Bradley Braves (8-3, 2-1 MVC)
at
Drake Bulldogs (8-6, 1-2 MVC)
Thursday, Jan. 5, 2006 ? 7:05 p.m. ? Des Moines, Iowa ? Knapp Center (7,002)
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)
Road Trip Starts at Drake
? Riding the momentum swell of five wins in its last six games, Bradley will hit the road for its next two games, beginning with Thursday night's matchup at Drake.
? Of the 31 programs that have enjoyed Missouri Valley Conference membership over the years, Drake (480) and Bradley (463) have the most league wins.
? Although the Braves are 2-3 on the road this season with double-digit victories at DePaul (75-60) and Southern Miss (56-43), Bradley will be trying to end an 11-game Missouri Valley Conference road losing streak.
? With two road wins under their belt so far this year, one more victory outside Carver Arena would equal Bradley's best season road win total since the 1997-98 squad finished with a 4-9 road record.
Series History
? Bradley owns a 70-49 lead in the all-time series versus Drake, which dates back to a 31-30 Bulldogs victory in a non-conference clash Dec. 19, 1942 at Peoria Woodruff High School.
? The teams first met as Valley rivals Jan. 29, 1949 -- a 59-48 Bradley win at the Peoria Armory.
? In his first two years as the head coach at Drake, head coach Tom Davis is 4-0 versus the Braves.
? Recent series history has been marked by season sweeps, 11 in the last 14 years: Drake in 1992, 1993, 2004 and 2005 and Bradley in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 (3-0), 1998 (3-0), 2001 and 2003.
? Drake owns a 30-26 home lead in the all-time series, but the teams have split the previous 12 meetings at the Drake Knapp Center.
Valley's Top Two
? Drake and Bradley have won more Missouri Valley Conference games than any of the 31 teams that have enjoyed league membership.
? Drake is a charter member of the Valley, although the Bulldogs did withdraw from the league for five years in the 1950s, and owns a 480-717 all-time league record.
? Bradley joined the Valley in 1949, also withdrew for for four years in the 1950s in support of Drake, and brings a 463-344 league record into Thursday's game.
? Drake is in its 94th year of Valley membership and Bradley in its 54th.
? Wichita State, which is in its 61st year of Valley membership is third all-time with 437 wins.
Valley's Home Court Edge
? The Valley's 10 teams enter Thursday's round of games with a 59-5 (.922) home record.
? Drake has played a role in four of those five Valley home losses, dropping three games at the Knapp Center to Iowa State, Montana and Missouri State, while winning at Evansville.
Looking for Third Road Win
? Bradley takes a 2-3 road record into Thursday night's game at Drake with double-digit victory margins at DePaul (75-60) and Southern Miss (56-43).
? Since Bradley's 1995-96 MVC championship season (7-4), the Braves have not won more than four road games in a season.
? Since 1997-98 (4-9), the Braves have not won more than three road games in a season.
Sommerville Joins Exclusive Club
? Already eighth on Bradley's all-time list for 3-pointers with 116, senior forward Marcellus Sommerville has increased his career rebounding total to 511.
? Sommerville joins former Valley Players of the Year Hersey Hawkins and Anthony Parker as the only players in school history to make 100 career 3-pointers and grab 500 career rebounds.
Hitting the Glass
? After being outrebounded in each of the first three games of the season, Bradley has won the battle of the glass in each of its last eight games and the Braves now own a +5.8 rebound margin per game.
? During the eight-game stretch, the Braves boast a +10.3 rebound margin per game, including a +11.3 edge in O'Bryant's three games back in the lineup.
? Prior to Friday's game, Wichita State was leading the Valley in rebound margin at +10.1, but Bradley finished with a 56-40 advantage on the boards.
? The Braves followed with a 46-33 advantage Monday versus Creighton.
? Bradley has pulled down at least 40 rebounds in each of the last three games.
Imposing Frontline
? While Patrick O'Bryant has been dominant in his first three games back for the Braves, Bradley's front line success has been a group effort.
? In the season's first three Valley games, the starting trio of O'Bryant (center), Marcellus Sommerville (power forward) and Lawrence Wright (small forward) have combined to average 43.0 points and 29.7 rebounds.
? By contrast, the three opposing front lines have combined to average 29.3 points and 19.7 rebounds.
Defending The Three
? Bradley has allowed its first 11 opponents just 5.4
3-point field goals per game while limiting those teams to 29.8 percent accuracy from behind the arc, the best 3-point field goal percentage defense in the Valley.
? The first three Valley opponents have combined for 22 treys, but Northern Iowa (9-28), Wichita State (6-19) and Creighton (7-24) have required 71 attempts (.310) to make those 22 triples.
2-Point Defense Improves
? In contrast to Bradley's defense of the 3-point line in the early going, the Braves struggled inside the arc without the presence of 7-foot sophomore center Patrick O'Bryant.
? Through the first eight games, the opposition had made 37-of-127 (.291) 3-point attempts, but 142-of-296 (.480) 2-point field goal attempts.
? The 189-point discrepency between 3-point field goal defense and 2-point field goal defense was the largest in the Valley.
? In O'Bryant's first three games in the lineup, however, UNI, Wichita State and Creighton have combined to shoot 31.0 percent (22-71) from 3-point land and a much cooler 38.9 percent (42-108) from inside the arc, a difference of only 79 percentage points.
Let Me Assist You
? Led by Daniel Ruffin's 13-assist effort, Bradley equalled its season-high with 22 assists Monday versus Creighton.
? Bradley, which ranks fourth in assists per game at 16.36, has recorded at least 20 assists on four different occassions this season.
? Bradley reached 20 assists in a game only one time last year (20 Dec. 21 versus Samford), while averaging only 13.5 assists per contest.
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 15.5 turnovers per game and the Braves are fourth in the Valley by forcing 17.2 turnovers per game.
? The combination has resulted in a +1.7 turnover margin per game, compared to a -1.8 turnover margin last season.
Cold Start from Three land
? While Bradley has been tough on its opponents from behind the arc, the Braves have been equally as cold.
? Even after shooting 9-for-20 from behind the arc Monday versus Creighton, Bradley is last in the Valley by shooting 31.4 percent from 3-point territory.
? Bradley was 0-for-18 from behind the arc Friday at Wichita State before Daniel Ruffin drained a buzzer-beating triple to force overtime as the Braves finished 1-for-19.
Tough Valley Start
? Bradley's first six Valley games are being played against five teams that now enter Thursday's action with a 47-18 (.723) combined record:
Date Opponent Record Pct. RPI
Dec. 28 UNI 12-2 .857 16
Dec. 30 at Wichita State 11-3 .786 43
Jan. 2 Creighton 7-4 .636 42
Jan. 5 at Drake 8-6 .571 109
Jan. 8 at Southern Illinois 9-3 .750 50
Jan. 11 Wichita State 11-3 .786 43
Cumulative Totals 47-18 .727
? After downing MVC preseason favorite Northern Iowa in the league opener Dec. 28, Bradley fell at three-time NIT participant Wichita State Friday and will host the Shockers in the sixth game of the league season Jan. 11.
? The Braves are coming off an 86-69 win against eight-time postseason participant Creighton Monday, and after visiting Drake Thursday, they will visit four-time MVC regular-season champion Southern Illinois Sunday.
? According to the numbers posted at www.collegerpi.com, Bradley was 66th in the ratings before hosting Northern Iowa.
? Even with a loss in its first three league games, Bradley has climbed 31 spots to No. 35 in the RPI through Jan. 3..
