The Matchups
Bradley is looking to end a five-game road losing streak Friday, when the Braves travel to Terre Haute, Ind., to face league-leading and preseason Missouri Valley Conference favorite Indiana State.
The Sycamores are one of the top scoring teams in the country averaging 79.3 points per game and have won 16 consecutive games since losing to Kentucky on Nov. 25. Indiana State is 18-2 overall and sits atop the Valley standings with a 10-0 league mark.
All five starters are averaging 9.5 points or better with three individuals averaging in double figures. Senior Melanie Boeglin tops the Sycamores with an 18.8 points per game average and also leads the Valley in assists at 7.4 per tilt. Boeglin also averages 3.8 steals per game, helping Indiana State to nearly 10 steals per contest.
Stephanie Lisch is also scoring in double figures at 10.7 points per game, while Kristen Weddle is scoring 10 points per tilt.
Rachel Maenpaa is the Sycamores top rebounder at 5.7 boards per game, in addition to her 9.6 points per game average.
Bradley suffered its second two-point loss in the last three games last time out, falling 49-51 to Evansville at home. The Braves are now 6-14 overall and 2-9 in Valley action after the loss to the Aces.
Sophomore Devyn Flanagan and junior Amy Peters are tied for the team lead in scoring, with both averaging 10.5 points per game. Flanagan is second on the squad in rebounding at 4.9 points per game, while Peters is Bradley's top three-point threat, shooting nearly 50 percent from beyond the arc. Flanagan also owns a team-best 35 steals, while Peters leads the team with 11 blocked shots.
Freshman forward Kelly Krumweide, the Valley Newcomer of the Week for the week of Jan. 16, has started a total of six games and is averaging 7.7 points and a team-high 6.2 rebounds per game. Krumwiede's 64 offensive boards ranks among the league leaders.
Juniors Jen Brown and Ashley Chelleen are both averaging 6.9 points per game this season.
The Braves are averaging just 62.2 points on the year, but have held their last two opponents to a combined 94 points.
Indiana State Series
Bradley travels to league-leading and preseason Missouri Valley Conference favorite Indiana State next Friday. The Sycamores hold a 31-18 edge in the all-time series with the Braves, including a 16-7 advantage in games played in Terre Haute, Ind. Indiana State has won four consecutive games in the series and eight of the last nine meetings. Bradley has lost eight consecutive games in Terre Haute and will be looking for its first road win against the Sycamores since Jan. 26, 1997.
The Coaches
Paula Buscher (Missouri State, ?86) is in her sixth year at Bradley and has a record of 69-90 (.434) 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 112-128 (.467) 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 Wiedie (Kent State ?88) is in his sixth season as head coach at Indiana State and as a collegiate head coach. The 2003 Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year, Wiedie and the Sycamores have a 98-62 (.613) record since he took over as interim head coach for the 2000-01 season. Wiedie led Indiana State to a share of the 2002-03 Valley regular-season championship and has led to the Sycamores to WNIT appearances.
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.
Braves Turning Up the D
After a solid defensive performance against Southern Illinois, the Braves followed that by limiting Evansville to 51 points and a season-low 28.8 percent field goal shooting. Bradley combined to hold the Salukis and Purple Aces to just 33.6 percent shooting and 94 points in the two games. The Aces 28.8 percent shooting was the lowest field goal percentage for a Bradley opponent since ht eBraves held Southern Illinois to 23.4 percent shooting on Jan. 31, 2003.
How Ironic
Bradley held Evansville to 28.8 percent shooting, but 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.
Close Calls Not Kind To Braves
Bradley suffered its third two-point loss of the season Saturday when the Braves fell 49-51 to Evansville. Bradley is 0-4 in games decided by three points or less and six of the Braves 14 losses this year have been by six points or less. Bradley is now 1-6 in games decided by six points or fewer. Last season the Braves were 5-1 in games decided by three points or fewer.
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 75 of 76 games during her two-plus seasons at Bradley and has sole possession of 10th place on Bradley's career starts list. Brown took over 10th place from former teammate Dena Williams who ranked 10th with 72 career starts. With her next start, Brown will tie Sara Bailey for ninth in school history with 76 starts and needs just five starts to become the seventh player in program history to start 80 games in a career. Eileen Yerkes is eighth at Bradley with 78 starts, while Jenn Jolley is seventh all-time with 79 starts.
Braves Fall Despite Season Low Turnovers
Bradley committed a season-low nine turnovers in the Braves loss at Northern Iowa on Jan. 21. The Braves nine turnovers were the fewest since committing six turnovers in a 63-45 victory against Southern Illinois on Jan. 26, 2003. Bradley had not lost a game when committing less than 10 turnovers in almost 10 years. The last loss when committing nine or fewer turnovers in a game came on Feb. 8, 1996 when Creighton posted a 96-75 win at Robertson Field House.
Dishing The Rock
Sophomore Libby Magnuson has more than doubled her scoring and nearly doubling her rebounding averages from last year, but the most significant improvement she has made may be in her passing. Magnuson currently leads the team with a 2.7 assists per game average, including a 3.4 assists per game norm in Valley play. After dishing out a total of 17 assists in the first 10 games of the year, Magnuson has dealt out 36 assists in the last nine contests for an average of 4.0 per tilt and has led the team in assists in five of those 10 games.
Brown Moves Into Seventh On Assist List
Junior guard Jen Brown currently ranks seventh at Bradley with 308 assists in her two-plus seasons, as she passed Karen Anderson for seventh place. 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 is second on the team at 2.5 assists per game. She needs 23 assists to pass Heather Best for sixth place.
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
6. Heather Best (1995-99)............................ 330
7. Jen Brown (2003-present)..................... 308
8. Karen Anderson (1979-83)....................... 302
9. Shelli Braud (1984-88)............................. 290
10. Nancy Zoros (1984-88)........................... 277
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.
Chelleen Tops 500 Points
Junior center Ashley Chelleen scored her 500th career point at Southern Illinois (Jan. 7) to become the 40th player in school to reach the 500-point plateau. Chelleen entered the 2005-06 season as the Braves active career scoring leader with 416 points and and missed the first two games of the year, but is averaging 6.9 points per game since returning to the floor for the Braves contest at Miami and currently has 540 career points entering Friday's game at Indiana State. Two other players are also approaching the 500-point plateau. Junior Jen Brown has 493 career points and is on pace to score her 500th career point before the end of the season. Amy Peters has 482 career points and also should net her 500th career point in 2005-06. A total of 30 players in school history have reached the 600-point mark during their careers.
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 personal bests of 14 points and 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 over 50 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 18 of her 37 three-point attempts and has made at least one trey in 12 of the 20 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 Friday's game at Indiana State leading the team with a 10.5 points per game average and is also one of the team's top rebounders at 4.9 boards per game. Now 20 games into her sophomore season she has already surpassed her season scoring and rebounding totals from her freshman season in 2004-05. 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 37.4 percent this year and 31.8 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 25.9 points per game. Bradley's reserves have outscored their counterparts 518 to 295 on the year or by 11.2 points per contest. Junior center Ashley Chelleen has played in 13 games off the bench and is averaging 6.9 points per tilt, while freshman Kelly Krumwiede has appeared in 13 games as a reserve and is throwing in 7.7 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 20 games of the season, pulling down an average of 6.2 boards per contest. While she is averaging 3.0 defensive rebounds per game, she has already collected 64 offensive boards and ranks among the Valley leaders with a 3.2 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 64 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 season with 90 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.
Up Next
Bradley makes the short trip down I-74 Sunday to face Illinois State in Normal, Ill. Illinois State holds a 34-23 edge in the all-time series, after the Braves posted a 71-63 victory against the Redbirds at Robertson Field House . Bradley has won three of the last four meetings in the series and five of the last seven in the series. The Braves are 7-4 against the Redbirds under head coach Paula Buscher. Illinois State holds an 18-10 edge in the series in games played in Normal.
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 69-90 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)............ 69-90
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
Experience Returning
Despite losing six letterwinners from last year's squad, Bradley has quite a bit of experience returning in its nine letterwinners. The group has combined to play in 437 games or an average of 48 per individual and have 140 starts prior to the season opener. Seven of the nine returnees have started at least two games in their career with four individuals owning 17 starts or more. Juniors Jen Brown (55 starts) and Erika Nelson (43 starts) are the most experienced on the roster having both played over 1,000 minutes in their two-year careers.
Road Warriors
Part of the reason for Bradley's success last year was the Braves ability to win on the road. This season the Braves are 1-7 in true road games and 1-8 in games not played at Robertson Memorial Field House. Bradley finished with an 8-7 record in road and neutral contests, including a 7-6 mark in true road games. The Braves finished with a winning road record for the first time since the 1996-97 season, when the team finished 16-12 overall and 9-9 in conference play. Only three other conference foes finished with a better record away from home, with two of those teams advancing to postseason play (Missouri State and Creighton).
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.
