Game 4 ? Saturday, Dec. 3, 2005 ? 7:05 p.m. ? Peoria, Ill. ? Carver Arena (11,300)
Bradley Braves (2-1)
vs.
Bowling Green State Falcons (2-3)
Television: WEEK (Peoria NBC 25) -- Lee Hall, play-by-play and Joe Dalfonso, analyst -- Not available on satellite
Radio: WMBD AM 1470 (Dave Snell, play-by-play; Joe Stowell, analyst)
Internet: www.bubraves.com (audio and video streams)
Tickets: $8, $12 and $18 based on location. $1 for Bradley students and half-priced for Bradley faculty and staff.
Saturday's Game
? Both Bradley and Bowling Green will be trying to prevent their first losing streaks of the season Saturday when they meet in a 7:05 p.m. contest at Carver Arena.
? After opening with a pair of wins, Bradley will be trying to rebound from its first loss of the season Wednesday night at Loyola-Chicago (72-86).
? Bowling Green has been alternating losses and wins through the first five games and the Falcons are coming off a 76-66 home loss Wednesday versus Oakland.
? Bradley has not lost two straight non-conference games since dropping consecutive road games to Pepperdine and UNLV Dec. 20 and Dec. 28, 2003.
? Bradley is 10-3 outside the Valley since the loss at UNLV, but one of those three defeats came at Bowling Green (65-81) last year.
Series History
? The all-time series between Bradley and Bowling Green is tied at three wins each and has been dominated by the home team.
? Bradley is 3-0 at home versus the Falcons, including a 69-56 victory Nov. 29, 2003 in the only previous meeting at Carver Arena.
? The series began with an 82-77 Bowling Green victory in the consolation championship of the 1949 National Invitation Tournament at Madison Square Garden.
? While the first two meetings in the series were tight games decided by a total of eight points, the last four meetings each have resulted in double-digit victory margins at an average of 17.8 points per game.
? Game-by-game results available on page 3.
102nd Season of BU Basketball
? Bradley is playing its 102nd season of men's basketball.
? The Braves began the season ranked 26th nationally with 1,451 all-time victories, tops among the 10 current members of the Missouri Valley Conference.
Les Begins Fourth Season
? Former Bradley point guard Jim Les (Bradley ?86) is in his fourth season as the head coach at his alma mater.
? Les enters Saturday's game with a 42-50 (.457) record in his first head coaching position.
? After inheriting a team that produced a 9-20 record in 2001-02, Les joined Bradley legend A.J. Robertson as the only two coaches in the program's 102-year history to lead the Braves to an improved record in each of his first two seasons.
? Bradley led the nation in improved offense (+12.8 ppg) in Les' first season by increasing its scoring from 60.7 points per game in 2001-02 to 73.5 in 2002-03.
? Has coached the Braves to a 24-7 (.774) home record the last three seasons, highlighted by a 15-game home winning streak.
? Spearheaded the capital improvement efforts for the basketball facilities, including a new weight room, athletic training room, study center and player lounge in Robertson Memorial Fieldhouse.
? Les is 1-1 in his career versus Bowling Green and head coach Dan Dakich.
About the Falcons
? Bowling Green lost three starters and seven lettermen who accounted for 67 percent of the team's scoring from last year's team that finished 18-11 overall and tied for third in the west division of the Mid-American Conference.
? Injuries have further hampered the Falcons in the early going this season: most notabley senior guard Steven Wright (11.1 ppg, 3.1 apg last year) suffered a broken foot in the preseason and has yet to play.
? Junior guard Martin Samarco has done his best to pick up the slack by averaging 17.8 ppg and 5.2 rpg.
Bradley Vs. The MAC
? Bradley is 25-14 (.641) all-time versus the current membership of the Mid-American Conference:
Akron (East) 0-0
Ball State (West) 1-1
Bowling Green (East) 3-3
Buffalo (East) 0-0
Central Michigan (West) 1-1
Eastern Michigan (West) 1-0
Kent State (East) 3-0
Miami-Ohio (East) 0-0
Northern Illinois (West) 7-1
Ohio (East) 1-2
Toledo (West) 5-2
Western Michigan (West) 3-4
? The Braves are 7-5 all-time versus East Division members of the MAC.
Valley-MAC Challenge
? It is certainly early, but the Missouri Valley Conference has jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the season series versus the Mid-American Conference.
? The next round of Valley-MAC games will be played Dec. 10 when Ball State visits Indiana State and Kent State visits Southern Illinois.
? Surprisingly, the neighboring Midwestern leagues have only eight games on the schedule this year, capped by Southern Illinois at Central Michigan Dec. 18 and Miami-Ohio at Wichita State on Dec. 20.
Illinois State 1-0 Western Michigan (64-47)
Missouri State 1-0 Northern Illinois (87-51)
Northern Iowa 1-0 at Western Michigan (69-63)
Short on the Boards
? With 7-foot sophomore center Patrick O'Bryant out of the lineup, Bradley has struggled on the glass during the first three games this season.
? The Braves enter the weekend last in the Valley in rebound margin at -6.0 per game.
? Bradley has been outrebounded in each of the first three games and the Braves are allowing the opposition an average of 41.0 boards per contest.
Deep Benches
? Despite playing without sophomore center Patrick O'Bryant and junior point guard Will Franklin, head coach Jim Les has not hesitated to go to his shortened bench in the early going.
? The Braves have twice gone 11-deep in the first two three and 10 players are averaging at least 7.0 minutes per game.
? Bradley's bench is averaging 18.7 points through the first three games.
? Similarly, Bowling Green has nine players averaging at least 11.7 minutes per game and 11 players averaging more than 6.0 minutes per contest.
Getting Defensive
? Defense has been a focal point for the Braves this year and the result is noticeable:
? Bradley is second in the Valley in both turnovers forced per game (20.7) and steals per game (11.0).
? The Braves have limited their first three opponents to a league low 27.3 percent shooting from beyond the 3-point line.
Assist/Turnover Ratio
? Bradley was seventh in the Valley by averaging 13.54 assists per game in 2004-05, and coupled with the team's 16.6 turnovers per game, the Braves ranked ninth in assist/turnover margin (0.85).
? The Braves have dished out 48 assists against 42 turnovers in the early season, good for a 1.14 assists-to-turnover ratio.
Assist Percentage
? After recording 21 assists on 30 baskets in the opener at DePaul, Bradley turned in a remarkable 17 assists on 19 baskets in last Saturday's 68-58 victory versus Chicago State.
? The only two baskets that did not come with an assist versus the Cougars were an offensive putback by Zach Andrews in the first half and a breakaway slam by Ray Brown in the second half.
? After ranking seventh in the Missouri Valley Conference by averaging 13.54 assists per game last season, Bradley has averaged 16.0 assists in the first three games this year.
? By recording an assist on 48 of the 76 field goals, Bradley boasts a .632 assist percentage in the first three games.
Looking Ahead
? Bradley returns to the road for the third time in the season's first five games for a Tuesday visit to Butler.
? Butler, which visits Ball State Saturday night, will be playing just its second home game of the season when the Bulldogs host Bradley.
? Tuesday's game will mark the fourth consecutive year the two programs have met and the previous three games each have been won by the home team, including a 75-70 Butler victory Dec. 12, 2002 in the last meeting at Hinkle Fieldhouse.
? Bradley will begin its first “extended” home stand by hosting Western Kentucky Dec. 14 at Carver Arena.
GAmeday Luncheons
? The Bradley Chiefs Club will host its first Gameday Luncheon of the year Monday prior to the women's basketball game versus Illinois at Robertson Fieldhouse.
? Monday's luncheon will feature Bradley women's basketball head coach Paula Buscher and Illinois women's coach Theresa Grentz.
? The first of three men's basketball Gameday Luncheons will be held Wednesday, Dec. 14 prior to the Western Kentucky game and will feature Bradley head coach Jim Les and Hilltoppers head coach Darrin Horn.
? All four luncheons (Dec. 5, Dec. 14, Jan. 13 and Feb. 14) will be hosted on the Bradley campus in the Michel Student Center Ballroom.
? To purchase tickets or receive more information about the Gameday Luncheons, contact the Chiefs Club Office at 309/677-2667.
