# 1953–54 Bradley Braves men's basketball team

The 1953–54 Bradley Braves men's basketball team represented Bradley University in college basketball during the 1953–54 season. The team finished the season with a 19–13 record and were national runners-up to La Salle University in the 1954 NCAA tournament. It was the second time in five seasons that Bradley was the national runner-up; in 1949–50, they lost to CCNY in both the NCAA and NIT championships.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| 12/1/1953* | | Illinois State | W 91–75 | 1–0 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 12/8/1953* | | Purdue | L 73–77 | 1–1 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 12/11/1953* | | at Pittsburgh Steel Bowl tournament | L 64–66 | 1–2 | Fitzgerald Field House Pittsburgh, PA |
| 12/12/1953* | | vs. Wake Forest Steel Bowl tournament | W 78–74 | 2–2 | Fitzgerald Field House Pittsburgh, PA |
| 12/14/1953* | | Alabama | L 61–63 | 2–3 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 12/21/1953* | | USC | W 79–64 | 3–3 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 12/23/1953* | | No. 19 Notre Dame | W 74–72 | 4–3 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 12/28/1953* | | Arizona | W 79–53 | 5–3 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 12/30/1953* | | Rutgers | W 89–70 | 6–3 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 1/2/1954* | | No. 19 BYU | W 77–50 | 7–3 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 1/9/1954* | | Iowa State | W 92–76 | 8–3 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 1/11/1954* | | Drake | W 93–53 | 9–3 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 1/13/1954* | | Saint Louis | W 76–59 | 10–3 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 1/16/1954* | | at Louisville | L 86–95 | 10–4 | Jefferson County Armory Louisville, KY |
| 1/18/1954* | | Houston | W 86–71 | 11–4 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 2/1/1954* | | at Arizona | L 74–87 | 11–5 | Bear Down Gym Tucson, AZ |
| 2/3/1954* | No. 18 | Tulsa | L 63–66 | 11–6 | Expo Square Pavilion Tulsa, OK |
| 2/6/1954* | No. 18 | at No. 14 Wichita State | L 83–91 | 11–7 | Wichita, KS |
| 2/9/1954* | | DePaul | W 80–69 | 12–7 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 2/12/1954* | | at Marquette | W 97–90 | 13–7 | Old Gym Milwaukee, WI |
| 2/15/1954* | | Louisville | L 90–96 | 13–8 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 2/20/1954* | | at Drake | L 74–81 | 13–9 | Drake Fieldhouse Des Moines, IA |
| 2/22/1954* | | Illinois Wesleyan | W 87–72 | 14–9 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 2/27/1954* | | at DePaul | L 76–80 $^{OT}$ | 14–10 | Chicago, IL |
| 3/3/1954* | | at Saint Louis | L 79–89 | 14–11 | Kiel Auditorium St. Louis, MO |
| 3/6/1954* | | Tulsa | W 90–69 | 15–11 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 3/8/1954* | | Marquette | L 68–76 | 15–12 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 1954 NCAA Tournament ||||||
| 3/9/1954* | | Oklahoma City NCAA First Round | W 61–55 | 16–12 | Robertson Memorial Field House Peoria, IL |
| 3/12/1954* | | vs. Colorado NCAA Quarterfinals | W 76–64 | 17–12 | Gallagher-Iba Arena Stillwater, OK |
| 3/13/1954* | | at No. 5 Oklahoma State NCAA Quarterfinals | W 71–57 | 18–12 | Gallagher-Iba Arena Stillwater, OK |
| 3/19/1954* | | vs. USC NCAA Final Four | W 74–72 | 19–12 | Municipal Auditorium Kansas City, MO |
| 3/20/1954* | | vs. No. 12 La Salle NCAA National Championship | L 76–92 | 19–13 | Municipal Auditorium Kansas City, MO |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. ||||||
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