The 6 biggest comebacks in Bradley men's basketball history
Comebacks have not come any bigger for Bradley basketball than Wednesday night.
The Braves won their seventh game in a row after rallying from down 23 points in the second half of a 70-69 road victory against Southern Illinois.
The rally was the largest in program history and the second-best in men's college basketball in 2023-24. The only larger comeback was completed by Syracuse, who rallied from 24 points down to defeat Colgate on Nov. 14, 2023.
You can read all about Bradley's comeback right here. Social media reaction to the rally was amazing, and you can read about that here.
As for where the comeback stacks up historically, we have you covered. Here's a look at the largest comebacks in Bradley history, according to the school's record book:
23 points
When: Jan. 17, 2024
Result: 70-69 at Southern Illinois
How BU won: Bradley held SIU to one field goal in the final seven minutes, riding its defense to victory after trailing by 23 with 19:36 to play. The Braves shot 70 percent in the second half to extend a winning streak to seven games. A stepback jumper from SIU's Xavier Johnson fell short in the final seconds, the product of pressure from BU's reigning MVC defensive player of the year Malevy Leons.
Quote: “It doesn't shock me because we got high-character men in that locker room. They care about each other and are connected and those kinds of comeback wins hopefully can ignite you.” — Bradley coach Brian Wardle.
18 points
When: March 10, 2019
Result: 57-54 vs. Northern Iowa
How BU won: Played in St. Louis, Bradley guard Luqman Lundy scored 11 points in a 4:20 stretch to spark the Braves from an 18-point deficit to its first Missouri Valley Conference tournament championship in 31 years and a bid in the NCAA tournament. It was the greatest comeback in MVC tournament history.
Quote: “This could’ve been my last game. I didn’t want to go out like we were about to go out. I just wanted to bring energy like I always do.” — Lundy
18 points
When: Feb. 4, 1996
Result: 85-72 (OT) vs. Tulsa
How BU won: Bradley made 15 of its final 22 shots and outscored Tulsa 52-21 in the final 21 minutes in front of more than 10,000 fans at Carver Arena; BU trailed 51-33 with just under 16 minutes remaining. Bradley took its first lead on Anthony Parker free throws in overtime. BU moved to 9-2 in the Valley, taking over first place in the conference.
Quote: "I want to give the Lord the glory for that because that's the most amazing game I've ever been involved in my 17 years as a coach. We won it with our defense in the second half. When you hold that team to 25 points in 25 minutes, that's what won the game." — Bradley coach Jim Molinari.
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17 points
When: Feb. 7, 2015
Result: 56-53 at Evansville
How BU won: Tramique Sutherland and little-used 7-footer Nate Wells sparked the comeback. It was the first win away from home in a calendar year for Bradley (8-17, 3-9), spanning 15 games. After Sutherland hit a 3-pointer, Wells followed with a long 2-pointer to start a 24-3 Bradley burst that featured Wells' two 3-pointers and culminated in a 10-foot jumper from Auston Barnes, whose nose was beginning to swell from getting whacked in the face earlier in the half.
Quote: “Nate is so well-liked by our guys because there’s no bigger cheerleader. He should probably be on a cheerleading scholarship instead of a basketball one. He roots like crazy for those guys and doesn’t care if it’s a guy at his position who’s doing well and keeping him on the bench. It takes a big man to do that. He’s been a great teammate. That’s why the guys were so happy for him.” — Bradley coach Geno Ford
17 points
When: Jan. 28, 2006
Result: 79-76 (OT) at Evansville
How BU won: Peoria native Marcellus Sommerville came alive to score 23 of his career-tying 28 points after halftime, played lock-down defense and came up with a hustle play to deny a potentially game-winning shot. The win snapped a 14-game MVC road losing streak for BU (12-7, 6-5), while trailed 28-11 in the first half.
Quote: "For the first time in a long time, guys were refusing to lose. That's an attitude that's got to come from within." — Bradley coach Jim Les.
17 points
When: Jan. 24, 2001
Result: 57-54 vs. Southern Illinois
How BU won: Bradley erased a 17-point deficit in the final 17:30 of the game to move to 6-2 in the Valley and into a tie for first place. Jerome Robinson scored 14 of BU's final 16 points while playing with a torn rotator cuff in one shoulder and tendinitis in the other. Eddie Cage also scored a key 10 points in a stretch to set up Robinson's heroics against Bruce Weber's SIU team.
Quote: "I'm just overwhelmed right now. I played terrible ... in the first half tonight. I just didn't want to let my team down." — Robinson
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Bradley basketball's biggest comebacks in program history
