Evansville Purple Aces vs Bradley Braves Prediction, 12/29/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Evansville Purple Aces vs Bradley Braves

Date: Monday, December 29, 2025

Location: Carver Arena in Peoria, IL

TV: ESPN+

The Bradley Braves (9-4) welcome the Evansville Purple Aces (4-9) at Carver Arena on Monday.

The Evansville Purple Aces stepped onto the hardwood against Drake and took a loss by a final of 66-65 in their last game. Evansville ended with a 39.6% FG percentage (21 out of 53) and made 7 out of their 23 shots from beyond the arc. At the free throw line, the Purple Aces made 16 of their 22 shots for a rate of 72.7%. In regard to grabbing boards, they earned a total of 33 with 10 of them being of the offensive variety. They also recorded 10 assists for the game as well as forcing the other team into 10 turnovers and getting 8 steals. When it comes to defense, Evansville allowed their opponent to shoot 45.6% from the floor on 26 out of 57 shooting. Drake earned 13 dimes and had 7 steals in this game. Furthermore, Drake totaled 27 boards (5 offensive, 22 defensive), but didn't notch a rejection. Drake shot 45.5% when shooting free throws by burying 5 of 11 attempts. They buried 9 out of their 25 attempts from 3-point land. Regarding personal fouls, the Purple Aces ended up finishing with 14 and Drake recorded 20 personal fouls.

Connor Turnbull is one guy who was a major contributor for the game. He recorded 20 points on 8 out of 18 shooting. He played 28 mins and also collected 15 boards. He finished the game at 44.4% from the field and also recorded 1 assist.

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Evansville enters this game with a record of 4-9 this year. They are giving up possession 12.7 times per game and as a squad they are committing 17.2 personal fouls on a nightly basis. As a team, Evansville is pulling down 33.8 rebounds per contest and has 177 dimes for the year, which ranks 222nd in Division 1 in terms of passing the ball. The Purple Aces are connecting on 31.1% from downtown (98 of 315) and 70.8% from the charity stripe. They are averaging 69.4 pts per game (323rd in the country) while going 42.0% from the field.

Defensively, the Purple Aces are forcing their opponents into 13.1 turnovers per contest while drawing 19.2 personal fouls. They are surrendering 37.3% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are ranked 180th in Division 1 in points per game allowed (72.8). The Purple Aces defensively are giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 43.9% (325 of 741) and they surrender 35.4 boards per game as a unit. They are 228th in D-1 in allowing assists to the opposition with 174 surrendered for the season.

The last time they took the court, the Bradley Braves got the win with a final of 73-69 against Southern Illinois. The Braves earned 24 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive boards for a total of 33 in this game. They gave up possession of the ball 14 times, while getting 8 steals in this contest. Southern Illinois was called for 21 fouls in the game which took the Braves to the charity stripe for 20 tries. They were able to bury 18 of the free throws for a clip of 90.0%. In the matter of shots from distance, Bradley converted 7 out of 16 attempts (43.8%). In all, the Braves went 24 out of 58 from the field which gave them a percentage of 41.4%. The Braves permitted Southern Illinois to convert 27 out of 61 attempts from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 44.3% for this game. They finished the game shooting 15.8% from 3-point land via 3 of 19 and walked away from this one shooting 12 out of 18 at the charity stripe (66.7%). In regard to how they cleaned up the glass, Bradley allowed Southern Illinois to grab 32 overall (10 offensive).

Jaquan Johnson ended up being important for the Braves for this game. He earned 20 points in his 33 minutes on the court and accumulated 4 dimes for this contest. He made 4 out of 12 for this contest giving him a rate of 33.3%, and added 5 rebounds.

Bradley has a win-loss record of 9-4 for the year. As an offense, the Braves are shooting 44.3% from the field, which is 247th in college hoops. Bradley has accounted for 1,020 pts for the campaign (78.5 per contest) and they collect 34.5 rebounds per game. They are assisting teammates 13.4 times per game (262nd in college) and they are giving up possession 10.7 times per contest. The Braves are responsible for committing 18.5 personal fouls every game and they hit 72.6% from the free throw line.

The Braves defensively are ranked 95th in Division 1 in PPG given up with 69.5. They are forcing 16.8 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 43.0% from the field (164th in D-1). The Bradley defense concedes 34.0% on 3-pointers (100 of 294) and opponents are knocking down 70.0% of their shots from the free throw line. They have given up 12.3 dimes and 36.5 rebounds on a nightly basis, which is ranked 104th and 270th in college hoops.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Bradley

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