The Drake Bulldogs and Bradley Braves are set to matchup in the MVC Tournament championship game on Sunday afternoon, an intriguing matchup between the top-two teams in the regular-season standings.
The teams split their two matchups this season — one of only three Bulldog losses the entire season. Which team will notch the second win in the season series and be named Arch Madness champions?
Find out below as we make a prediction and break down the spread, total, and money line bets.
Bradley vs. Drake Betting Preview
All Bradley vs. Drake odds are from Fanduel Sportsbook and are correct as of Sunday, March 9, 2025.
- Spread
Drake -1.5 - Moneyline
Drake -132, Bradley +110 - Over/Under
122.5 Points - Game Time
Sunday, March 9, 2:10 p.m. ET - Location
Enterprise Center | St. Louis, MO - How To Watch
CBS
Bradley has gone 15-16-1 ATS this season, including 10-12 in MVC play. However, they’ve covered three of their last four games.
Drake, surprisingly enough, has only covered 16 of their 30 contests this season as well as only 50% of their 22 conference games. A key stat for this game, however: the Bulldogs have covered five of six outings in a neutral site.
The Braves have a solid offense, leading to 17 of their 32 games going over the point total. Yes, they’ve only gone over in nine of their 22 MVC matchups. The under has been the correct play in their last four games.
Defense is Drake’s specialty, as they allow only 59.0 ppg. That’s caused 18 of their games to go under, including 13 of 22 conference games. The under has hit in five of their last seven games.
Bradley vs. Drake Preview
The Braves enter with a 26-7 record and have gone 17-5 in the MVC, good for second in the conference standings. They’ve scored 70 points in both conference tournament games in eight- and five-point wins. Bradley last made the NCAA Tournament in the 2018-19 season and is seeking their 10th appearance in school history.
Drake has been one of the talks of college basketball this season under first-year head coach Ben McCollum. His story has been well-publicized this season; after leaving Division-2 Northwest Missouri State (and winning the conference tournament in his final 11 seasons), he brought along four of his players.
That’s led to a 29-3 record — the most wins in Division-1 to date — and a 19-3 regular-season record, claiming the MVC regular-season title.
The Bulldogs are currently projected to have an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament — meaning that if they lose this game, they’re still expected to make the dance.
They’re led by a stifling defense that gives up only 59.0 ppg, the second-best mark in the nation. That’s due in part to their slow-paced game — but that doesn’t mean they don’t have any offensive firepower.
Junior guard Bennett Stirtz (formerly of Northwest Missouri State) leads the team with 18.8 ppg while adding 4.4 rpg and 5.9 apg. The 6’4″ Stirtz is a prime contender for the MVC Player of the Year award.
Beyond him, two more players average in doubles figures with McCollum’s former D2 players Daniel Abreu and Mitch Mascari. They average 10.7 and 10.2 ppg, respectively, as 6’5″ and 6’6″ guards.
Keep an eye out for freshman Isaia Howard, who’s averaging 4.6 ppg this season but has received increased playing time as of late. He was the Bulldogs’ leading scorer in their quarterfinal’s victory over the Southern Illinois Salukis with 21 points on eight of 17 from the field.
Bradley is also a dangerous squad due to their veteran-presence with their top three players.
Guard Duke Deen is the leading scorer at 14.2 ppg while leading the team in assists with 3.7 apg. Beside him, 6’6″ guard Zek Montgomery puts in 12.5 ppg, though he put up only five shots in their semifinal’s matchup.
The X-factor for Bradley may be forward Darius Hannah, who’s emerged late in the season with averages of 15.5 ppg and 7.6 rpg over his last six games.
Both teams survived momentary scares in their semifinal matchups before pulling away and securing the win. Now, they face off for the third time this season, with an NCAA Tournament berth on the line for the Braves.
Best Bets and Final Score Prediction
We’ll start with the over/under, which is set at an unbelievably low number of 122.5 points. Considering the spread of Drake -1.5, that’s essentially assuming that this game will finish in the 50s and not even hardly reach the 60s.
Vegas is hardly ever off by much, and this total does make sense. Their first matchup reached 121 points, while their second one totaled exactly 120.
But this game will be in the conference championship — which, I’d expect would create an even more intense, frisky, and physical brand of basketball than the regular-season matchups.
KEEP READING: 2025 March Madness Bracket Predictions 2.0: Who’s In, Who’s Out, and the Biggest Surprises
It may be hard to believe, but going under 122.5 points should be the play here. Just hope the game doesn’t go to overtime and it should stand.
For the spread, it’s so close that it’s almost not worth betting on. I’d prefer the money line bet of Drake at -132. The odds aren’t what you may like them to be, but it will produce a winning ticket.
The Bulldogs have the best player (Stirtz), best coach (McCollum) and best defense (59.0 ppg allowed) in the matchup, so we’ll take them to win the whole thing.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Braves pulled out a nail-biter — it’s March, so anything can happen. But I’m taking Drake, as they’ve been the better team all season and will officially punch their ticket to the big dance.
Picks: Under 122.5 Points, Drake ML (-132)
Prediction: Drake 59, Bradley 58
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