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Bradley and Tulsa open up CBI Championship Series

Mon 31st, March 2008

Tulsa, OK (Sports Network) - Game One of the College Basketball Invitational Championship Series takes place this evening at the Reynolds Center, as the Tulsa Golden Hurricane play host to the Bradley Braves. This is a best-of- three series, with a game in Peoria scheduled for Wednesday, and a third game if necessary slated for Friday back in Tulsa.

The Braves have navigated the tournament field with wins over Cincinnati (70-67) and Ohio University (79-73), followed by a huge road win at Virginia (96-85) in semifinal action last Wednesday. With the victory over the Cavaliers, Bradley earned its 20th win of the season. The Braves are seeking their fifth postseason title, attempting to add to their four NIT crowns (1957, 1960, 1964 and 1982).

The Golden Hurricane found their way into the finals with wins over Miami-Ohio (61-45), Utah (69-60) and most recently, a narrow decision over C-USA foe Houston (73-69). The win over the Cougars pushed Tulsa's overall record to an impressive 23-13.

These are two programs that are very familiar with one another, as this game marks the 100th all-time meeting between these two former Missouri Valley Conference rivals, with Bradley holding a 60-39 advantage. However, this is the first time these two teams have met since Tulsa posted a 60-46 win over Bradley in the 1996 MVC Tournament Championship Game.

The Braves erupted offensively against Virginia last week, as they netted 96 points, 22 points above their season average of 74.0 ppg. Jeremy Crouch was responsible for a good portion of that offense, hitting 9-of-18 shots from the floor, including five three-pointers, en route to a game-high 27 points. The other four starters also finished in double figures, with Theron Wilson pouring in 17 points, followed by Matt Salley, Andrew Warren and Daniel Ruffin all chipping in with 11 points. Salley was effective on the glass as well, registering a double-double with 10 rebounds. Crouch is the team's top offensive option this season, averaging 15.9 ppg. He has upped that production in this event, averaging 20.7 ppg in three tournament games. Ruffin adds 14.3 ppg on the year and has put up 10.3 ppg in the postseason. Warren (13.2 ppg) and Wilson (11.6 ppg) have contributed as well this year, including 14.0 ppg each in this tournament.

Tulsa has a young nucleus led by sophomores Ben Uzoh and Jerome Jordan. Uzoh is the team's top offensive threat on the year, averaging 15.7 ppg. The 6-3 youngster is shooting a solid .495 from the floor and is tied for the team- lead with 52 three-pointers. Jordan is one of the better young centers in the college ranks and has showed that all season long, as the seven-footer is converting almost 60 percent from the floor (.586) and putting up 10.3 ppg, 7.6 rpg, while amassing 129 blocks. In tournament play, Jordan has been downright dominant in the paint, averaging 12.0 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.7 blocked shots per game. Uzoh has been the focal point along the perimeter, netting 20.0 points per tournament game, while shooting 51-percent from the field. In the four-point win over Houston in the semifinals, it was the Uzoh and Jordan show again. Uzoh converted half of his 14 shots in the game and paced the team with 22 points. Jordan was unstoppable down low, finishing with 18 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks. Rod Earls came off the bench to tack on 11 points.

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