PEORIA, Ill. -- Donte Thomas scored 14 points with 10 rebounds, Darrell Brown added 13 points and Bradley never trailed in beating Illinois State 70-58 in Wednesday night's I-74 rivarly game, ending an eight-game skid in the series.

Jayden Hodgson scored 10 points for the Braves (18-10, 8-7 Missouri Valley Conference), who are now tied with the Redbirds for fourth place.

Bradley pulled ahead on an 11-4 run and Brown's free throws capped a 9-3 run for a 49-32 Bradley lead. The Redbirds closed to 53-47 after 9-1 run with 7:10 left, but Bradley responded with an 8-2 run with Brown hitting four of seven Braves free throws in the final 5:27 to seal it.

The Braves outrebounded the Redbirds 45-34 and held them to 32 percent shooting from the floor.

Milik Yarbrough scored 25 points and Keyshawn Evans added 10 for Illinois State (14-13, 8-7).