Bradley advances to the NIT quarterfinals with a 75-67 victory over George Mason

FAIRFAX, Va. — Christian Davis scored 21 points and Corey Thomas added 21 points and 11 rebounds off the bench Saturday, leading Bradley to a 75-67 victory over George Mason in the second round of the NIT.
The Braves (27-8) advanced to play Chattanooga in a quarterfinal at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Peoria (ESPN2).
K.D. Johnson led the Patriots (27-8) with 16 points, Darius Maddox scored 15 and Zach Anderson 11.
Bradley took the lead with 7 minutes, 38 seconds to play in the first half and led 37-28 the half, with Davis racking up 13 points. Thomas' 15-point second half helped the Braves close out the eight-point victory.
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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USA Today

2 hours ago

• USA Today

Keegan Bradley manages 'insane' scene to birdie final hole, win Travelers Championship

CROMWELL, Conn. – Like every other athlete, hockey players want the lead, but they'll also tell you a 2-0 lead is the worst lead to have because it can make you complacent. You're winning, but without realizing it, you might ease up or relax. That's when the other team scores, gains momentum, and suddenly, you're in a dogfight. Tommy Fleetwood started Sunday's weather-delayed final round at TPC River Highlands with the golf equivalent of a 2-0 hockey lead — a three-shot cushion at the 2025 Travelers Championship — but there was no chance he was going to consciously take his foot off the pedal. Fleetwood, who entered the week with 41 top-10 finishes in PGA Tour events, including five runner-up results, was chasing his first career PGA Tour win. But in less than an hour, after playing just four holes, that three-shot lead was gone. He was in a dogfight with Keegan Bradley, the 2023 Travelers champion and a Vermonter who is New England's favorite golfer. Russell Henley, winner of the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in March, another PGA Tour signature event, was also in the mix. Coming down the stretch, it was Bradley — the United States Ryder Cup captain, riding a wave of momentum from a crowd that chanted 'USA! USA! USA!' on every hole — who seized an opportunity and won the Travelers on the final hole. 'It was insane, the crowd and the atmosphere and the scene there,' Bradley said, referring to the final hole. 'I just did a great job of, like staying present, because that could have got me out of my routine, out of what I was doing, but I did a good job of staying in my little zone.' For fans of Tommy Fleetwood, and there are many, the last 15 minutes of the tournament played out like a horror movie they've seen before. For Bradley's supporters, it was a fairytale. Fleetwood, at 15 under, took a one-shot lead to the 18th tee after making a clutch 5-foot, par-saving putt on 17. After Bradley found the middle of the fairway with his tee shot, the Englishman matched him and found the short grass too. Fleetwood's approach from 148 yards, however, came up 50 feet short of the hole and left him in the fairway in front of the green. The crowd moaned, and chants of 'USA! USA! USA!' created a Ryder Cup-like atmosphere. Bradley then stepped in and hit his approach shot. 'I had 139 and it was a 9-iron, and I played it 146, which is an ear-to-ear swing that I practice, I don't know, about 100,000 times,' he said. 'It was just a shot that I've hit so many times in practice at The Grove and it was a perfect number.' Indeed, it was, because his ball landed and stopped 6 feet from the cup. The crowd exploded, and the pressure shifted squarely to Fleetwood. His third short rolled out but came up short, leaving him just outside Bradley's ball on nearly the same line. Fleetwood's 8-foot putt missed on the left, and suddenly, after not having led the Travelers at any point during the week, Bradley had an opening. 'It was really strange, actually, because I didn't really expect to have it to win,' Bradley admitted Sunday evening. 'All of a sudden, I had a putt to win the tournament. I hadn't led ever until the last putt. It's really what dreams are made of.' His putt rolled straight into the cup, the crowd erupted, and then so did Bradley. He and his caddie, Scott Vail, chest-bumped. Bradley turned to the crowd on the hill and roared, letting all the energy and emotion that he'd work to keep inside bellow out. 'After I did it I was like, oops, my mom's going to be upset,' he said, laughing, Sunday evening. Will Keegan Bradley play on the 2025 Ryder Cup team? Bradley has now jumped from No. 21 to No. 7 in the Official World Golf Ranking with the win and has become a serious candidate to either qualify for his own Ryder Cup team or warrant a captain's pick. 'Listen, this changes the story a little bit. I never would have thought about playing if I hadn't won,' Bradley said. 'This definitely opens the door to play. I don't know if I'm going to do it or not, but I certainly have to take a pretty hard look at what's best for the team and we'll see. It's still June, so we still got a long ways to go. This definitely changes things a little bit, and we'll all get together and figure out the best way to do this.' While Bradley basked in the glow of victory, Fleetwood showed enormous class, fielding questions from the media after yet another lost opportunity to win. 'I said yesterday, I haven't been in this position all year, so it's been awhile, felt like I did a lot of good things, but there was things that I definitely can do better, and I have to do better,' he said, looking stunned moments after signing his card. 'I did plenty of things well enough this week to win, but I didn't do that, it hurts. The most stupid thing to do, and the worst thing to do, would be make a week like this a hindrance to what you do going forwards. I obviously played great, I put myself in a great position, I was leading the tournament for 71 holes. I just want to make sure that I can put myself in this position as soon as possible again and try and correct what I did this time.' Bradley was the most popular player on the course Sunday, but Fleetwood would have been a popular winner too, and Bradley would have been there to congratulate him. 'I know how hard it must be for him. He's just an unbelievable player, and he's fighting so hard to get his first win,' Bradley said. 'It's a weird thing to be on the other side of that. I do feel bad for him, but I've got to go out and do what I need to do. But, you know, he battled today, and I really hope that he gets his win soon.' After chipping in for birdie on the 18th hole, Henley finished at 14 under, tied with Fleetwood for second. Just behind the leaders, several big names made noise Sunday. Harris English (65) and Jason Day (68) both finished at 13 under. Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy closed with matching 65s to finish at 12 under. But what people are going to remember about this day is how Bradley stole the show on the final hole after Fleetwood missed his chance to win his first PGA Tour title. Rematch at Bethpage Black in September, anyone?

Hamilton Spectator

2 hours ago

• Hamilton Spectator

US Ryder Cup captain Bradley wins the Travelers. Lee and Jimenez take major titles

CROMWELL, Conn. (AP) — Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley rallied from three shots behind with four holes to play and birdied the 18th hole before a delirious home crowd Sunday for a 2-under 68 to win the Travelers Championship. The victory only strengthened the case for Bradley to bring his clubs to Bethpage Black for the September matches against Europe. He moved to No. 9 in the standings. And he wound up beating Tommy Fleetwood, who scored the clinching point for Europe at Marco Simone two years ago. One shot behind Fleetwood going to the 18th hole, Bradley stuffed his approach to just under 6 feet below the hole. Fleetwood, looking like this might be the time he wins a PGA Tour title, came up some 50 feet short and took three putts for bogey and a 72. Bradley kept his feet planted when the putt dropped and shook his fist. New England's favorite son delivered a stunner at the TPC River Highlands, capping off the finish in oppressive heat with a 35-foot birdie putt on the 15th and the 6-footer at the end. It was crushing for Fleetwood, the 34-year-old from England who has built a reputable record around the world but is 0 for 84 in regular PGA Tour events. Russell Henley chipped in from across the 18th green for birdie and a 69 to join Fleetwood one shot behind. Henley called a one-shot penalty on himself in the second round when he saw his golf ball move the length of a dimple as he was playing a chip. Bradley finished at 15-under 265 and won $3.6 million for his first title in a signature event. He also won the BMW Championship, the second FedEx Cup playoff event, last August at Cherry Hills outside Denver. LPGA Tour and PGA of America FRISCO, Texas (AP) — Minjee Lee closed with a 2-over 74 but never gave up the lead in the final round of the KPMG Women's PGA Championship to win her third major title. While Lee had three bogeys in a four-hole stretch on the front nine, she had started the day with a four-stroke lead over Jeeno Thitikul. And the world's No. 2-ranked player, also in that final group, bogeyed both par 5s that are among the first three holes on Fields Ranch East at PGA Frisco. Lee, ranked 24th, finished at 4-under 284, three strokes ahead of Auston Kim and Chanettee Wannasaen, the only other players under par. Kim and Wannasaen both shot 68 to match the best rounds of the day, and the tournament, after only two 68s combined the first three rounds. With a record $12 million purse that was up from $10.4 million a year ago and matched the U.S. Women's Open for the most price money, Lee took home $1.8 million. That matches the $1.8 million Lee got for her four-stroke win in the 2022 U.S. Women's Open. The 29-year-old Australian who is a Texas resident, living in nearby Irving, got her 11th career win. It was her first this season, making it 16 players to win 16 LPGA tournaments this year. PGA Tour Champions AKRON, Ohio (AP) — Miguel Angel Jimenez won the Kaulig Companies Championship for his fourth PGA Tour Champions victory of the season, rallying to force a playoff and beating Steven Alker with a 20-foot birdie putt on the second extra hole. Two strokes down after playing partner Alker birdied the par-5 16th, Jimenez made a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-4 17th and an 18-footer on the par-4 18th. Tied for the lead entering the round at Firestone South, the 61-year-old Jimenez and 53-year-old Alker each shot 2-under 68 to finish at 10-under 270. Stewart Cink was third at 8 under after a 66. Jimenez won his third major title after taking the Regions Tradition and the Senior British Open — both in 2018 — and earned a spot next year in The Players Championship at the TPC Sawgrass. The Spanish star has 17 career victories on 50-and-over tour. The U.S. Senior Open begins Thursday at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Korn Ferry Tour WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Myles Creighton of Canada won the Wichita Open a day after shooting an 11-under 59, closing with a 68 for a one-stroke victory over Emilio Gonzalez. Creighton won his second Korn Ferry Tour title, finishing at 17-under 263 at Crestview Country Club. On Saturday, he became the 15th player in tour history to shoot a sub-60 round and the second of the week. Gonzalez finished with a 66. Adrien Dumont de Chassart opened with a 59. He closed with a 65 to tie for fifth at 13 under. Other tours Casandra Alexandra made eagle on the last hole to close out a 10-under 62, giving the South African a two-shot victory in the Tipsport Czech Ladies Open on the Ladies European Tour. ... James Morrison won his first Challenge Tour title in more than 10 years when he closed with an even-par 70 and beat Max Kennedy with a par on the first playoff hole to win the Blot Play9 in France. ... Hibiki Iriya closed with an even-par 72 and sailed to a four-shot victory in the Nichirei Ladies on the Japan LPGA. ... Seunghui Ro rallied with a 6-under 66 and then defeated Dayeon Lee (72) with a birdie on the first playoff hole to win The Heaven Masters on the Korea LPGA. ... Melanie Green won the Island Resort Championship in Harris, Michigan, for her first Epson Tour title, closing with a 7-under 65 for a two-stroke victory over Kate Smith-Stroh. Green finished at 14-under 202 at Sweetgrass. ___ AP golf:

NBC Sports

2 hours ago

• NBC Sports

Door wide open for Keegan Bradley to be Ryder Cup playing captain after Travelers win

It didn't take long after Keegan Bradley's victory Sunday at the Travelers Championship for the U.S. Ryder Cup captain to consider the irony. 'My whole life, every year I was out here, I wanted to play on the Ryder Cup team, and then this would be the first year where maybe I didn't want to,' said Bradley, a two-time Ryder Cupper, though not since 2014, who was named captain exactly a year ago Sunday. 'I just wanted to be the captain and, of course, you know, this is what happens.' For months, Bradley has been adamant that he wouldn't pick himself. The only way he'd be a playing captain, he's said consistently, is if he qualified for the 12-man American team based on points. Even in the moments after he sank a 5-footer for birdie to win the Travelers for the second time in three years, Bradley dodged the obvious question from CBS reporter Amanda Balionis. Have you convinced yourself that you would be additive to this team now? 'Go U.S.A.!' Bradley answered. But once he had settled behind the interview podium, Bradley had allowed himself to be realistic. His win projected to move him not only to seventh in the Official World Golf Ranking but also ninth in U.S. Ryder Cup points. The last time a top-10 player in the world was left off a Ryder Cup team was 2016, when Bubba Watson was denied a spot on the U.S. squad despite being ranked seventh in the world. Bradley is also now 10th in total strokes gained this season on Tour and third in strokes gained tee to green. There's a lot of golf still to be played before the six automatic selections are finalized on Aug. 17 after the BMW Championship and the six captain's pick are chosen following the Tour Championship. But if things were decided today, Bradley would be hard-pressed to not call his own number. He knows it, too. 'This changes the story a little bit,' Bradley said. 'I never would have thought about playing if I hadn't won. This definitely opens the door to play. I don't know if I'm going to do it or not, but I certainly have to take a pretty hard look at what's best for the team, and we'll see.' When Bradley got the call a year ago, then PGA CEO Seth Waugh told Bradley that he wanted him to be the first playing captain since Arnold Palmer in 1963. Palmer would go 4-2 that year at East Lake in a dominating U.S. victory. 'My head was spinning, I didn't know what they were talking about, but they knew that that was a possibility and that we would have things in place for that,' Bradley said. 'But you know I'm always trying to be the best that I can be, and I feel like I'm playing the best golf of my career right now.' Later, while on the Golf Central set with Golf Channel's Rich Lerner and Brandel Chamblee, Bradley said that if he plays at Bethpage Black, he will not relinquish his captaincy. Instead, his assistants – Jim Furyk, Webb Simpson, Kevin Kisner and Brandt Snedeker – would just absorb extra responsibilities. 'I will play if I feel like it will help the team,' Bradley added. Right now, there's no doubt he would. The door is wide open for that.