Box Score The Matchup
Bradley has won back-to-back games for the first time since winning the first two games of the season and is looking to end the regular-season on a high note with road games at Creighton (March 2) and at Drake (March 4).
The Braves and Bluejays are currently battling for position in next week's State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament in Springfield, Mo. The teams are currently tied for ninth place at 4-12 and Creighton won the season's first meeting in Peoria, 79-68.
Creighton brings a 6-19 overall mark into Thursday's contest and have lost 12 consecutive games. Much like Bradley, the Bluejays have struggled offensively, scoring 70 or more points just once in the last 12 games.
Senior all-conference performer Angie Janis leads Creighton in scoring (18.0 points per game) and rebounding (7.5 per game). Sophomore guard Ally Thrall is also averaging in double figures at 11.3 points per game and leads the team with 88 assists.
Senior Kristi Woodard is expected to miss the remainder of the season after reinjuring her shoulder Sunday. Woodard was averaging 13.5 points and 5.3 rebounds per game in 19 games this season.
The Braves wrap up the regular-season Saturday at Drake. The Bulldogs own a 15-10 overall record and are tied for third in the Valley standings with an 11-5 record heading into a Thursday night tilt against Northern Iowa.
Junior Jill Martin is Drake's top scorer and rebounder averaging 15.6 points and 9.0 rebounds per game. Brandy Dahir is also scoring in double figures averaging 10.7 points per contest.
Drake has won seven of its last eight games and is coming off a 70-65 victory at league-leading Indiana State.
Bradley improved to 8-17 overall and 4-12 in Valley play after defeating Missouri State 70-63 in the final home game of the season. The Braves won back-to-back games for the first time since winning the first two games of the season.
Sophomore Devyn Flanagan is the team's leading scorer at 10.6 points per game and ranks second on the team in rebounding at 4.9 rebounds per contest. Junior Amy Peters is also averaging in double figures at 10.1 points per game and leads the team in blocked shots and three-point field goal percentage. Peters is tied with
Freshman forward Kelly Krumweide has been slowed by injury, missing the game at Indiana State (Feb. 10) and playing just eight minutes in the Braves game at Illinois State (Feb. 12). She has started a total of six games and is averaging 6.7 points and a team-high 5.5 rebounds per game, as she is the only freshman to rank among the top 20 in the Valley in rebounding.
Junior Ashley Chelleen is averaging 7.4 points and 4.7 rebounds per game on the season, including 9.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game over the last six games. While fellow junior Jen Brown is averaging 7.4 points per game and leads the team with a 2.9 assists per game average.
Creighton Series
Bradley's closes out the regular-season with a two-game road swing beginning March 2 at Creighton. The Bluejays hold a 28-3 lead in the all-time series and have won 18 consecutive games in the series dating back to a Jan. 6, 1997 Bradley win in Omaha. Creighton is 13-2 all-time at home against the Braves and have won 28 of the last 29 meetings overall in the series. Creighton won this season's first meeting, downing Bradley 79-68 in Peoria.
Drake Series
The Braves wrap up the regular-season Saturday at Drake. Bradley trails the all-time series with the Bulldogs 9-39 after suffering a 62-68 loss to open Missouri Valley Conference play back in December. Drake is 19-3 all-time against the Braves in Des Moines, Iowa. The Bulldogs have won four consecutive meetings in the series, and have won 12 consecutive meetings in Des Moines dating back to an 83-75 Braves win on Feb. 25, 1993.
The Coaches
Paula Buscher (Missouri State, ?86) is in her sixth year at Bradley and has a record of 71-93 (.433) at BU. Buscher led teams to improved records in each of her first five seasons as a collegiate head coach and six of her eight seasons overall. Buscher owns a 114-131 (.465) career record and is in her ninth year as a collegiate head coach. A longtime assistant coach at Nebraska-Omaha, Buscher coached Minnesota St.-Mankato during the 1997-98 season and returned to UNO as head coach for the 1998-99 and 1999-00 seasons, before coming to The Hilltop.
Jim Flanery (Creighton ?87) is in his fourth season as head coach at his alma mater and as a collegiate head coach. Flanery has led the Bluejays to a 73-47 (.608) record in his three-plus seasons and has guided Creighton to 19 or more victories in each of his first three years. Creighton won the 2004 WNIT Championship and has advanced to postseason play in each of his first three years.
Amy Stephens (Nebraska ?91) is in her third year as head coach at Drake and 11th season as a collegiate head coach. She has led the Bulldogs to a 45-40 (.429) record in her time in Des Moines, Iowa. Stephens owns a 260-83 (.758) career record, which includes eight seasons as head coach at Nebraska-Kearney.
Braves End Senior Night Skid
Bradley ended a nine-game senior night losing skid Sunday, posting a 70-63 victory against Missouri State. The Braves had not sent their seniors off with a final home win since the defeating Saint Louis in the final home game of the 1994-95 season. Bradley did win its final home game of the 2003-04 season, defeating Indiana State 97-83, but had no seniors on the roster that season, keeping the senior night skid intact. Sunday's game was the final home contest for seniors Molly Hartke and Alex Liberatore.
Offensive Explosion
Bradley burned Wichita State for 85 points Friday night, ending an eight-game streak in which the Braves failed to score more than 68 points. In fact, Bradley had topped 70 points just once in Missouri Valley Conference play prior to the game against the Shockers, a 71-point effort on Jan. 15, in a a win against Illinois. The 85 points is a season-high and the most for the Braves since an 86-56 win at Saint Louis on Dec. 21, 2004. Bradley's 85 points were also the most in a MVC game for the Braves since a 97-83 win against Indiana State to conclude the 2003-04 regular-season.
Ostergaard Shines
Freshman guard Venessa Ostergaard had a bit of a coming out party over the weekend, averaging 12.0 points per game in the Braves two victories. Ostergaard entered the week with just 36 points in the first 23 games of the season and had scored just 13 points in Missouri Valley Conference play prior to the weekend. She scored a then-season-high 11 points in just 16 minutes of action in the second half to help spark the Braves to an 85-79 victory against the Shockers. She followed that with a season-best 13 points in Bradley's 70-63 win against Missouri State. Ostergaard has made the most of her time on the court ranking second on the team in points per minute.
Braves Win Back-To-Back Games
Bradley ended a four-game losing streak with a pair of home wins over the weekend, winning back-to-back games for the first time since opening the season with a pair of wins. The Braves finished the season with a 7-7 home record, marking the fifth consecutive year Bradley has been .500 or better at home. Bradley had not had five consecutive years with a .500 or better record at home since the 1987-88 through 1991-92 seasons.
Chelleen Has Double Vision
Junior Ashley Chelleen posted her first double-double of the season and her first since Jan. 4, 2003 at Drake, finishing with 14 points and 11 rebounds Friday night against Wichita State. Chelleen reached double digits in rebounds in a game for the third time in her career against the Shockers. It continues a recent tear for the center from Des Moines, Iowa, who has averaged 9.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game over the last six games.
Peters Breaking Out of Funk
Junior Amy Peters may be breaking out a recent funk, scoring 19 points against Wichita State last Friday and following that with a 13-point effort against Missouri State. Peters had scored a total of 11 points in the three games prior to that and had made just four of her last 28 shots from the field (14.3 percent) before hitting 11-of-21 from the field last weekend.
Peters Tops 500 Points, Chelleen Nears 600 Career Points
Junior center Amy Peters scored her 500th career point last Friday against Wichita State, becoming the 42nd player in program history to reach the 500-point plateau. Peters joined fellow juniors Jen Brown and Ashley Chelleen in the 500-point club. Chelleen ranks as the team's active career scoring leader with 587 points and needs just 13 points to become the 31st player at Bradley to score 600 points in a career. Brown currently has 540 points in her time on The Hilltop while Peters has 525 points as a Brave.
Taking Care Of The Ball
Bradley committed a season-low seven turnovers in lthe home loss to Northern Iowa on February 17. Prior to the seven turnovers against the Panthers, the Braves season low for turnovers was nine set during Bradley's first game against UNI in Cedar Falls, Iowa. Bradley, which is averaging 16.3 turnovers per game this season, committed a combined 16 turnovers against UNI in the two games. The seven turnovers are the fewest for a Bradley team since committing six turnovers against Southern illinois on Jan. 26, 2003.
Chelleen Takes Over Career FG
Percentage Lead
Junior Ashley Chelleen recently took over the top spot on Bradley's career field goal percentage list after taking her 400th career field goal attempt Feb. 17 against Northern iowa. Chelleen owns a school record 53.4 career field goal percentage and has made 225 of her 421 career field goal attempts on The Hilltop. She took over the career lead from Kim Harris (1984-86) who made 245 of her 461 career attempts for a 53.1 field goal percentage.
BU Career Field Goal Percentage
FG% Name (Years)................................ FG-FGA
.534 Ashley Chelleen (2002-present)...... 225-421
.531 Kim Harris (1984-86)......................... 245-461
.523 Tami Van Galder (1991-95)................ 218-417
.512 Audrey DeClue (1984-88).................. 301-587
.506 Connie Griffith (1977-81).................. 636-1257
.495 Krisha Green (1993-97)..................... 240-425
Close Calls Still Unkind
Three of Bradley's last five losses have been by three points or less and the Braves fell to 0-5 on the season in games decided by three points or fewer after suffing a 67-64 loss to Northern Iowa on Feb. 17. In fact four of Bradley's 12 conference losses have been decided by three points or less and the Braves are now 2-7 in games that were decided by six points or fewer. After winning the season opener by five points, the Braves lost seven consecutive games with a final margin of six points or fewer before defeating Wichita State 85-79 Friday night. Last season the Braves were 5-1 in games decided by three points or fewer.
Down The Stretch They Come
With two games remaining, the Braves can finish no higher than a three-way tie for seventh place and cannot be seeded any higher than eighth in next week's State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament. Bradley is currently tied with Creighton for ninth place entering the final weekend of regular-season play.
No Braves In Double Figures
For the first time this season Bradley failed to have a player score in double figures in the 78-52 loss at Indiana State (Feb. 10). Junior Ashley Chelleen and sophomore Devyn Flanagan tied for team-high honors with nine points each. The last time the Braves didn't have at least one player reach double figures was a 68-54 home loss to Butler on Dec. 3, 2003 when Amy Peters and Genny Mueller led Bradley in scoring with eight points.
Brown Tied For Sixth On Assist List
Junior guard Jen Brown had a season-high eight assists in Bradley's 70-63 victory against Missouri State Sunday and is now tied with Heather Best for sixth place in school history with 330 career assists. The fourth player in program history to have 100 or more assists in back-to-back seasons, she could join Kathy Stokes and Judy Burns as the only players to lead the team in assists in three different seasons. Brown currently has a team-best 72 assists on the year, 15 assists more than sophomore Libby Magnuson's season total of 57. She needs nine assists to take pass Val Wancket for fifth on the Braves career assist chart.
Bradley's Career Assists Leaders
Rank Name (Years)......................... Total Assists
1. Kathy Stokes (1977-81)........................... 543
2. Judy Burns (1981-84)............................. 529
3. Andrea McAllister (1988-92)..................... 360
4. Dawn Cartwright (1992-96)...................... 353
5. Val Wancket (1987-91)............................ 338
T6. Heather Best (1995-99)............................ 330
T6. Jen Brown (2003-present)..................... 330
8. Karen Anderson (1979-83)....................... 302
Defense Keys Win Against Salukis
Bradley had arguable one of its best defensive efforts of the year Thursday against Southern Illinois, limiting the Salukis to a season-low 43 points and forcing 24 turnovers. The Braves scored just 52 points against Southern Illinois. The victory marked the first time the Braves won a game when scoring 52 points or less since defeating SIU-Edwardsville 52-38 on Feb. 23, 1979. Bradley shot just 35 percent from the field, but owned a 28-7 edge in points off turnovers and won a game when shooting 35 percent or less for the first time since defeating St. Mary's (Calif.) on Nov. 28, 2003.
How Ironic
Bradley held Evansville to 28.8 percent shooting on Feb. 4, but the Purple Aces managed to pull out a 51-49 road victory against the Braves. The last time the Braves lost a game when holding their opponent to less than 30 percent shooting and lost the Purple Aces won 51-48 on Feb. 21, 2002 at in Evansville, Ind.
Braves Open Second Half Of Valley Play With Victory
Bradley opened the second-half of Missouri Valley Conference play with a 52-43 victory against Southern Illinois, winning the first game of the second half for the first time since 2000-01. The Braves had lost the first game of the second-half of Valley play each of the last four years. Coincidentally, the last time Bradley opened the second half with a win, the Braves went 1-8 in the first half, but won four of the last nine regular-season games to finish Valley play with a 5-13 mark.
Brown Cracks Top 10 In Starts
Junior guard Jen Brown has started 80 of the 81 games during her two-plus seasons at Bradley and is now seventh in school history with her 80 career starts. Brown will likely be in the starting lineup for both games this weekend and move into sixth place all-time passing Val Wancket, who started 81 games in her time on The Hilltop.
Bradley's Career Starts
Rank Name (Years)........................ Career Starts
1. Dawn Cartwright (1992-96)...................... 108
2. Heather Best (1995-99)............................ 107
3. Karin Nicholls (1986-90).......................... 105
4. Shelli Braud (1984-88).............................. 98
5. Andrea McAllister (1988-92)....................... 86
6. Val Wancket (1987-91).............................. 81
7. Jen Brown (2003-present)...................... 80
8. Jenn Jolley (1997-01)............................... 79
9. Eileen Yerkes (1988-92)............................ 78
Krumwiede Named Valley Newcomer of the Week
Freshman Kelly Krumwiede was named the MVC Newcomer of the Week for the week of Jan. 16 after averaging 11.5 points and 14.5 rebounds per game in a pair of games. In her first career start, Krumwiede posted her first career double-double with 14 points and 17 rebounds against Indiana State. Her 17 boards tied for the 10th best rebounding effort in school history. She nearly posted a double-double against Illinois State as well, finishing with nine points, 12 rebounds, three assists and three steals in Bradley's win against the Redbirds. She scored all nine of points from the free throw line, hitting 9-of-10 attempts. The Newcomer of the Week honor is the first for a Bradley player since Amy Fuller earned the honor to start the 2003-04 season.
Chelleen Shines Off The Bench
After making four consecutive stats junior center Ashley Chelleen returned to the bench for the Braves game against Indiana State (Jan. 12) and turned in her highest scoring output in nearly three years. Chelleen connected on 8-of-14 shots and scored a team-best 18 points in the Braves loss. Her season-high entering the game against the Sycamores had been 15 points and she hadn't scored more than 17 points in a game since netting 19 points in a loss at Indiana State on Feb. 7. 2003.
Krumwiede Comes Up Big In First Start
While Ashley Chelleen turned in a big performance in her return to the bench, freshman Kelly Krumwiede had an equally big impact in her first career start, finishing with her first career double-double against Indiana State (Jan. 12). Krumwiede had 14 points and 17 rebounds in her first career start against the Sycamores. Her 17 rebounds tied for the 10th best rebounding effort in school history and is the most by a Brave since Dena Williams hauled down 17 boards against Southern Illinois on Feb. 12, 2005.
Peters On the Mark
Junior Amy Peters connected on 9-of-10 shots from the field in the Braves loss at Southern Illinois (Jan. 7) to tie for the third best shooting effort in school history. Peters 90 percent shooting was the best field goal percentage by a Brave since BU Hall of Famer Shelli Braud made 9-of-10 shots at Illinois-Chicago on Jan. 27, 1987. Peters is the fifth different Bradley player to shoot 90 percent or better in a game on 10 or more shots.
BU Single Game FG Percentage
FG% Name (FG-FGA) Opponent.................. Date
.917 Roxanne Grabow (11-12) at Chicago St.................................................................................. 11/27/82
.917 Karen Anderson (11-12) vs. Chicago St..................................................................................... 12/12/81
.900 Amy Peters (9-10) at Southern Illinois...................................................................................... 1/7/06
.900 Shelli Braud (9-10) at Illinois-Chicago... 1/27/87
.900 Connie Griffith (9-10) vs. Eureka......... 12/4/78
Braves Fall In Best Shooting Night Of The Year
Bradley shot a season-best 56 percent in the Braves 66-64 loss at Southern Illinois (Jan. 7). The loss ended a six-game win streak in games in which Bradley shot 50 percent or better. The loss was the first when shooting better than 50 percent since losing to Creighton (64-68) on Feb. 22, 2004. The Braves hadn't lost a road game in which they shot better than 50 percent since falling at Indiana State (69-71) on Jan. 1, 2001. Bradley is 14-3 under head coach Paula Buscher when shooting 50 percent or better.
Carrie Coffman Inducted Into Bradley Hall of Fame
Former Bradley standout Carrie Coffman (1991-95) will be inducted into the Bradley Athletics Hall of Fame this weekend. Coffman was a first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection in 1994-95. A native of Rockford, Ill., Coffman ranks eighth in school history with 1,313 career points. She also ranks third in school history with 740 career rebounds and her 7.9 career rebounding average is second at Bradley. Coffman also holds the BU mark for double-doubles in a season (19) and career (28).
Magnuson Has Career Day Against Jays
Sophomore guard Libby Magnuson had a career day against Creighton, posting her first career double-double with a then career high of 14 points and career best 10 assists against the Bluejays. Magnuson is just the fifth player in school history with a point-assist double-double and the first since Jen Brown had 11 points and 11 assists against Indiana State last season. Magnuson's point-assist double-double marked the 14th time in school history a Bradley player reached double figures in both points and assists in the same game. Judy Burns accomplished the feat 10 times in her career.
Peters Dialing In From Long Range
Junior center Amy Peters entered the 2005-06 season shooting 12 percent from three-point range (3-for-25), but is shooting nearly 41 percent from three-point range this year. Peters made two of her 22 three-point shots last season with both being key baskets in Bradley road victories (at Illinois and at Missouri State). This season she has hit 21 of her 52 three-point attempts and has made at least one trey in 15 of the 25 games to date.
Chelleen Returns To Starting Lineup
Bradley had a much different look to its lineup for its Missouri Valley Conference opener as junior center Ashley Chelleen made her first start of the season against Drake. Chelleen, who hadn't started a game since Jan. 30, 2004 at Creighton, finished with nine points, four rebounds, two assists, two blocks and one steal in a season-high 26 minutes against the Bulldogs. She made a total of one start last season and has started a total of four consecutive games. She hadn't started back-to-back games since appearing in the starting lineup for the final 15 games of the 2002-03 campaign.
Braves Wrap Up Non-Conference Play Bradley was the first Valley team to wrap up the non-conference portion of its schedule, defeating Saint Louis 77-65 on Dec. 18. Bradley is 31-22 (.585) in non-conference games under head coach Paula Buscher. Since the Braves began playing a round-robin conference schedule in 1983-84, Bradley has posted a 113-89 (.559) record in non-conference games. The Braves are 14-8 (.636) in non-conference home games under Buscher. Only Lisa Boyer owned a better non-conference home winning percentage at Bradley with a 22-8 (.733) record from 1986-96. The Braves are 53-28 (.654) at home against non-conference foes since the start of the 1983-84 campaign.
Flanagan Having Breakthrough Season
Sophomore Devyn Flanagan heads into Thursday's game against Creighton leading the team with a 10.6 points per game average and is also one of the team's top rebounders at 4.9 boards per game. Now 25 games into her sophomore season she has more than doubled her rebounding and scoring totals from her freshman season As a freshman, Flanagan scored 122 points (4.7 ppg) and grabbed 47 rebounds (1.8 rpg). In addition to the improved production, she has also been much more efficient, improving her overall field goal percentage to 38.3 percent this year and 34.6 percent from three-point range after shooting 37.3 percent from the field and 27.8 percent from beyond the arc in 2004-05.
Bring In The Reserves
Sixth-year Bradley head coach Paula Buscher hasn't had any trouble turning to her bench in a pinch as the Braves reserves are averaging 24.7 points per game. Bradley's reserves have outscored their counterparts 618 to 385 on the year or by 9.3 points per contest. The Braves reserves have outscored the opponents bench in 19 of 25 games this year. Junior center Ashley Chelleen has played in 17 games off the bench and is averaging 7.4 points per tilt, while freshman Kelly Krumwiede has appeared in 18 games as a reserve and is throwing in 6.7 points per game to help lead the Braves reserves.
Braves Start Out 2-0
Bradley posted its ninth 2-0 start in program history and has now opened back-to-back seasons with 2-0 records for the first time since the 1980-81 and 1981-82 seasons. This year's 2-0 start marks the third time the Braves have opened a season with consecutive wins under head coach Paula Buscher. Bradley hadn't opened a season with back-to-back home wins since the 1987-88 campaign.
Krumwiede Crashing The Boards
Freshman Kelly Krumwiede is currently leading the team lead in rebounding through the first 25 games of the season, pulling down an average of 5.5 boards per contest. While she is averaging 2.8 defensive rebounds per game, she has already collected 66 offensive boards and ranks among the Valley leaders with a 2.8 offensive boards per game average. Krumwiede is the only freshman to rank among the top 20 in the Valley in rebounds per game. Krumwiede's 66 offensive rebounds are the most by a Bradley freshman according to available records since the 1990-91 season. She is on pace to finish the regular season with 72 offensive rebounds which would be the highest total for a Brave since Carrie Coffman corralled 114 offensive rebounds in 1994-95.
Flanagan Earns All-Tournament Honors At Miami
Sophomore Devyn Flanagan earned all-tournament honors at the Miami Thanksgiving Tournament (Nov. 25 & 26) in Miami, Fla., averaging 15.0 points and 7.5 rebounds in a pair of games. Flanagan posted her first career double-double against the Miami Hurricanes, finishing with career and game highs of 25 points and 11 rebounds. She hit 10-of-20 shots from the field and also added one assist and two steals in the 61-73 loss.
Double Overtime Wins
Bradley's double-overtime victory against Valparaiso on Nov. 21, was the first overtime for the Braves in nearly two years. The Braves last overtime contest was a 78-79 loss on Jan. 4, 2004 and was the first overtime win for Bradley since defeating St. Mary's (Calif.), 64-57, on Nov. 28, 2003. Bradley is 16-16 in overtime games and 4-3 under head coach Paula Buscher. BU is now 3-3 in games that have gone to two overtimes or more and ended a three-game losing streak in double overtime contests. The last two overtime tilt was a 77-82 loss at Southwest Missouri State on Dec. 29, 2001. Bradley's last victory in a game that went at least two extra periods was a 90-86 triple overtime win at Eastern Illinois on Feb. 1, 1992.
Krumwiede Shines In Debut
Freshman forward Kelly Krumwiede netted a game-high 22 points in the Braves season-opening comeback victory against Illinois-Chicago. Her 22 points were the most by a Bradley player in a season opener since Carrie Coffman scored 30 points at Missouri on Nov. 27, 1994 and the most by a Braves freshman since Judy Burns had 23 points against Southern Illinois-Edwardsville on Nov. 20, 1981.
Peters Steps Up In The Clutch
With junior center Ashley Chelleen sidelined with an injury for the Braves season-opener against Illinois-Chicago, Bradley head coach Paula Buscher inserted junior center Amy Peters into the starting lineup. In just her third career start and first since her freshman season, Peters posted her first career double-double with 15 points and 15 rebounds. Peters made 5-of-7 shots from the field, including her fourth career three-pointer and had a career best 15 boards, surpassing her previous career high of seven rebounds.
Braves Draw Over 2,000 For Season Opener
Thanks in part to over 1,500 school children in attendance for Bradley's season opener against Illinois-Chicago, Bradley drew a crowd of 2,068 fans to open the season. The crowd is the seventh largest in school history and the most for a season opener in school history. Friday's attendance was the ninth crowd of over 2,000 in school history and the largest since drawing 2,189 fans for the Dec. 18, 2004 game against Jackson State at Carver Arena. It was the largest Robertson Field House crowd since drawing a school record 3,128 fans for the Jan. 6, 2002 game against I-74 rival Illinois State.
Buscher Now Second On Wins List
Sixth-year Bradley head coach Paula Buscher took over second place on Bradley's career win list with the Braves season opening victory at Illinois-Chicago. Buscher owns a 71-93 record as head coach at Bradley, passing Jan Winkler for second all-time. Lisa Boyer ranks as the Braves all-time winningest coach, owning a 124-149 record on The Hilltop.
Bradley Coaching Victories
Rank Name................................. Overall Record
1. Lisa Boyer (1986-96)........................ 124-149
2. Paula Buscher (2000-present)............ 71-93
3. Jan Winkler (1977-81).......................... 63-31
4. Angela Beck (1983-86)......................... 38-44
Braves Picked Eighth In Preseason Valley Poll
Bradley was picked to finish eighth in the Missouri Valley Conference in 2005-06 according to a vote of Valley coaches, sports information directors and media. The Braves, which have finished tied for sixth or better in each of the last three seasons, received 99 points in the poll to finish seven points ahead of ninth-place Wichita State and 91 points behind seventh-place finisher Illinois State. Indiana State received 34 of a possible 40 first-place votes to finish first in the voting.
MVC Preseason Poll
Rank Team (First-Place Votes).................. Points
1. Indiana State (34)................................... 393
2. Missouri State (3)................................... 349
3. Creighton (3)......................................... 302
4. Drake................................................... 271
5. Northern Iowa........................................ 219
6. Evansville............................................ 207
7. Illinois State........................................... 190
8. Bradley................................................. 99
9. Wichita State........................................... 92
10. Southern Illinois....................................... 78
Minnesotans Unite
With the addition of Minnesota natives Venessa Ostergaard and Mari Korton, Bradley will feature three Minnesotans on the roster in 2005-06. The duo joins sophomore guard and fellow Minnesota native Libby Magnuson. Prior to Magnuson's arrival on The Hilltop, the Braves boasted only two other Minnesota products in Bonita Fricke (1992-93) and Megan McKee (1995-96). Bradley will add two more Minnesota natives in 2006-07, having received National Letters of Intent from forward Jenny Van Kirk (Waconia, Minn./Waconia) and Renee Frericks (Wyoming, Minn./Forest Lake H.S.) during the Fall Signing Period.
