Press Row

Bradley guard Dodie Dunson’s impending surgery to repair two broken bones in his left arm has been moved to Wednesday.

It will be performed by Drs. James Maxey and Jeffrey Garst at Methodist Medical Center. 

Dunson, who suffered the injury during the Braves’ Sunday home-opening victory over Idaho State, was originally scheduled for a Tuesday procedure. He will sit out this season on a medical hardship waiver and finish his BU career next year.

Watch BradleyHoops.com for a report following the surgery.

Bradley guard Dodie Dunson suffered a painful end to his season Sunday night.

He was fouled in midair while driving the baseline in the second half. Trying to break his fall, he planted his left arm on the floor. But before he could react, one of the Idaho State players landed full force on his forearm, breaking both the ulna and radius bones.

As horrific as that sounds, Dunson’s pain was eased with the knowledge that, since the injury occurred so early in the season, he can apply for a medical hardship and have another full year to play.

“One more year of college doesn’t sound too bad,” he told BU coach Jim Les upon hearing his good fortune in a bad situation. He’ll undergo surgery Tuesday.

Dunson’s extra year will help the Braves bridge a one-year scholarship gap until 6-foot-7 forward Sean Harris joins the program in the fall of 2011-12 following his Mormon mission to Honduras.

On Sunday, Dunson was on his way to one of his top offensive games at BU. Entering the game off the bench in the first half when the Braves trailed 8-2, Dunson made five of his first six shots — three of them 3s — to catapault Bradley into the lead. He scored 14 of the Braves’ first 23 points and had the 14 in just 5:44.

Dodie being Dodie, he apologized to his teammates for getting hurt and not being available for this season. While guard is the one position the Braves could afford an injury with their depth at the position, they don’t have anybody else quite like Dunson.

He’s a tri-captain, a leader looked up to by his teammates. Fans love him because he’s always got a smile on his face and a hearty handshake off the court. They often get both on the court as well.

As hard as he works on the court, he’s just as tireless off it, overcoming a severe dyslexia problem to post a 4.0 grade-point average in the spring semester.

At least he can still be part of the team this year, cheering the Braves on from the  the sideline.

“He’ll still bring a tremendous lift to this team emotionally with the energy and enthusiasm he brings,” Les said.

It’s a rainy night in Peoria, but we’re low and dry in the underbelly of Carver Arena. Tipoff for Bradley’s home opener is about 90 minutes away.

A little pregame problem: A little while ago, the south basket was down, and workers had a level perched across the rim. I think BU freshman Milos Knezevic might have been the eye for an imbalance, because he was out there pointing when I got here during early shootaround. Anyway, the level revealed the rim was less than one-quarter of an inch lower on the left side than the right. Problem is, the workers couldn’t find a way to get it level. When they re-raised the basket, the hoop measured about one-eighth of an inch lower on the left. And that’s how we’re going to play.

Visitors behind the bench: Three local high school players of some repute are here tonight, behind the BU bench. Tyler Les of Notre Dame — coach Jim Les’s son, if you didn’t know or couldn’t figure it out — is there, with Limestone’s Donivine Stewart and Manual’s Andrew Jordan.

Some pregame observations: They’re running a highlight video on the scoreboard right now. So they’ve perhaps moved that exercise from the lineup intros. … The refs tonight are J.D. Collins, Gerry Pollard and Tom Eades. That’s a good crew. I really like Collins. … Not a bad turnout of students for a Sunday night when the Pats and Colts will be playing on TV. … Some fans recently expressed their unhappiness with the Sunday games that dot the early schedule and said they won’t be here for these games. I don’t get that. If your team is playing, don’t you go? Is the NFL that compelling? …

Anthem time.

Bradley’s lineup: Braves will start with … wait, there’s still a video! About 30 seconds worth of highlights. OK, now: Will Egolf, Chris Roberts, Eddren McCain, Sam Maniscalco, Andrew Warren. So it’s arguably a four-guard lineup. Tipoff coming up.

BTW, my esteemed colleague Dave Reynolds points out that Idaho State has one kid from Idaho on the entire roster. And five from Memphis. I’m thinking there are probably more good basketball players in Memphis than in the entire state of Idaho. But Idaho is a lovely place to visit.

Idaho State wins the tip and Donnie Carson gets to the hoop for a layup. Not a good start for BU’s defense. … And now Demetrius Monroe posts and scores on a short jumper. … Then a turnover and a runout, transition drive for a 6-0 lead. … And another Bradley turnover, and we haven’t even played two minutes. “Hell! Let’s start over!” a fan just yelled. Three buckets for the visitors; all inside six feet. Wretched start for Bradley.

Now Broderick Gilchrest takes McCain to the rack and floats one over him. 8-zip.

I promise this won’t turn into a play-by-play, but right now it’s the best way to convey how poorly Bradley is playing to start this one. Warren gets fouled and makes two FTs, so BU is on the board. But the Braves have got to stop somebody. Dodie Dunson replaces Roberts, and Les spends 20 seconds in his ear, grabbing him and demonstrating what he’s doing wrong on D.

Another runout off a turnover for Idaho State. This one off a bad pass by Maniscalco. He was on the left side of the lane, about halfway down and a couple of steps out, and he tried to float a pass back to the point against a zone. Man, that’s a bad mistake; not one you expect from a junior leader.

Timeout at 15:23 — Idaho State 10, Bradley 4

Stats at this point have BU with three turnovers already and three missed 3s. Idaho State already has two second-chance points and four fast-break. Bengals are 5-of-7 from the field, which is going to happen when your shots are all inside 10 feet.

There’s a little better defensive sequence. Bradley keeps Idaho State out of the middle, clock gets inside 10 and the Bengals throw the ball away. BU responds with a 3 from Dunson in the corner, and it’s a one-point game, 10-9. … After an easy ISU bucket, Dunson hits another 3 to tie at 12. … Followed by a bad decision by DD on a transition 3; really rushed. … And ANOTHER easy post layup for ISU. … Les is not a happy fellow on either end of the court. He’s all over Sam Singh for not cutting. Stoppage in play, looks like an “imaginary box” blocking foul call against the Bengals. …

Timeout at 11:39 — Idaho State 14, Bradley 12

Set play out of the TO: Maniscalco lob to Roberts for the big slam. Two games in a row that worked out of a timeout. … Another 3 for Dunson on a swing from Maniscalco and Bradley has its first lead, 17-14. … Now an inbounds play 3-pointer by Maniscalco, on pass from Dyricus Simms-Edwards. That was an interesting play. BU had the ball out under its basket, but nobody was lining up to take the ball. DSE was standing about six feet up the lane, with his back to the baseline, almost as if he were setting up to play D. The ref calls for someone to take the ball, and everybody looks to Maniscalco, who’s 30 feet away, on the right side. DSE then backs up, takes the ball, the ISU defense all sags, and Maniscalco drifts to the corner, where DSE finds him wide open; Bengals coach Joe O’Brien stomping his feet and yelling at his sleeping guys. Swish. Not sure if that was a set deception play, but it was beautiful.

Timeout at 7:38 — Bradley 26, Idaho State 19

The Braves are raining 3s now. Six 3-pointers in six minutes. Dunson is 4-for-5 and DSE just hit one before the stoppage.

Braves’ defense much better now, but ISU is pretty patient. Physical play by the Braves inside has slowed the post scoring. … There’s the requisite moving-screen foul by Egolf. Always somebody. Guilty as sin, too. Bradley’s bigs just aren’t real solid on holding the screens. … Bengals get inside for an easy layup and light foul by Warren for a three-point play.  … Idaho State on a run now: nine straight, pretty much all paint. What happened to the D again? … Warren finally gets untracked from the floor, with a high-arcing pull-up shot off the board about 12 feet out on the left. …

Timeout at 3:51 – Bradley 30, Idaho State 28

Bradley is getting annihilated on the boards: 15-8. And the Braves have given up six offensive rebounds, resulting in eight second-chance points. Just flat out unacceptable. Unacceptable. Unacceptable.

We’re wondering: Why no Sticks yet? Anthony Thompson is still on the bench; all 6-10 of him with those long arms. He played 13 minutes Friday night at BYU, and he was pretty active. Tonight, zippo. Just seems a little odd with Idaho State scoring with such relative ease inside. Bengals have 16 points in the paint so far. Yikes! And they just got another ORB. …

Austin Kilpatrick just launched a ridiculous off-balance 3-pointer for an airball for Idaho State. There were 14 seconds left on the shot clock. Ball goes OB. O’Brien is bewildered. So are we all. Your team is shredding the Braves inside, and this guy tries to throw up a bomb with no compelling reason? Whatever. …

Halftime — Bradley 32, Idaho State 31

Way too early to push any panic buttons, but there are some glaring fundamental problems. Rebounding is supposed to be an emphasis point, but BU is getting its butt kicked on the boards. Just ugly. And way too many defensive lapses. I don’t have a problem with a four-guard set, but it’s not going to work defensively if you can’t keep opponents out of the paint. Idaho State has 18 points in there. 18! Bradley has 6. That’s wicked. Bradley hanging with 6-of-12 on 3-point shooting, but players not named Dodie Dunson are 2-for-7. Warren has only one. He’s the focus of the defense on the perimeter, which is understandable. But the only way you’re going to free him up is to score inside  — or have the other perimeter players light it up. Right now, Idaho State is betting DD will cool off. Don’t blame them. …

Bradley softball team honored at halftime, for winning the MVC championship last spring.

Second half coming up …

FWIW … the tilted rim hasn’t seemed to make a difference. Bradley was 10-of-22 on it first half, and Idaho State just made its first shot there in the second half. … Roberts joins the 3 parade for Bradley on its first possession. … Warren makes his first 3, when Idaho State totally loses track of him on an inbounds play under the BU basket. All day to shoot that one. In fact, he even had a chance to catch, check his feet and step back to make sure he had a 3. … Now a turnover and runout for BU, with Maniscalco saving the ball from OB in flight on the left midcourt, lobbing to Warren on the run. Warren misses the dipsy-doodle, but Egolf is strong on the follow for a tip and 2. …

And the paint parade keeps on coming for Idaho State. …

Timeout at 15:34 — Bradley 40, Idaho State 40

One thing, Bradley is doing a nice job off inbounds plays under the basket. Roberts just scored in the lane off a set play coming out of the timeout. Braves have scored 12 points off the IB plays. … Of course,  they gave the 2 right back with an easy layup. Idaho State now leads 26-10 in the paint. …

NICE drive by DSE, right to the rack, splitting the defense. … Thompson gets off the bench, so we’ll finally see him shortly. He comes in with Warren, who has three fouls. …

Mr. Collins, the ref just decided he has had enough of O’Brien, who was griping about a foul on Dunson drive to the basket. O’Brien was hollering about the imaginary box, but I’m not sure why. Anyway, Collins looked at him and yelled: “That’s it! Enough!” Meanwhile, Dunson is on the floor, and it looks like his left hand or wrist is injured in the crash. So he’ll come out. And O’Brien, due to another new rule, gets to choose who from Bradley will shoot the FT. This is taking a while to sort out, because O’Brien has to pick someone who’s on the court. He picked McCain, who was re-entering for Dunson, but he can’t do that. So he finally settles on Thompson. … This rule is going to result in some delays. Thompson makes one of the two, and Bradley is up 48-44. …

Three more second-chance points for Idaho State. …

DSE is playing a nice game for Bradley. Just got to the basket for two more points. … But BU can still stop nothing in the paint. Thompson gets beat to the rim. …

Timeout at 10:07 — Bradley 50, Idaho State 49

I don’t put much stock in comparing scores against common opponents, but the fact that Idaho State lost by 20 at Iowa State on Friday is a bit of a concern if you’re a Bradley fan. Iowa State is a strong inside team, with some real size. If Bradley is unable to keep a not-too-big Idaho State team out of the paint, what kind of field day might Iowa State have in there? There are other variables, yes. Bradley’s guard play should be better than Iowa State’s — but it’s certainly not dominating Idaho State, so …

Warren makes a 3 and then follows his own missed 3 for a putback. He did that against BYU, too. You don’t see a lot of 3-point shooters score off their own misses. I like this. But Bradley needs to get the ball in his hands a lot more. …

Timeout at 7:58 — Bradley 56, Idaho State 51

DSE scores again, after Singh corrals an ORB for the Braves. I’m liking DSE. Lots of poise for a freshman, and he’s getting to the basket strong. Really, he’s about the only Bradley player who is even making a serious effort to do that. No timidity. Just does it.

Four fouls on Warren at 4:06. Gets it trying to stop a drive by Gilchrest. … I didn’t think BU would have an easy time, but I wasn’t thinking a one-point game here, either. 60-59, Braves. … Just utter inability to stop Idaho State from getting to the basket. The rebounding has been better here in the second half; about even. …

And just as I say that, Idaho State gets two — TWO! – ORBs and scores on the second, with a bunch of Braves flat-footed. …

We’re talking DSE again. He takes a baseline pass in the corner, head fakes and gets to the rim, where they foul him. He’ll go to the line after the timeout. …

Timeout at 2:36 – Idaho State 63, Bradley 62

DSE makes both to put BU back in the lead. Like him. Like him. … And he’s playing some strong D, too. … Roberts now gets to the basket with a drive reminiscent of Theron Wilson, scores and gets fouled. Converts for a four-point lead. … Les is platooning McCain and Warren now, defense for McCain and offense for Warren. … Bengals score quickly and call time at 1:41, with a two-point game. …

Maniscalco rains a 3 at 1:10. Nice move with the ball and pulls up. … BU 70-65. …

Three-point game after a jumper by Amorrow Morgan for ISU. … Bradley spreads and waits and draws a foul at :26.4. Maniscalco to the line for double-bonus and makes both. Idaho State misses a quick shot and DSE is the man on the spot again, scrambling for a loose ball off a teammate and saving it from going OB. .., Now, that can be a bad move under the opposition basket, as he tosses it back in blind — I’m sure he’ll hear about that. But Maniscalco corrals it, gets fouled and splits the FTs. … Now, Gilchrest gets ANOTHER ORB for Idaho State, and with a four-point game at :08.3, the Bengals are not dead yet. Would have been if BU had kept Gilchrest off the boards, and Bradley is probably still going to pull this one out. But, man, the Braves are getting outhustled on the glass. ….

Final score — Bradley 74, Idaho State 69

Best news of the night: DSE. Second-best news of the night, Bradley covers the 70 needed for the free dinners on the back of the tickets.

Tipoff is still 30 minutes away, but let’s set the tone here.

I am not at the game. (Don’t worry, though. My colleague Dave Reynolds found his way to the Marriott Center. Not sure how many times he got lost between his hotel and the court, but he’s there.) I don’t have DirecTV. My brother, Pete, does, but he’s gone tonight and I didn’t want to impose on his lovely wife,  Carol. So … I went searching. Figured I would check out the new neighborhood pub. And, living two blocks from the Bradley campus, that means … The Fieldhouse, which just opened in Campustown.

Not just big screens here. Monster screens. A nice atmosphere, too. Seems to be doing a good biz tonight. There are Bradley banners on the walls, and Bradley fans (in addition to students) taking up the seats and chowing down and drinking. I’m about to join them.

I’ll be back …

Taylor Brown is not dressed and won’t play. The official announcement refers to violation of team rules. We can only speculate that it might — emphasis on might — have something to do with his arrest in September after his altercation on campus with a non-student. But youneverknow. Coach Jim Les stated on Twitter a bit ago that discipline now pays dividends in the future.

Starting lineup for the Braves: Maniscalco, McCain, Dunson, Warren and Singh. So Big Sam instead of Egolf in the post.

Game on

Nice first sequence on offense, with McCain getting a basket underneath, even though he drops the ball. BTW, the crowd here boos the lineup. They wanted Egolf in the lineup.

Anybody want to bet an over/under on BYU 3s? Emery splashes one from well beyond the arc with a man on to put BYU up 3-2. (This after Singh blows a bunny for BU).

Egolf replaces Singh. And there’s an offensive RB and second-chance bucket for BYU. Can’t have much of that. Big problem for the Braves the past couple of seasons. Not good to see that in the first three minutes of this one.

First TV timeout at 15:44 — BYU 5, Bradley 2

Impressions of the opening minutes: Bradley is in a bit of a rush on offense; couple of forced shots after good patience the first two possessions. The Braves are really going to have to get back and be aware of BYU shooters in transition. They spot up quick and don’t hesitate to launch.

Turnovers have to stop, too. BU a bit sloppy with the ball right now.

Fredette can’t penetrate for the Cougars, so he just nails a 3 instead. And now Bradley stands around and watches BYU fly in for another ORB and two more second-chance points. BYU up 10-4.

This is no way to start a game. Giving up 3s and ORBs and and post baskets. And the first illegal screen of the season is called on BU at the 13-minute mark. Sorry, didn’t see who did it.

Timeout at 11:57 — BYU 12, Bradley 4

This could get ugly. Then again, BU could get its collective head together and start to play basketball. Seems to be an awful lot of jitters for a veteran team. Really wasn’t expecting to see that. The problem is the Braves are not doing little things well: rebounding, handling, screening.

Anthony Thompson is in the post for Bradley. So far, he’s at least active.

Half of BU’s points now are on four Maniscalco FTs.

And another BYU ORB. This time, a foul on the Braves after the fact. Bradley’s boards reek.

The only thing keeping BU in contact at the moment is BYU fouling and Maniscalco going to the line. He has six now and Bradley is down only five. But the Braves just gave up another ORB. That’s four by my count. BYU didn’t score it this time, but just way too many second chances.

Maniscalco hits a top-key 3. Maybe that will start to loosen things up. And maybe not. He just clanked one on the next possession. The rebound goes OB and Les takes his first-half time at 8:20, with BYU up 17-13.

BYU works the clock and gets an open 3. Good.

So far, Andrew Warren is utterly silent for BU. Cougars have him bottled up. He needs to get open. Looks to be too much standing, and there’s not enough else going on to spring him open. Result is Bradley has not much offense.

Timeout at 7:00 — BYU 20, Bradley 13

There’s Warren. Long 3 is good. All it took was a little movement to get him open. And he didn’t need much daylight. Nice shot on the move.

Bradley is more active now, though. Hanging a little better. Egolf scores on a flash to the post. … But BYU comes right back with a 2, then a 3. And BU needs a timeout down 9.

McCain can’t buy a basket. Seems as if he’s trying too hard.

Timeout at 3:47 — BYU 27, Bradley 18

Stix! Thompson goes for a RB, gets fouled and makes both FTs. Some production in the post. Braves need more. A LOT more.

… OK, lost my Net connection for a few minutes.

Halftime — BYU 32, Bradley 25

Got a little wild there at the end of the half. Bradley was working for a final shot, with a little less than one second between game and shot clocks. When Maniscalco finally started going, he got nothing. Loose ball wound up way out on the sideline and Bradley player (sorry, the telecast is not in HD, and my angle is a little cloudy, so I couldn’t see exactly who it was) swishes a long 3 at the buzzer. But it’s wiped out. It beat the game clock, but not the time clock. BYU gets a final heave at 0.7 and rims it from 3/4-court.

If Bradley gets that 3 down, the margin is only 4 at halftime. I think the Braves are lucky to be down only 7, considering they’ve played ragged. They sure can’t count on BYU fouling so much in the second half. They’re going to have to score out of the offense, and get inside. Just getting nothing inside. BYU’s defense is pretty good, but Bradley is aiding and abetting.

Bradley also has to stop those ORBs. Thompson helped some on that front in the latter part of the half. Good to see him playing and contributing.

Game is not out of reach. But the Braves have to tough up and start to execute. Really disappointing half for an experienced team.

Second half, coming up ….

BYU starts with a 3, and Maniscalco answers. That’s a bad sign followed by a good one.

Now Warren hits a 3, but Bradley is a 2-point seive on the other end.

Singh gets an ORB. But BU can’t capitalize. Nice possession, though. And a turnover to get the ball back. Now McCain grabs an ORB, and Singh scores in the post. Margin down to 6.

Bradley is much more alive this half. Hard to believe they came out so flat for the opening half of the opening game, but that’s past. Time to get back into the game. Egolf scores on a baseline jumper off a penetration feed from Maniscalco and it’s a 4-point game. Thompson and Egolf are in the game together. Like to see that, going big.

Great follow and running rebound putback by Warren cuts the margin to 2. It’s a follow of his own shot. Really nice play. Now a turnover on BYU.

Timeout at 15:00 — BYU 39, Bradley 37

This is more like it. The challenge now for Bradley is to keep it up. Can’t let this opening stretch be just a quickie. Back in position now. No excuse for letting the game get away. Might not win, but no reason the Braves can’t take this to the wire. Or maybe they can even take control — although that’s going to be a big task.

Bradleyd comes out of the timeout with a set play. Reverse the flow left to right, then Maniscalco lobs back to Chris Roberts for the lob and slam. Tie game. For a few seconds. BYU gets the lead right back, and then Egolf blows a wide-open backdoor layup.

Third foul on Maniscalco. That’s not good.

Now BYU gets an ORB, and Egolf fouls on the putback. At least BYU is a little rocky at the line. Davies misses both FTs, and the BYU stays at 4.

Warren is more active and playing better now. Putting the ball on the floor, following to the boards. He drives and gets fouled, and two FTs later, it’s a 2-point game.

I like this use of two big guys. Egolf and Thompson again. Thompson executes a nice screen-and-roll and gets fouled at the hoop. Not a shooting foul, though. I like what he’s doing. Potential encouraging.

Timeout at 11:39 — BYU 45, Bradley 41

Roberts drives to the rack and in midair avoids Davies, who tries to pick up the charge. Roberts scores, but can’t make the FT. Bradley much better this half on offense, though.

FTs might decide this game. BYU still struggling at the line. Five-point game.

Can’t trade baskets, though. Braves work hard to get a nice basket and then give up an easy one. Score and get back quick. Didn’t happen that time.

BYU starting to stretch it out again: 52-45, thanks to a couple of BU turnovers and a lapse on the the boards under the Cougars basket. Second-chances. Killer. Now Les needs a timeout at 9:11, with BYU up 54-45. Exactly what Bradley could not afford to allow.

Uh-oh. Gonna turn into this kind of night? BU gets a steal, and then Maniscalco gets fouled — but not called — on the drive to the basket. Ball ruled off Sammy and OB. BYU returns on the other end and now the Coogs are making the FTs. Lead is 10.

Oooooh. That was scarry Lon Kruger’s face just appeared on the screen, promoting an upcoming UNLV game on the MTN.

Play getting ragged. Bradley needs to regroup and get back in this. Roberts tosses one up out of control, but it goes in.

Timeout at 7:12 — BYU 56, Bradley 48

The encouraging thing is that the Braves are still hanging on, with Taylor Brown on the bench. Don’t know that he would make a big enough difference for BU to be closer at this point, but I’m thinking probably. Braves have to hang tough, get another run and then see what happens.

Great graphics work, TV crew. Not. Put two big honkers up there just as play resumed on an inbounds play, and we missed it. Bradley retains possession. Foul on BYU’s Emery, but now the Braves are cold at the line. Missed four in a row.

I think I’d like to see Egolf and Thompson back together. … Yuk, BYU gets three — THREE!!! — ORBs and finally scores. And now Singh gets a post shot blocked. BYU up 10 and looking to extend.

Timeout at 5:47 — BYU 58, Bradley 48

And there’s a 3. Big trouble for BU now.

Hold the phone. Warren scores on the move off a dish from Roberts and gets fouled; converts the FT. Bradley gets a stop, with Egolf stealing. Braves miss, but Egolf flies in for the board and slams the ball off BYU foot OB. Braves need to score here. Hope still flickering if they can score. Roberts at the line. Time for this guy to make a FT. Or two. He hits the first, and the second. Margin 8. Life.

Roberts hits a 3 on a nice sequence that leaves him wide open for a feed from Maniscalco. And BYU called for traveling in the post. Margin is 7, and BU has a chance to cut. Like the fight. Not folding up, even though the opportunity was there.

Tough sequence and Bradley comes up empty, but great hustle. BYU gets a fastbreak, but can’t convert. Roberts gets a good foul. Hammer the man so he can’t score. So sick and tired of guys that foul on close-in shots and don’t stop the man from scoring. If you’re going to foul, FOUL! Roberts did it. Forces BYU to the line.

The under-four-minute timeout — BYU 63, Bradley 56

Davies splits his FTs and it’s an 8-point game. Getting close to trouble, though. Bradley can’t convert and now BYU back at the line with 3:16 to go. If BU can’t make something happen soon, it’s going to be spread-and-chase-and-foul. Lead back to 10 on the FTs. And now Roberts steps OB.

I think that’s about it.

Final score — BYU 70, Bradley 60

About what I expected without Taylor Brown. Doubt he would have resulted in a win, but a closer game, yes.

Quick postgame thoughts:

Maniscalco was Maniscalco; solid, not spectacular. Warren was OK, brilliant a couple of times, but was defended really well. His teammates need to provide more help. Roberts was fair. McCain was disappointing. I still believe in the kid, but seems like he’s trying to do too much. Some nice minutes from freshman Dyricus Simms-Edwards. The post play has a long way to go. And it needs to get better fast if the Braves are going to get mileage out of their non-con schedule for NCAA resume purposes. I’m encouraged by Thompson. He’s ready to play more. I really liked the few minutes he and Egolf were on the floor together. Not sure why we didn’t see more of that.

Next game in less than 48 hours. Sunday night at home vs. Idaho State.

Thanks to the Fieldhouse for hospitality. Good food (I paid, this was not gratis, nor should it be). Great atmosphere. Much appreciated.

I asked Jim Les this afternoon about the status of  forward Taylor Brown for tonight’s season opener at BYU in light of Brown’s arrest in September on a misdemeanor battery charge.

Les responded by citing his policy of not discussing publicly the potential playing status of his players so as not to give opponents a competitive advantage. The policy extends to injuries and any other circumstance.

In other words, if Brown has been suspended by Les from playing in this game — or any future games — the coach doesn’t want BYU or other future opponents to be able to prepare for Bradley knowing such a significant member of the team is unavailable.

Brown was the Braves’ leading scorer and rebounder during the Brazil trip and started the exhibition game Sunday against Lewis, scoring 12 points and grabbing eight rebounds.

So if Brown is not starting, or playing at all tonight, we can assume it’s related to the September incident in which Brown slugged an ICC student on the BU campus.  

Would such a suspension continue beyond tonight? We’ll have to see how it plays out.

Nothing but cheers for the decision to redshirt Bradley freshmen Jordan Prosser and Jake Eastman. They become the second and third Braves to redshirt their first season in the past three years, following the footsteps of Anthony Thompson. The potential for greater dividends in the future is high.

Bradley coach Jim Les said this Wednesday at his news conference:  “You look at the better programs around the country at our level and they’re winning with fifth-year seniors. They’re winning with older guys.”

The biggest accomplishment of Les’s tenure at Bradley, the NCAA Sweet 16 run in 2006, was built around a fifth-year senior, Marcellus Sommerville. That redshirt wasn’t by Bradley’s design; Sommerville having started his career with a redshirt year at Iowa before leaving to spend a year at Southeastern Illinois en route to a three-year Bradley career. But Sommerville was 24 years old when the Braves marched into the NCAA tournament. That’s a huge physical advantage over an 18- or 19-year-old, even one who’s a phenom.

Marquee schools, the BCS types, which attract the prep All-Americans, have fewer fourth- and fifth-year players in their programs these days, as those kids head quickly to the NBA. But one way mid-major programs are able to compete with those teams is with older, veteran players.

Gonzaga, which has set the standard for what a mid-major, non-football school can accomplish in Division I basketball, used redshirting as one of the pillars to build its program. That practice at Gonzaga is chronicled in Bud Withers‘ excellent book, “BraveHearts: The Against-All-Odds Rise of Gonzaga Basketball,” and dates at least to the mid-1990s, when current head coach Mark Few was an assistant.  Matt Santangelo, arguably the leader of the Zags’ breakthrough teams in 1999 and 2000, redshirted as a freshman. Jeremy Eaton, another key player on the 1999 Elite Eight team, redshirted in mid-career. The practice continues to this day. The Zags redshirted three players last season, when they were loaded with vets.

It just makes sense on so many levels. First, there’s the strength-and-maturity factor. Then there’s the simple fact that, unless the player encounters serious injury or becomes a head case, you’re certain to get better production out of him later in his career. So why not combine the two and enhance the entire package?

Few explains, in Withers’ book: “Maybe you’ll play eight minutes as a freshman, but if you look at the potential at the back end, that could be a 32- or 33-minute (per game) year.”

Bradley guard Andrew Warren took a redshirt last season because of a broken foot.  Yes, the Braves missed his production, but he now has two seasons remaining. At 6-5 and 205 pounds, he’s much stronger now than he was a year ago. Effectively, what Bradley has the chance to get from Warren now is two senior years.

Speaking of Prosser and Eastman, Warren said: “They’re going to be able to do extra work in the weight room. Do that over the year, then the whole next summer, that will get their bodies more physically ready for this level of play. It’ll be a positive for those young guys, and for the program.”

Les said both Prosser and Eastman haved qualities that could contribute to the Braves now. For example, he said, “I’m sure there will be a game when we’re not shooting well and I look down there for Jake, knowing we could use his shot.” But the reality is the minutes for both would be limited. Better to save them for a lot more big, productive minutes in the future.

Another advantage to the program is that Prosser and Eastman give Bradley two freshmen next season, without having to sign any. Three scholarships will be available, and one remains committed to John Wilkins, despite the growing prospect that he won’t wind up at BU. Two could still be offered. But this year’s class of high school seniors isn’t particularly deep. If Bradley doesn’t sign a freshman, there won’t be an empty class in the future. Les said that had no bearing on the decision to encourage Prosser and Eastman to redshirt. Still, it’s nice to have a situation where not signing a player — if it comes to that — doesn’t leave a gaping hole in future rosters.

Based on Brigham Young’s 82-46 thumping of Central Washington in Tuesday night’s exhibition game at Provo, Utah, the Cougars appear to be primed and ready for Bradley’s visit Friday night in the regular-season opener for both teams.

BYU shot 50 percent from the field, making 34 of 68 shots. Two freshmen — small forward Tyler Haws and center Brandon Davies — have cracked the starting lineup and played well Tuesday.

Haws had 14 points and Davies 11 with eight rebounds. They’re joined in the lineup by three returning starters — Jonathan Tavernari (14 points 7 rebounds), Jackson Emery and top scorer Jimmer Fredette (15 points, 6 rebounds).

The Cougars love to run and have the talent and depth to do so well.

For Bradley, this is likely the most challenging season opener since beginning the 2000-01 season at 23rd-ranked USC when the Braves lost a shootout 107-92.

PRE-GAME

A very first-day of school feel to Carver Arena today. Everybody catching up  with each other after seven months away.

The same thing is true of the Braves today as well, at least on the public stage after their closed scrimmage with DePaul last weekend. They’ll learn something, but at the moment nobody is quite sure what that is or how it will play out down the road as the season unfolds.

11:23 left first half

Not a lot to write home about in the early going for the Braves. Will Egolf picked up two fouls early. Anthony Thompson made a nice block on a baseline drive but after batting the ball around on teh glass a few times, Lewis’s Marty Strus finally tipped it in for a 4-0 lead. It wasn’t until Chris Roberts got to the  line was Bradley able to get on the board.

Maybe it’s the Sunday start but Carver Arena sounds like a church. Quiet. The loudest its been was when Andrew Warren came off the bench at teh 13:44 mark and then hit a 3-pointer less then a minute later to Bradley briefly on top 7-6 before Lewis came right back and scored.

There’s way too much drive and kick in the Bradley offense at the moment, which is fine when Warren and Maniscalco are on the floor to finish. But in the first five minutes that wasn’t there and the Braves were held without a field goal.

3:27 left first half

Sam Singh checked in with 8:49 left in the half sporting long sleeves underneath his jersey.

Bradley still struggled to get anything going offensively. They were shooting 3-for-13 at the officials’ time out at 7:.59. At that point, too Lewis assistant coach Condric Sanders asked Dave Reynolds on press row how many 3s the Flyers had taken (1-for-7).  We think since they only took 16 shots total, that seven chances might be too many.

Lewis coach Scott Trost called out for “Iverson” to be run. Which of course makes one wonder if they’ve practiced that play.

Bradley finally came alive on the offensive boards getting two off the glass before Taylor Brown was finally able to finish. Brown scored the last six Bradley points to put them on top 22-21 at the time out.

Halftime: Lewis 29, Bradley 27

It’s only 20 minutes of the only exhibition game of the season, but its tough picking out things to like so far.

The first (maybe only?) was the play of Taylor Brown. He added a spark late in the half, but it wasn’t picked up on by his teammates.

Dyricus Simms-Edwards played the final three minutes of the half and hit a 3.  Jordan Prosser played the final 1:24 of the half.

At the start of the game, the Braves seemed awfully small on the floor and trouble rebounding did little to prove the impression false.

The offense was a lot better with Maniscalco and Warren on the floor together.

The defense got caught at the buzzer when they cut off the drive, but Chris McClellan was able to hit a 3 at the buzzer for the two-point Lewis lead at the half.

14:49 left in the second half

Andrew Warren looks like his old self with a game high 17 points includig eight of Bradley’s 11 so far in the second half. This is a big first test for him coming off the injury. It’s one thing to handle practices and workouts but the big confidence builder tends to come after live game action.

Still not much in the way of flow to the second half. Everytime BU looks like its ready to pull away,  Lewis responds.

8:39  left in the second half

The Braves are letting the Flyers hang around, which is not a good thing.  Dodie Dunson does a nice job getting to the basket and getting fouled, but Milos Knezevic steps into the lane too early to negate the 3-point play.

The Braves force a shot-clock violation, up 48-43, but Eddren McCain gets whistled for a technical at 9:34. David Bryant missed both free throws to keep it a five-point game until Andrew Warren comes in with a basket and forces Lewis to call timeout. Maybe now, the Braves will be able to open up the score.

Final: Bradley 68, Lewis 63

Bradley did open the game, maybe not to the greatest comfort level after Lewis closed the gap in the final two minutes when Bradley had four freshmen and Dodie Dunson on the floor.

Bradley did a much better job rebounding in the second half which limited Lewis’s chances.Although if it can do that against more physical Valley teams will be a question to be answered later.

The Braves also took advantage at the line, which a team is supposed to do in games like this as well although the free throw attempts weren’t all that much greater in number while the game was in doubt.

Andrew Warren is healthy, as proven by his 21 points. Taylor Brown will be as exciting as advertised.

So for now a wait-and-see verdict is about the best that can be decided from this one.

Bradley’s Sunday exhibition opponent, Lewis University, should provide a test for the Braves based on its first public showing.

The Division II Flyers gave Notre Dame all it wanted, leading 44-42 with 14 minutes left before Big East preseason Player of the Year Luke Harangody took over the game to lead the Irish to a 70-54 win at South Bend.

Harangody scored 33 points — 18 in the last 12:42 — as four of the ND starters played at least 35 minutes.

Lewis lost its top two scorers from a year ago, but point guard Chris McClellan and 6-10 center Marty Strus, who combined for 34 points, appear to be the Flyers’ leaders.

The game is at Carver Arena at 2:05 p.m.

After playing professionally in Germany for a season, former Brave Jeremy Crouch is back in town helping out his alma mater.

A foot injury kept the Pekin native from returning to Europe this year. So he’s lending a hand at BU practices and keeping his options open for student teaching. He doesn’t have an official role with the Braves, but may work into a graduate assistantship.

“Europe was a great experience,” he said. “We visited several cities. I think I liked Prague best. There’s so much history there.”

Crouch wants to be a coach someday, but may not be ready to hang up his sneakers just yet.

“I may look at going to Europe again next year,” he said. “We’ll see what happens.”

Ex-Brave David Collins is also in town, working out and finishing his degree.