Bradley Braves (5-2)
at
Southern Miss Golden Eagles (4-6)
Wed., Dec. 21, 2005 ? 7:05 p.m. ? Hattiesburg, Miss. ? Reed Green Coliseum
Television: WEEK-TV (Peoria NBC, 25) -- Lee Hall, play-by-play; Joe Dalfonso, analyst
Radio: WMBD AM 1470 (Dave Snell, play-by-play; Joe Stowell, analyst)
Internet: www.bubraves.com (audio and video streams)
Final Non-Conference Tune-up
? Bradley will play its final non-conference tune-up Wednesday at Southern Mississippi before opening its 18-game Missouri Valley Conference schedule Dec. 28 versus preseason favorite Northern Iowa at Carver Arena.
? After sweeping a two-game home stand last week, the Braves will be trying to extend its winning streak to a season-best three games.
? Bradley has not won three straight since rattling off five consecutive victories Dec. 1, 2004 through Dec. 21, 2004.
? Bradley has dropped two straight road games since its season-opening victory at DePaul (75-60) and will be attempting to even its season road record at 2-2.
Series History
? Bradley owns a 1-0 lead in the all-time series versus Southern Miss, but Wednesday's game will be the first-ever meeting contested within the United States.
? Bradley earned a 94-86 victory Dec. 16, 1988 at the Phenix NCAA Ball in Tokyo, Japan.
? Wednesday's game will be just the second time the Braves have visited the Magnolia State and in its only previous trip, Bradley defeated Ole Miss, 63-61, on Dec. 28, 1994.
? In fact, Bradley enters Wednesday's game with a 7-0 all-time record versus teams for the state of Mississippi: Alcorn State (3-0), Mississippi (3-0) and Southern Miss (1-0).
Valley at No. 3 in RPI
? According to the numbers published at www.collegerpi.com, the Missouri Valley Conference ranked third in the conference RPIs among all 31 NCAA Division I leagues through games of Dec. 20.
Conference RPI (Through Dec. 20)
DI Non-Con Record
Rk. Conference W L Pct. RPI
1. Big Ten 76 22 .7755 .5943
2. Big East 98 34 .7424 .5734
3. Missouri Valley 53 19 .7361 .5719
4. Atlantic Coast 75 19 .7979 .5699
5. Southeastern 81 22 .7864 .5673
6. Big XII 68 25 .7312 .5521
Rk. School W L Pct. RPI
8. Indiana State 6 0 1.000 .6603
11. Northern Iowa 7 1 .8750 .6496
16. Missouri State 6 1 .8571 .6425
46. Creighton 5 2 .7143 .6055
63. Bradley 5 2 .7143 .5857
81. Wichita State 7 2 .7778 .5641
118. Drake 4 3 .5714 .5306
132. Southern Illinois 5 2 .7143 .5197
151. Evansville 4 3 .5714 .5022
212. Illinois State 4 3 .5714 .4584
About the Golden Eagles
? Southern Miss returned only four lettermen, including two starters, from last year's squad that went 11-17 overall and finished 14th in Conference USA with a 2-14 league record.
? Like the Braves, Southern Miss will be trying to extend its season-long, two-game winning streak.
? Averaging 59.3 points per game as a team, Southern Miss does not have a single player averaging in double-figures this season as Shaun Simpson tops the team in scoring at 9.6 points per game.
? Southern Miss has been held to fewer than 40 points three times this year and the Golden Eagles have topped 60 points in regulation just three times.
? Southern Miss, however, is averaging 87.0 ppg in its last two games, a 90-57 victory Dec. 14 versus William Carey and an 84-74 win Monday night against Tennesse State.
? Southern Miss is averaging 16.8 turnovers per game and the Golden Eagles have a -3.7 turnover margin per game.
Bradley Vs. Conference USA
? Bradley owns a 91-67 (.576) all-time record versus the 12 current members of Conference USA, but the home-and-home split versus UAB during the 1999-2000 and 2000-01 seasons are the only two games the Braves have played against the league's 12 current teams as Conference USA members.
? In addition, 120 of the 158 meetings were played as Missouri Valley Conference regular-season and tournament games versus Houston (8-4), Memphis (7-5) and Tulsa (55-41).
CUSA School Series MVC Last Meeting
UAB 2-2 --- Nov. 27, 2001
UCF 0-0 --- ---
East Carolina 1-0 --- Dec. 20, 1983
Houston 13-7 8-4 Dec. 27, 1967
Marshall 1-1 --- Feb. 27, 1947
Memphis 9-9 7-5 Dec. 6, 1988
Rice 0-3 --- Jan. 1, 1940
SMU 2-1 --- March 11, 1954
Southern Miss 1-0 --- Dec. 16, 1988
Tulane 2-1 --- Dec. 1, 1984
Tulsa 58-41 55-41 March 4, 1996
UTEP 2-2 --- Dec. 10, 1990
Non-Conference Success
? Including a 5-2 record this season, Bradley owns a 22-8 (.733) record in its last 30 games against teams outside the Valley, dating back to a 95-68 victory versus Alcorn State in the second round of the 2002 Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic.
Wide Margins
? Through Bradley's first seven games, six have been decided by double-digit margins.
? The only single-digit outcome was Bradley's 78-76 victory versus Western Kentucky Dec. 14 at Carver Arena.
Stingy 3-Point Defense
? Highlighted by an 0-for-9 performance by Chicago State Nov. 26, Bradley leads the Missouri Valley Conference in 3-point field goal percentage defense.
? Chicago State's performance marked the 12th time since the 3-point line was put in place for the 1986-87 season that a Bradley opponent has been held without a trey.
No 3-Point Field Goals by an Opponent
Jan. 7, 1987 at Saint Louis 0-5
Jan. 30, 1988 at Tulsa 0-6
Jan. 1, 1989 at New Orleans 0-2
Jan. 24, 1989 DePaul 0-6
Feb. 10, 1990 Tulsa 0-6
Dec. 12, 1990 Missouri 0-1
Jan. 26, 1991 Wichita State 0-6
Jan. 9, 1993 at Wichita St. 0-3
Dec. 18, 1993 Fla. Atlantic 0-10
March 10, 1999 Butler 0-3
Dec. 27, 1999 at Hawai'i 0-8
Nov. 26, 2005 Chicago State 0-9
? In addition to the low percentage, Bradley is allowing only 4.9 3-point field goals per game, the fewest among the 10 teams in the Valley.
But About the 2-point Defense
? In contrast to Bradley's defense of the 3-point line in the early going, the Braves have struggled inside the arc without the presence of 7-foot sophomore center Patrick O'Bryant.
? Through the first seven games, the opposition has made 131-of-264 (.496) 2-point field goal attempts.
? The 192-point discrepency between 3-point field goal defense and 2-point field goal defense is the largest in the Valley.
Assist Percentage
? By dishing out assists on 22 of 24 field goals Dec. 3 versus Bowling Green, Bradley has twice recorded assists on all but two field goals this season (also 17-of-19 versus Chicago State).
? Of the four unassisted baskets in the first two home games this season, two were scored by Zach Andrews on offensive rebounds.
? Bradley added 21 assists on 27 baskets Saturday versus Delaware State, marking the third time the Braves have dished out at least 20 assists in a game this season.
? After ranking seventh in the Missouri Valley Conference by averaging 13.54 assists per game last season, Bradley has averaged 17.0 assists in the first seven games this year.
? Bradley has recorded an assist on 66.9 percent of its field goals this year.
Making An Impact
? During each game, Bradley charts the “impact” players have on the game by recording the points scored by each team while each Braves lineup is on the court.
? After the game, the “impact” numbers are broken down by each individual player and season totals are updated.
? Here are some highlights:
? Among the nine players averaging at least 8.0 minutes per game, junior guard J.J. Tauai leads the team with the best “impact” number, .375, which is the scoring margin per minute he has been on the floor (Bradley has outscored the seven opponents by 27 points during Tauai's 72 minutes).
? Junior center/forward Zach Andrews (.363) has the next best “impact” ratio, +61 in 168 minutes, while the team average is 0.193.
? Senior forward Marcellus Sommerville leads the team in minutes (32.0 mpg) and boasts a .223 impact ratio, which, in turn, means the Braves have been outscored by four points (97-93) in the 56 minutes he has been off the floor.
Hitting the Boards
? After being beat on the glass in each of the first three games this season, Bradley has won the battle of the boards in each of the last four games by an average of 10.0 rebounds per contest.
? During the two-game home stand, Bradley outrebounded Western Kentucky (47-34) and Delaware State (35-23) by an average of 12.5 boards.
? The Braves were particularly effective on the offensive glass in the two home wins last week, coralling 42 rebounds on their 80 reboundable misses (.525).
Turnover Margin
? Bradley has tried to force an uptempo pace this season, but the Braves have stayed under control in doing so.
? Bradley is averaging 14.9 turnovers per game and the Braves are fourth in the Valley by forcing 19.0 turnovers per game.
? The combination has resulted in a +4.1 turnover margin per game, compared to a -1.8 turnover margin last season.
Beating The Cold
? Bradley is 5-2 this season despite shooting only 42.6 percent from the field.
? In fact, the Braves are 2-0 when shooting less than 40 percent from the floor this year after posting a 6-23 (.207) record the previous three seasons when shooting less than 40 percent.
? The ability to overcome the cold shooting has come from Bradley's pressure defense as the Braves have forced 25 turnovers in both the games they shot shot less than 40 percent (Nov. 26 versus Chicago State and Dec. 14 against Western Kentucky).
? Bradley has forced more than 20 turnovers three times this season, each time resulting in a win.
On The Air With Jim Les
Jim Les Live ? WMBD AM 1470 ? www.wmbdradio.com
? The weekly Bradley Basketball radio call-in show is hosted every Monday at 6 p.m. during the season by veteran radio play-by-play man Dave Snell.
? Fans may call-in to talk with Les and Snell during the hour-long show by calling 309-685-1470, toll free at 800-698-1470 or *1470 from a Verizon Wireless cellular phone.
? WMBD AM 1470 now simulcasts its own broadcasts, including Jim Les Live, online at www.wmbdradio.com.
The Jim Les Show ? WEEK-TV (25)
? The weekly Jim Les Show airs most every Sunday, during the basketball season, at 10 a.m. on WEEK-TV (25), Peoria's NBC affiliate.
? This week's show will feature highlights of the Western Kentucky and Delaware State games, as well as the popular Coaches Clinic segment and a feature on sophomore center Patrick O'Bryant.
? The show is hosted by WEEK Sports Director and Bradley television play-by-play man Lee Hall.
? A video stream of each show will be archived and available to premium subscribers at www.bubraves.com.
Looking Ahead
? Following Wednesday's game, the Braves will have a week off before hosting Missouri Valley Conference preseason favorite Northern Iowa (6-1) in the league opener for both teams.
? Bradley's first six Valley games will be played against UNI (8-1), at 3-time NIT participant Wichita State (8-2), perennial Valley power Creighton (5-2), at Drake (6-3), at 4-time Valley regular-season champ Southern Illinois (5-3) and home against the Shockers.