# 2021–22 Bradley Braves men's basketball team

The 2021–22 Bradley Braves men's basketball team represented Bradley University during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Braves, led by seventh-year head coach Brian Wardle, played their home games at Carver Arena in Peoria, Illinois as members of the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC). They finished the season 17–14, 11–7 in MVC play, to finish in fifth place. They lost to Loyola in the quarterfinals of the MVC tournament.

## Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Braves finished the 2020–21 season 12–16, 6–12 in MVC play, to finish in eighth place. They lost to Southern Illinois in the first round of the MVC tournament.

## Offseason
### 2021 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Connor Hickman #10 G | Bloomington, IN | Bloomington South High School | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | 190 lb (86 kg) | Nov 11, 2020 |
| Star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: ||||||
| Max Ekono #2 G | Bouffémont, France | Scotland Prep | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | Apr 26, 2021 |
| Star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Zek Montgomery #3 G | Louisville, KY | St. Louis Christian Academy | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 205 lb (93 kg) | Jun 12, 2021 |
| Star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Scout: – Rivals: – ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Bradley Commit List for 2021". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 11, 2021. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 11, 2021. ||||||

## Preseason

In the conference's yearly preseason poll, Bradley was picked to finish in sixth place. Sophomore forward Rienk Mast was named to the preseason all-conference third team.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition ||||||
| November 4, 2021* 8:00 p.m. | | Illinois–Springfield | W 93–64 | | Carver Arena (1,735) Peoria, IL |
| Regular season ||||||
| November 9, 2021* 8:15 p.m., ESPN+ | | at South Dakota State | L 65–81 | 0–1 | Frost Arena (2,445) Brookings, SD |
| November 13, 2021* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Howard | L 64–76 | 0–2 | Carver Arena (3,814) Peoria, IL |
| November 16, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Missouri S&T | W 92–66 | 1–2 | Carver Arena (3,450) Peoria, IL |
| November 19, 2021* 12:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | vs. Colorado State Paradise Jam tournament quarterfinals | L 60–66 | 1–3 | Sports and Fitness Center (622) Saint Thomas, USVI |
| November 20, 2021* 2:15 p.m., ESPN3 | | vs. Brown Paradise Jam Tournament consolation 2nd round | L 62–65 | 1–4 | Sports and Fitness Center Saint Thomas, USVI |
| November 22, 2021* 12:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | vs. Duquesne Paradise Jam Tournament 7th-place game | L 70–78 | 1–5 | Sports and Fitness Center Saint Thomas, USVI |
| November 27, 2021* 2:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Maine | W 71–39 | 2–5 | Carver Arena (3,515) Peoria, IL |
| December 1, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Northern Iowa | W 71–69 | 3–5 (1–0) | Carver Arena (3,551) Peoria, IL |
| December 4, 2021* 2:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | SIU Edwardsville | W 80–55 | 4–5 | Carver Arena (3,685) Peoria, IL |
| December 7, 2021* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Toledo | L 65–67 | 4–6 | Savage Arena (3,567) Toledo, OH |
| December 18, 2021* 2:00 p.m., NBCSC | | Saint Joseph's | W 77–73 | 5–6 | Carver Arena (3,827) Peoria, IL |
| December 21, 2021* 7:00 p.m. | | Sam Houston State Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational semifinals | W 87–61 | 6–6 | Don Haskins Center El Paso, TX |
| December 22, 2021* 7:00 p.m. | | UTEP Don Haskins Sun Bowl Invitational championship game | W 73–66 | 7–6 | Don Haskins Center (4,082) El Paso, TX |
| December 29, 2021* 7:00 p.m., ESPN3 | | Bellarmine | Canceled due to COVID-19 | Canceled due to COVID-19 | Carver Arena Peoria, IL |
| January 2, 2022 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Indiana State | L 71–76 | 7–7 (1–1) | Hulman Center (2,806) Terre Haute, IN |
| January 5, 2022 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | Missouri State | L 69–71 | 7–8 (1–2) | Carver Arena (3,756) Peoria, IL |
| January 8, 2022 3:00 p.m., NBCSC | | at Loyola–Chicago | L 71–78 $^{OT}$ | 7–9 (1–3) | Gentile Arena (3,092) Chicago, IL |
| January 12, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Evansville | W 79–47 | 8–9 (2–3) | Carver Arena (3,606) Peoria, IL |
| January 16, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Illinois State I-74 Rivalry | L 65–74 | 8–10 (2–4) | Redbird Arena (4,072) Normal, IL |
| January 19, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Drake | W 83–71 | 9–10 (3–4) | Knapp Center (2,724) Des Moines, IA |
| January 22, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Southern Illinois | W 70–62 | 10–10 (4–4) | Carver Arena (3,987) Peoria, IL |
| January 26, 2022 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Valparaiso | W 71–56 | 11–10 (5–4) | Athletics–Recreation Center (1,220) Valparaiso, IN |
| January 30, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Indiana State | W 67–52 | 12–10 (6–4) | Carver Arena (4,554) Peoria, IL |
| February 2, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Northern Iowa | L 65–78 | 12–11 (6–5) | McLeod Center (2,655) Cedar Falls, IA |
| February 5, 2022 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Evansville | W 76–41 | 13–11 (7–5) | Ford Center (4,294) Evansville, IN |
| February 9, 2022 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | Loyola–Chicago | W 68–61 | 14–11 (8–5) | Carver Arena (4,450) Peoria, IL |
| February 12, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Drake | W 68–59 | 15–11 (9–5) | Carver Arena (5,109) Peoria, IL |
| February 15, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Southern Illinois | L 57–65 | 15–12 (9–6) | Banterra Center (4,432) Carbondale, IL |
| February 19, 2022 1:00 p.m. | | Illinois State I-74 Rivalry | W 72–64 | 16–12 (10–6) | Carver Arena (6,902) Peoria, IL |
| February 23, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Missouri State | L 67–83 | 16–13 (10–7) | JQH Arena (1,831) Springfield, MO |
| February 26, 2022 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Valparaiso | W 79–55 | 17–13 (11–7) | Carver Arena (5,660) Peoria, IL |
| MVC tournament ||||||
| March 4, 2022 2:30 p.m., MVC TV | (5) | vs. (4) Loyola–Chicago Quarterfinals | L 50–66 | 17–14 | Enterprise Center St. Louis, MO |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central. ||||||
Sources: