University of Northern Iowa
Bradley
UNI Battles Bradley to a 81-77 Win
2/23/2014 1:00:00 AM | Women's Basketball
PEORIA, Ill. – The University of Northern Iowa women's basketball team battled the Bradley Braves to an 81-77 win, picking up its fourth win in a row. UNI is now 15-11 overall and 11-4 in MVC play.
UNI led by double digits for most of the game before Bradley was able to cut it down to one point in the final seven minutes of the game. The Panthers' clutch three-point shooting and free throws were able to seal the win in the end.
Brooke Brown led the Panthers with a career-high 20 points and also chipped in six assists. Jen Keitel grabbed a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds while Hannah Schonhardt added 10 points and eight boards.
Keitel and Stephanie Davison sent UNI into the first media timeout with a six point lead after Keitel slipped a ball into the lane for an uncontested layup from Davison. All five starters scored in the first five minutes for the Panthers, giving them a 12-6 lead.
UNI was able to jump out to a 12-point lead at the 12:12 mark when Keitel scored her fifth point of the game off a turnaround jumper, making the score 20-8. Bradley scored six unanswered points to cut the lead down to 10, but Brown answered by driving into the lane for a jump shot to put the lead back into double digits with 6:59 left in the first half.
The Panthers were able to fend off a buzzer beater to end the first half against the Braves. UNI went into halftime with a 39-26 lead, marking the second game in a row the Panthers have kept their opponent under 30 points heading into half.
UNI held a 45-34 lead after Aly Spinas-Valainis converted on two free throws to bring the UNI advantage down to 11 points with 16:17 remaining in the second half. Bradley continued their run after Michelle Young hit a long jumper, but Amber Sorenson answered for the Panthers with a big three-pointer to put UNI back up by double digits.
After a back-and-forth battle between the two teams, Madison Weekly drained a trey at the 9:43 mark, giving UNI a double-digit lead of 55-45. Bradley was able to cut the lead down as low as six points, but Keitel fed a great pass into Brown in the lane for a quick layup to put UNI back up by eight.
Bradley's 9-2 run brought UNI's lead down to just three points with 6:50 left to play after Lerma Leti hit a free throw, making the score 57-54. The Braves then cut the UNI advantage down to one point, but Brown buried a huge three-pointer to make it a two possession game with 4:29 remaining.
Sorenson gave the Panthers a five point lead with less than three minutes to play after she hit another clutch three for UNI, giving the Panthers a 67-62 lead. The Braves brought the game back within a point, but the Panthers had a reply with adding a key trey from Donaldson to bring it back out to a two possession game.
Keitel and Brown both hit clutch free throws at the end of the game to help UNI to its fourth win in a row, defeating the Bradley Braves 81-77.
Post-Game Notes vs. Bradley
UNI has had each starter score at least one point in 13 straight games for the Panthers. Against the Braves,
UNI has held its opponent to below 30 points in the first half eight times this season, including in the last two games. UNI held Bradley to just 26 points in the first half.
Brooke Brown scored a career-high 20 points against Bradley, shooting 7-of-13 from the field. It is the sixth time in the last seven games she has reached double figures.
Jen Keitel finished with her fifth double-double of the season, grabbing 10 boards and 17 points against the Braves.
UNI has not trailed in a game since the match-up against Evansville on Feb. 8 (500 minutes).
