KISSIMMEE, Fla. — The Bradley Braves basketball team is playing the Princeton Tigers in the opening round of the Terry’s Chocolate ESPN Events Invitational.
The Braves blew it open in the first three minutes of the second half when Timoty van der Knaap delivered a driving layup and-1, and then free throws from Ahmet Jonovic and a 3-pointer from Jaquan Johnson to give BU a 48-41 lead and force Princeton timeout 1:43 into second half.
Johnson buries a driving layup and-1 coming off that timeout, then he steals the ball and drives, steals it again and drives again to give Braves a 55-41 lead with 17 minutes left.
Johnson with 10 points in the first three minutes of the second half.
The Braves broke up a 30-30 tie in the final 3:34 of the first half to take a 40-34 lead to the break.
Kai Yu made a pair of free throws, then Ahmet Jonovic hit a short hook with 1:39 left and Timoty van der Knaap and Alex Huibregtse hit back-to-back 3-pointers 24 seconds apart to finish the half.
The Braves got a 3-pointer from freshman Montana Wheeler to tie the game, 30-30, with just over four minutes left in the first half.
The Braves adjusted their starting lineup. They went on a 6-0 run to a 17-11 lead.
But Princeton roared off to a 14-3 run over a span of 3:31 on three straight 3-pointers by starting guard Jack Stanton to take a 25-20 lead at the 8-under break.
The Braves (2-3) meet the Tigers (3-3) in the quarterfinals at ESPN Wide World of Sports State Farm Field House.
The winner of this game meets the winner of Temple vs. UC San Diego in the semifinals at 4 p.m. Tuesday. The losers meet in the consolation round at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Follow along below for live updates on the game. Information starts after the gallery:
Bradley vs. Princeton score updates
Bully is bullying
7:25 p.m.: Jaquan Johnson with his fourth steal and another driving layup for a personal 12-point run and 11-point lead. Forces another Princeton timeout.
Braves opening it up
7:13 p.m.: van der Knaap with driving layup and-1, and then free throws from Jonovic and a 3-pointer from Jaquan Johnson give BU a 48-41 lead and force Princeton timeout 1:43 into second half.
Johnson buries a driving layup and-1 coming off that timeout, then he steals the ball and drives, steals again and drives again to give Braves a 55-41 lead with 17 minutes left.
Johnson with 10 points in the first three minutes of the second half.
By the numbers
7 p.m.: Bradley forward Timoty van der Knaap had one made 3-pointer in his career before shooting 2 of 3 from distance in the first half Monday. He share team-high honors with Alex Huibregtse, each with 9 points at the break.
Huibregtse is 3 of 6 from distance as Bradley is shooting 47.1% from 3.
BU starting point guard Jaquan Johnson had two early fouls and played just seven minutes in the half. Freshman Montana Wheeler took over and dished four assists in 14 minutes.
Princeton has a game-high 16 points from guard Jack Stanton. The Tigers out-scoring Bradley, 9-0, on second-chance points.
HALFTIME: Bradley 40, Princeton 34
Big finish to the half
6:51 p.m.: The Braves turned in a big finish to the first half over the final 3:36.
Kai Yu made a pair of free throws, then Ahmet Jonovic hit a short hook with 1:39 left and Timoty van der Knaap and Alex Huibregtse hit back-to-back 3-pointers 24 seconds apart to finish the half.
Bradley 30, Princeton 30
6:39 p.m.: Bradley freshman guard Montana Wheeler pulls the Braves into a 30-30 tie with a 3 from the left wing 4:39 left in the first half.
They take that tie to the media break with 3:38 left.
Two fouls each
6:30 p.m.: Bradley guards Jaquan Johnson and Demarion Burch and forward AJ Smith each have two fouls with seven minutes still left in first half.
Tigers roar into a lead
6:27 p.m.: Princeton roared off to a 14-3 run over a span of 3:31 on three straight 3-pointers by starting guard Jack Stanton to take a 25-20 lead at the 8-under break.
Fouls are mounting
6:21 p.m.: The Braves have been whistled for five fouls in the first nine minutes of the game, including two on Demarion Burch.
Princeton has no fouls charged to it.
Bradley runs to lead
6:17 p.m.: The Braves get a layup from Ahmet Jonovic and consecutive buckets from Demarion Burch, a driving layup and a jumper, as both come off the bench for a 6-0 run to a 17-11 lead with 11:52 left in the first half.
Princeton with major player missing
6:05 p.m.: Tigers leading scorer, Dalen Davis, is not in the lineup and is not expected to play for Princeton in this tournament. He averaged 16.7 point per game.
Starting lineup change
5:58 p.m.: Braves open with a new starting group, with guards Jaquan Johnson and Alex Huibregtse, forwards Timoty van der Knaap, Corey Thomas and AJ Smith.
What to know about Bradley vs. Princeton
The Braves have won seven MTE titles in program history, and four of them have come with head coach Brian Wardle at the helm.
The Tigers are led by guard Dalen Davis, who averages 16.5 points per game, seventh-best in the Ivy League. Coach is Mitch Henderson, who has 254 career victories, second-most all-time for the program.
The Braves won the only meeting with the Ivy League team 77 years ago in Peoria.
What time does Bradley play today?
What channel is the Bradley vs Princeton game on today?
Bradley vs Princeton live stream options
Bradley vs Princeton will be available on ESPN+ and Fubo (free trial available)
Bradley basketball vs Princeton betting odds
Game lines and odds from MGMBet as of Monday, Nov. 24
Bradley basketball schedule
Record: 2-3
Buy Bradley basketball tickets this season via StubHub
Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men’s basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on X.com @icetimecleve.
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Bradley vs. Princeton live updates: Game time, TV from Florida tournament
Reporting by Dave Eminian, Peoria Journal Star / Journal Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
