What was the lineup? Who looked good? What Bradley learned from its exhibition win

PEORIA — The Bradley Braves used an exhibition game against Illinois Wesleyan as a learning curve Wednesday.

And the Braves produced plenty of positives, and discovered they have some things to straighten out after thumping IWU 79-64 before 3,528 at Carver Arena.

Malevy Leons delivered the kind of game that will make those who left him off their Missouri Valley Conference preseason honors ballot sorry.

Duke Deen showed quick hands and an impressive passing game, Ja'Shon Henry owned the inside, and Darius Hannah ignited the crowd with a windmill dunk on a night that had a lot of things to like for Bradley.

"I knew it would be tough, we haven't been in this arena much yet and haven't played much in front of our fans yet," Bradley coach Brian Wardle said. "There's real highs and lows when you play an exhibition.

"I didn't like our competitive spirit and toughness at times. But I got them fired up and they responded. We had a lot of good, positive things happen, good ball movement, extra passes, paint touches, kicks …"

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In the beginning

Bradley started guards Connor Hickman and Duke Deen, with forwards Malevy Leons and Zek Montgomery and Darius Hannah at the 5 for injured Rienk Mast.

"Not sure who I'm starting Monday," Wardle said, referring to the season opener.

Leons poured in 18 points and hit 4 of 5 from 3-point range, while also grabbing four rebounds in less than 26 minutes.

The Braves broke it open after the first media timeout, going on a 13-point run over 3:28 in which Henry scored twice at the rim, and Hannah jammed home an alley-oop from Hickman.

Hannah hammered down a windmill dunk with 4:44 left in the half for a 36-20 lead and the Braves never looked back.

Things we learned

• Ja'Shon Henry and Goanar Biliew were the first two off the bench for BU, replacing Montgomery and Hannah.

Biliew struggled a bit in 13-plus minutes, grabbing two rebounds, missing two shots from the field and going 1-of-4 from the free-throw line.

Connor Linke played 3:29 and had four rebounds.

"Goanar and Linke are competing for those minutes (behind Hannah)," Wardle said. "I thought Goanar was really good against St. Louis (in a closed scrimmage) but tonight he couldn't find his rhythm, his consistency.

"Tonight was great for these guys to be able to learn."

• The Braves had 15 offensive rebounds toward an effort on the glass in which they topped IWU 40-30. Henry had seven boards and Montgomery six.

"Offensive rebounds are a number we pride ourselves on," Wardle said. "If we can keep that going, we're going to put up 79 points in a game."

• Wardle, on his two new point guards, Duke Deen and Pop Weathers: "I thought Duke had some really good moments. He'll find consistency. He and Pop (Weathers) can make some plays. Everyone had some good moments."

• On starting slow: "We didn't defend very well to start either half," Wardle said. "So defensively we're behind. We gotta get better quick to beat these good teams coming up on our schedule."

• IWU was surprisingly aggressive. "We got out-toughed," Wardle said. "They were more physical than we were at times."

• On rising forward Malevy Leons: "Malevy has been assertive so far," Wardle said. "It's going to be a fun year if he keeps going."

The view from the players

"This was definitely good for guys to get experience in Carver Arena," Leons said. "I felt good. There was some tension and excitement before the game."

Said Montgomery: "I feel like I can come in and help our team as long as I stay mentally locked in."

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The bottom line

What was the best thing the Braves did? "We turned them over a lot (20 times)," Wardle said. "They are a very disciplined team, don't turn it over a lot."

What needs to get better? "Defensively, there's going to be a lot of breakdowns, gambling, being undisciplined … I think there's going to be a lot of things I see, defensively, that we have to clean up," Wardle said.

The bottom line? "I have to get our team to practice like it's playing Utah State every day, like it's playing Auburn, Arkansas … the teams we want to beat," Wardle said. "We have to be physical and tough every day and that's what we're still learning."

Bravely Speaking

Former Notre Dame High School guard David Williams, now a freshman at Illinois Wesleyan, was in the game late in the first half. He played 5:39 and had one assist in his debut in Carver Arena.

"This was a dream come true," Williams said. "I grew up coming to this arena, always wanted to play here. I was pretty pumped, to play here against a (Bradley) team I've always watched, it was exciting.

"I'm picking things up quickly (with IWU), just doing what they ask of me and try to be a sponge."

Illinois Wesleyan, a non-scholarship NCAA Division III program, had 22 players on its roster, 19 of whom were dressed for the game. ... The Braves shot 48.5% from the field and 41.7% from 3. … Super senior Ja'Shon Henry had 7 points and 7 rebounds in 20:46. … Guard Connor Hickman had 9 points, 6 assists and a steal in 22:33. … BU point guard Duke Deen had 7 points, 4 assists and 2 steals in 21:42. … Bradley point guard Pop Weathers had 8 points and 2 assists in 15:43. … Wing Zek Montgomery had 10 points and six rebounds. … The Braves had 14 turnovers, but no player had more than three.

Dave Eminian is the Journal Star sports columnist, and covers Bradley men's basketball, the Rivermen and Chiefs. He writes the Cleve In The Eve sports column for pjstar.com. He can be reached at 686-3206 or deminian@pjstar.com. Follow him on Twitter @icetimecleve.

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Bradley basketball: Braves win exhibition vs. Illinois Wesleyan