings and at the gate. MOST taking advantage inside & outside.
20:28 5Sr. Andrew Warren fighting the good fight for the Braves, half of Bradley's 18 so far. Bears by 10 at the third MTO.
20:35 3:42 left in 1H, Mo-State up 36-24. Last year, came in here and folded early. This year: confident, a little swag, taking care of business.
20:36 Carver Arena. http://img.ly/2ONR
20:38 In Dayton Former Capital, Wright State and Butler are tied at 49, end of the third quarter.
20:41 Mo-State was shooting 66% at the last media, 6-for-8 from 3. 38-26 Bears at 1:06 1H.
20:43 Another thing re MOST: flexibility! Last Sun at WICH was a messy grind. This is all clean/precise. Adjusting to situation/competition: good!
20:45 1H winding down; BRAD's Dodie Dunson drives, lays it in, misses the extra. Final points of the half... it's 41-30 Missouri State Bears.
20:49 Your HT entertainment: the Chicago Boyz Acrobatic Team! They're getting after it! http://img.ly/2OO8
20:52 First half: MOST shooting 61 percent overall, 6/10 from three. Bradley 44%, 2 of 4 with the #superhoopins.
20:52 Indeed. Hard times. RT @JohnEzekowitz: @midmajority Pretty crazy for Bradley to go from 3 preseason all-conference players to one.
20:53 RT @gmoore21566: @midmajority I just briefly turned on the Mo St- Bradley game & I am pretty sure I saw a redhead in the 2nd row of Bradley cheerleaders.
20:53 Adjust your tint knob. Or, you know, don't. @gmoore21566
20:59 We are in front of the Bradley student section and band. They're loud! http://img.ly/2OOh
21:00 Also awesome: the bandleader stands on the basket stanchion here! #Bradley http://img.ly/2OOm
21:01 We are back for another half of @ValleyHoops action. And we're uncovering the secret identities of longtime TMM Twitter followers!
21:03 Will Egolf, who has one of the more interesting fade-fauxhawks in D1, cuts off a small MOST burst out of the gate with a j. 45-32 Bears.
21:04 No shame in that; true. RT @MattnotDonovan: @midmajority @ValleyHoops as a Shox fan, this is hard to say. Mo State is good and fun to watch.
21:07 RT @DavidWoods007: Wright State leads 66-64, has almost closed out upset of #Butler. Land shooting 2 with 14secs left.
21:08 Wright State 69, Butler 64, a final. Your first place team in the Horizon: Valpo! #Bizarrizon2K11
21:11 Here in Peoria, Mo State pouring it on like Donkey Kong. 53-38 at 14:30 2H, and a MTO.
21:11 RT @smfranz: Nobody deserves first place more than Homer Drew. That man is a saint. (@midmajority)
21:11 RT @midmajority360: Butler 64 Wright State 69 | BUTL 13-6 (5-2) WRIG 12-7 (5-2) | http://tmm7.me/8wa #Horizon
21:14 We are on magazine duty tonight. Tomorrow on holiday TMM: a Bubbleversary. Tuesday: MMBOW, weekend Shoots, and alternate reality stuff.
21:16 Patterson with a shortie, and Mo State is 7-of-9 in the second half. Weems is 9-for-10 (21) for the game. Bears up 55-42 at 13:12 2H.
21:18 And here comes Bradley! 9-2 run over a couple of minutes, intensity is up and the crowd is into it. Within 8; 11:24 to go.
21:20 Good response by the Braves; Mo State was in neck-snapping mode, and Bradley started running kamikaze patterns and good things happened.
21:24 End of the third quarter, Bradley within six at 55-49. Was 53-38 at 14:30. Let's see how the Bears respond.
21:25 Mo State immediate response: an #omgdunx by Kyle Weems!
21:27 And a nifty set play under the basket that gets Nafis Ricks a layup! And a Weems hard layup! Creekmore layup! 63-51 Bears at 7:46 2H.
21:28 Those purple-colored Missouri State Bears are like grapes, they score in bunches! #sportswriting!
21:30 Also, the Carver Arena t-shirt gatling gun could kill a dude. With the touch, the feel of cotton. #thefabricofourlives
21:32 The Braves refuse to die! Jake Eastman, the sophomore, with a timely #superhoop. 5:55 2H, 63-57 Bears.
21:35 Kyle Weems 12-for-14 from the floor, and clearing out space with #datass on defense. Four to go, Bears killing clock. 67-57.
21:39 Biggest difference 2010 to 2011: confidence. Bears were shaken during the Bradley run, Weems set teammates straight. A real Valley guy.
21:40 Nafis Ricks an exploding flying layup, Bears back up 14 at 2:51. #peopleareleaving
21:42 Type of wine. Which I might drink after I finish writing my story tonight! RT @BillyJansen: Burgundy is a type of grape?
21:43 Just want to thank Peoria for being great. We love Peoria! It has some of the best supermarkets in the country. #peoria
21:46 Under a minute to play, Missouri State up 75-64. A "this is our house" chant goes up from the small Bears section behind the bench.
21:48 "Single digits, single digits!" a girl yells. Sorry. Final! 78-67 Missouri State. Mark the date, 1/26: ILST-BRAD might be a 0-win matchup.
21:49 #supermarketsmac RT @btimes2: @midmajority Hy Vee's wine selection is way better than Schnuck's.
21:50 Thanks to everyone who took part in our quick-turnaround @ValleyHoops weekend. See you tomorrow AM on the "blog." GNHN!

Boxscore

MISSOURI STATE 78, at BRADLEY 67
01/16/2011

MISSOURI STATE 15-3 (7-0) -- A. Leonard 1-6 0-0 3; J. Mallett 4-7 1-2 11; N. Ricks 5-11 0-0 11; K. Weems 12-14 1-1 27; W. Creekmore 8-12 4-4 20; N. Scheer 0-2 0-0 0; C. Patterson 1-1 1-2 3; I. Rhine 1-1 1-2 3. Totals 32-54 8-11 78.
BRADLEY 6-12 (0-7) -- D. Dunson 6-10 2-4 15; A. Warren 8-18 3-3 21; D. Simms-Edwards 3-4 0-0 7; W. Egolf 4-8 0-0 8; W. Lemon 4-8 2-2 10; J. Eastman 1-4 1-2 4; J. Prosser 0-2 0-0 0; A. Thompson 1-1 0-0 2. Totals 27-55 8-11 67.

Three-point goals: MOST 6-13 (A. Leonard 1-5; K. Weems 2-2; N. Ricks 1-1; J. Mallett 2-3; N. Scheer 0-2), BRAD 5-10 (D. Dunson 1-1; A. Warren 2-6; J. Eastman 1-1; D. Simms-Edwards 1-1; W. Lemon 0-1); Rebounds: MOST 30 (W. Creekmore 11), BRAD 16 (J. Prosser 4); Assists: MOST 22 (N. Ricks 7), BRAD 12 (J. Eastman 4); Total Fouls -- MOST 15, BRAD 14; Fouled Out: MOST-None; BRAD-None.