Game 19 ? Bradley Braves (12-6, 3-3) at Indiana State Sycamores (11-4, 4-1)
Tipoff: Sat., Jan. 13, 2007 ? 6:35 p.m. (CST)
Location: Terre Haute, Ind. ? Hulman Center (10,200)
Television: WEEK (Peoria NBC, 25) -- Lee Hall (play-by-play) and Joe Dalfonso (analyst)
Radio: WMBD AM 1470 (www.wmbdradio.com) -- Dave Snell (play-by-play) and Joe Stowell (analyst)
Video Stream: www.bubraves.com
Valley Surprise Teams Collide Saturday
? Two of the surprise teams in the Missouri Valley Conference will clash Saturday night when the Braves visit Indiana State at the Hulman Center.
? After tying for ninth in the 2006 Valley race with a 4-14 league record, Indiana State was picked for 10th in the 2006-07 MVC preseason poll, but the first-place Sycamores already have matched their league victory total from a year ago and will ride a six-game winning streak into Saturday's meeting.
? After losing five prominent players to graduation and the NBA from its 2006 Sweet 16 squad, Bradley was picked eighth in the league's preseason poll, but the Braves have adopted a four-guard attack and have ridden their long-range shooting to a 12-6 overall mark (one game better than last year's 11-7 record through the first 18 games).
? Indiana State is 9-0 at the Hulman Center this season with home victories against nationally-ranked Butler, Purdue, Creighton and Wichita State.
Bradley-Indiana State Series
? Saturday's game at Indiana State will be the 66th in the all-time series between the two Missouri Valley Conference rivals, which dates back to am 86-63 Bradley win Dec. 28, 1968 at Robertson Fieldhouse.
? Bradley owns a 42-23 lead in the all-time series, including an even 15-15 road record versus the Sycamores.
? Despite its relative overall road success against the Sycamores, Bradley has dropped two straight at Indiana State.
? Tenth-year Indiana State head coach Royce Waltman owns a 10-11 record against Bradley, while fifth-year Braves head coach Jim Les owns a 6-3 record against the Sycamores.
Crouch Remains Sidelined
? For the fifth straight game, Bradley is expected to be without the services of team scoring leader Jeremy Crouch, who sprained his right knee Dec. 30 against Evansville and is out for an indefinite period of time.
? The 6-foot-5 junior is The Valley's third-best scorer at 16.4 points per game and leads the league with 3.4 3-pointers per contest.
? Working on back-to-back wins at Drake and at home versus Southern Illinois, Bradley now owns a 2-2 record without Crouch, as well as a 5-2 record this season when playing without one of its regular starting guards (the Braves were 3-0 in November without injured point guard Daniel Ruffin).
The Re-Making of the Braves
? Dominated by losses to its front line, Bradley lost 66.9 percent of its scoring and 65.0 percent of its rebounding from the 2006-06 squad that went 22-11 and reached the third round of the NCAA Tournament.
? Bradley lost five players from last year's team -- 7-foot center Patrick O'Bryant as an early entry lottery pick in the NBA Draft, as well as graduates 6-7 power forward Marcellus Sommerville (Hungary), 6-foot-4 small forward Lawrence Wright (Harlem Globetrotters), 6-foot guard Tony Bennett (ABA) and 7-foot-1 center Brandyn Heemskerk.
? Fifth-year head coach Jim Les has re-designed the Bradley scheme, primarily utilizing an eight-man rotation built around six returning players and two newcomers in a four-guard attack.
? The changes have produced a 12-6 record to date and one of the nation's most prolific 3-point shooting attacks -- Bradley leads the nation in 3-pt. field goal percentage (.449) and is fourth in treys per game (10.7)
Replacement Points
? As mentioned, Bradley lost five players from last year's Sweet 16 squad who combined for 1,577 of the team's 2,359 (66.9 percent) points.
? The Braves have received only 256 of 1406 (18.2 percent) points from newcomers this year.
? The bulk of Bradley's offensive production is the result of improved contributions from six returning players, including four players who have more than tripled their scoring averages from last season.
Returning 2005-06 2006-07
Player Pts. PPG Pts. PPG +/- Pct.
J.J. Tauai 53 1.8 128 7.1 394.4%
Jeremy Crouch 102 4.6 229 16.4 356.5%
Danny Adams 51 1.7 108 6.0 352.9%
Will Franklin 134 5.0 278 15.4 308.0%
Zach Andrews 171 5.3 192 10.7 201.9%
Daniel Ruffin 254 7.7 201 13.4 174.0%
Strength of the Valley
? The Missouri Valley Conference is celebrating its 100th men's basketball season and the league is enjoying one of its best seasons ever.
? After sending a league-record four teams to the NCAA Tournament and six overall into the postseason last year, The Valley is fourth in the current RPI rankings, trailing only the Pac-10, SEC and ACC.
? The Valley, ACC and SEC are the only three leagues in the nation whose members all have winning records and all 10 Valley members fall in the top half of the current RPI ratings.
Bradley Basketball History
? Bradley is participating in its 103rd men's basketball season and the Braves rank 26th all-time with 1,484 victories.
? Bradley has played in 31 postseason tournaments, the most among the 10 teams in the Missouri Valley Conference, claiming four National Invitation Tournament titles, two NCAA Tournament runner-up finishes and four trips to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.
? The Braves have produced 20 All-Americans, including 1988 national player of the year Hersey Hawkins, who still ranks seventh in NCAA Division I history with 3,008 career points.
Carver Arena -- Home of the Braves
? Part of the Peoria Civic Center complex, Carver Arena has served as the gameday home to Bradley Basketball since the start of the 1982-83 season, making this the 25th season in the 11,080-seat facility.
? Following its win against Southern Illinois Wednesday, Bradley now boasts a 266-83 (.762) all-time record at Carver Arena.
? Bradley's 15-game home winning streak came to an end Jan. 2 against Missouri State, but the Braves will carry a league-best 24-game non-conference home win streak into the 2007-08 season.
Tough Schedule
? After a tremendous showing by Bradley's opponents this week, Bradley's strength of schedule improved to sixth-best in the country, according to numbers posted at www.collegerpi.com.
? Bradley's strength of schedule is the best in The Valley as Southern Illinois is second with a schedule ranked 17th in the nation.
? Bradley's strength of schedule should continue to climb as the Braves' next three games are at Indiana State (11-4) and Creighton (10-5), followed by a home game against Wichita State (10-6).
Blistering 3-Point Pace
? Utilizing a four-guard lineup, it should not come as a surprise that Bradley has been bombing away from 3-point land this year.
? Aided by a Valley record-tying 20 3-pointers Nov. 21 versus Florida A&M, Bradley leads the nation in 3-point field goal percentage (.449) and ranks fourth with 10.7 3-point field goals per game.
? During one 40-minute stretch -- second half versus Florida A&M (10-15) and the first half against Rutgers (13-17) -- Bradley sank 23-of-32 (.719) 3-point tries.
? With 32 games guaranteed this year, the Braves are on pace to shatter the school (224) and MVC (293) single-season records for 3-point field goals and could challenge Duke's 2000-01 NCAA Division I record (407) by playing in four more postseason games.
Bradley's Bomb Squad
? Eight Bradley players have combined for the team's 193 3-pointers and each of the eight players is shooting at least 37.5 percent from long range.
Player 3FGM-A Pct.
Andrew Warren 15-29 .517
Brian Lavin 1-2 .500
Jeremy Crouch 47-95 .495
Will Franklin 51-105 .486
Matt Salley 4-9 .444
Danny Adams 32-75 .427
Daniel Ruffin 31-78 .397
J.J. Tauai 12-32 .375
The Crouch Comparison
? In Bradley's first 14 games with junior guard Jeremy Crouch (16.4 ppg) in the lineup, Bradley was averaging 80.6 points and 11.4 3-pointers per game.
? In the four games without Crouch, who sprained his right knee toward the end of the Dec. 30 game against Evansville, Bradley is averaging 69.5 points and 8.3 treys per game.
? While the offensive production should not come as a surprise, Bradley's defensive numbers in Crouch's absence are a bit more alarming:
With Crouch Without Crouch
Record 10-4 (.714) 2-2 (.500)
Points Allowed 70.9 75.5
FG% Defense .463 .520
3FG% Defense .368 .431
Rebound Margin -4.9 -14.4
A/TO Ratio +5.3 -1.0
Possessions Game
? Bradley ranks ninth in The Valley in points allowed per game (71.9) and 10th in field goal percentage defense (.475), but the Braves' defensive success has been based on turnovers.
? Leading the league with 9.2 steals per game, Bradley also leads The Valley with a +4.9 turnover margin.
? The turnover differential has allowed Bradley to get off 86 more field goal attempts than their opponents.
? The added shots has allowed the Braves to outscore their opponents by an average of 6.2 points per game.
Deep Backcourt
? Seven of Bradley's nine returning lettermen are backcourt players and six guards are playing prominent roles for the Braves in the early going.
? Bradley's top three scorers, as well as six of the top eight, are guards: Jeremy Crouch (16.4 ppg), Will Franklin (15.4), Daniel Ruffin (13.4), J.J. Tauai (7.1), Danny Adams (6.0) and Andrew Warren (5.4).
Up Tempo, but Under Control
? In addition to its proficiency from long range, another advantage of Bradley's deep backcourt is the ability to play at a quick pace, but under control.
? Through Jan. 10 Bradley ranked second in The Valley and 41st nationally in points per game (78.1).
? Averaging only 12.0 turnovers per game, Bradley is 19th nationally in fewest turnovers per contest and the only team in the nation averaging at leat 78 points and no more than 12 turnovers per game.
Let Me Assist You
? Bradley's hot start from behind the 3-point line is largely attributed to the team's ability to move the ball.
? Averaging 15.9 assists per game as a team, four Braves are averaging better than 2.0 assists per game, led by junior point guard Daniel Ruffin (5.0) and senior combo guard Will Franklin (4.2).
Disadvantage on the Boards
? The most glaring disadvantage of Bradley's small lineup has been the team's inability to consistently keep the opposition off the boards.
? Bradley is being outrebounded by 7.0 boards per game and has been outrebounded in nine straight.
Managing the Deficit
? Bradley has shown this season that it does not have to win the battle of the boards to succeed, however, but the Braves must remain in the fight.
? Including Saturday's 89-86 win at Drake when the Braves were outrebounded by just two caroms, Bradley is 10-1 when the final rebound totals are within six, but 2-5 when the Braves are outrebounded by more than six boards.
Experience Matters
? Bradley may have a new look in 2006-07, but the Braves are playing with experienced players.
? The average age of the top seven players in Bradley's regular rotation is 21.3 years old and junior forward Matt Salley, who will turn 21 Jan. 28, is the “baby” of the group.
By The Numbers
11 The number of seniors who have played for current head coach Jim Les. All 11 seniors have earned their Bradley degrees, including current fifth-year Brave Danny Adams, who earned a bachelor's degree in management and administration in May and now is pursuing a second degree in business marketing.
20 Three-pointers made by the Bradley Nov. 21 versus Florida A&M to tie The Valley single-game record.
24 Consecutive non-conference home wins. The streak is the ninth-longest in the nation, the longest in the Valley and the longest in Carver Arena's 25 years.
343 Bradley is on pace to make 343 3-pointers in 32 games this season, well ahead of the pace to break Creighton's 2005 MVC record (293).
378 Career assists by junior point guard Daniel Ruffin. The Bob Cousy Award candidate is the Valley's active leader with 378 career assists.
494 Consecutive games covered by beat writer Dave Reynolds for the Peoria Journal Star, dating back to the start of the 1990-91 season.
830 Consecutive Bradley men's basketball radio broadcasts on WMBD AM 1470 by play-by-play man Dave Snell. Now in his 28th season, Snell (49) began his Bradley broadcasting career Nov. 30, 1979.
1,451 Bradley men's basketball games witnessed in an official capacity by current radio analyst Joe Stowell. Stowell played for the Braves from 1947 to 1950, served as the assistant coach from 1956 to 1965, head coach from 1965 to 1978, Assistant A.D. from 1978 to 1985 and as radio analyst since 1985.
