Bradley boxscore in PDF

The Maryville men's basketball team battled NCAA Division I Bradley to the final horn but the Braves held the Saints off 61-53 in an exhibition game for Maryville Thursday night in Peoria, Ill.
 
Marvin Grant-Clark scored the game's first points on a corner 3-pointer as the Saints grabbed the early lead. After the Braves scored on one free throw, Karson King hit a jumper in the lane.  Maryville was still up 5-3 when Grant-Clark converted a layup, and Saikou Jallow scored inside for a 9-3 lead at the 15:28 mark.
 
Bradley scored a bucket but Forrester Sims knocked down a jumper and Jallow drained a long 3-pointer just before the shot clock buzzer expired for a 14-5 margin seven minutes into the contest. However, the Braves reeled off 10 straight points to take their first lead 15-14 at the 9:31 mark. Bradley stretched its lead to 24-14 before Jallow scored on a layup to snap the BU run. Max Mischkulnig powered for a bucket inside to pull the Saints to 24-18. Bradley used a 10-3 run to take a 34-21 lead at halftime.
 
The Saints got as close as nine points but the Braves rebuilt a 43-30 lead with 12 minutes to play. Maryville made a charge as Damyan Stoyanov sank a 3-pointer, and Mischkulnig hit two free throws. Stoyanov hit a jumper as the Saints cut their deficit to 43-37 with 9:57 left in the game. Bradley stretched its lead to double-digits at 51-40 before King made one free throw and Forrester Sims drilled a triple to pull the Saints to 51-44 with 5:28 remaining. The teams traded free throws, and Grant-Clark's pair at the stripe brought the Saints to within 53-46. The Saints had two shots to inch even closer but were unable to trim the deficit to less than seven. The Braves held on down the stretch to improve to 2-9 on the season.
 
Jallow led the Saints with 14 points and eight rebounds to go along with three assists. Grant-Clark battled foul trouble and finished with 11 points and six boards. The Saints, who had shot at least 50 percent in their last three games, finished with just a 40.0 field goal percentage. Antoine Pittman led the Braves with 11 points.
 
The Saints return to regular-season action Saturday, Dec. 19, as they host the Maryville Classic. UMSL and Trevecca Nazarene start play at 1 p.m., and the Saints host Saint Leo in a 3 p.m. start.