SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State extended its winning streak to 10 games Friday evening with a gritty 62-56 win against visiting Bradley at JQH Arena, locking down the Braves over the final nine minutes to secure the victory.
The 20th-ranked Lady Bears moved to 10-0 in Missouri Valley Conference play for the fifth time in school history and first since 2019, and matched last season’s 14-2 start for the best at MSU since the 2003-04 club won 20 of its first 21 games.
Missouri State wrapped a 12-0 run around the first and second quarters to grab a 20-13 advantage, led 36-28 at halftime and went up 40-28 when Jasmine Franklin grabbed one of her career-high six steals and launched a long pass to Elle Ruffridge for a layup with 7:30 left in the third quarter.
The Braves (12-9, 8-6) countered with a 14-0 run over the next five minutes and Missouri State closed the period on a 9-2 run punctuated by Ruffridge’s 3-point play with 2.1 seconds remaining for a 49-44 advantage.
Bradley evened the score at 49-all early in the fourth quarter but never retook the lead as the MSU defense held BU to 3-for-15 shooting over the final nine minutes.
Brice Calip hit a 3-pointer for a 55-51 score with 6:08 left and the score remained unchanged for nearly five minutes until Bradley scored for 55-53 at the 1:18 mark. Sydney Wilson converted a huge and-1 with 59.3 ticks left for a 58-53 lead, and Calip hit a pair of free throws with 20.6 on the clock after BU pulled within a possession.
Franklin collected her sixth double-double in league play with 11 points and 12 rebounds, and tied Tiff Terwelp for fifth in school history with 21 in her career. Abby Hipp added 12 points and Calip scored 11 to extend her double-figure streak to 12 games. With three assists, Calip also moved to ninth on MSU’s career list with 356.
Missouri State won 39-37 on the boards and shot 38.1 percent compared to .429 for BU. Each team made 24 field goals, but the Lady Bears owned a 4-3 advantage in 3-pointers and 10-5 margin at the foul line.
Game two of the series is set for 5 p.m. Saturday.
