EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The University of Evansville women's basketball team took another MVC team down to the wire on Friday night in Meeks Family Fieldhouse, but a strong second half helped Bradley defeat the Aces by a score of 79-68.

Georgia Cox (Ballarat, Australia/Eastern Illinois) led the Aces offensively, scoring 20 points for the second time this season while adding three rebounds, four assists, two blocks, and a steal. Sydney Huber (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Mount Vernon) added 18 points, matching her season best, while connecting on four three-pointers. Camryn Runner (Cicero, Ind./Hamilton Heights) scored 12 points to go with five rebounds, six assists, and three steals, while BreAunna Ward (St. Louis, Mo./John Burroughs School) also dished out six assists. Elle Snyder (Latrobe, Pa./Greater Latrobe) led the Aces with nine rebounds.

Bradley grabbed an early lead, going up 13-4 at the first media timeout. The Braves would run the lead to 18-6 at the 2:59 mark, but the Aces cut into the deficit with an 8-0 run that included six points from Cox, making it 21-16 at the end of the first quarter.

Huber got hot in the second quarter, converting a layup before knocking down threes on consecutive possessions to make it a one-point game. On the next possession, Cox sunk a jumper to give the Aces their first lead of the day at 26-25. Bradley responded, though, going on a 7-0 run to regain the lead at 35-28, but a pair of three-pointers by Jelena Savic (Melbourne, Australia/ Kurunjang Secondary College) and Huber to end the half make the score 37-26 at the break.

Both teams went back-and-forth early in the third quarter, seeing three ties in the first four minutes of the quarter. With the game even at 45, Bradley made a run, scoring nine unanswered points to pull ahead. The Braves would maintain that advantage at the end of the period, entering the fourth with a 62-53 lead.

Evansville would not go away in the fourth quarter, cutting it to five on a jumper by Mireia Mustaros (Barcelona, Spain/Odessa College) with 6:27 remaining. However, that is as close as the Aces would get, as Bradley came away with a 79-68 win.

Evansville remains at home on Sunday, hosting Illinois State at Meeks Family Fieldhouse for a 3 PM tip-off. The game marks Evansville's annual Play4Kay game. Established by former NC State head coach Kay Yow, Play4Kay is an initiative that unites sports teams across the nation to bring communities together and honor cancer warriors in the fight against all cancers affecting women.