For Starters

    Bradley ended a seven game non-conference road losing streak with an 80-56 victory at Loyola and is looking to win back-to-back games for the first time since mid-February.  The Braves shot a season-best 47.4 percent from three-point range against the Ramblers and have shot 47.2 percent (17-for-36) from three-point range over the last two games. 

    BU is 2-1 at home this season with victories against Eastern Illinois and Illinois-Chicago.  Senior Devyn Flanagan broke out of a season-opening scoring slump.  She netted a season-best 18 points after scoring a combined 12 points in the previous four games.  The Braves have not won consecutive non-conference games since winning against Saint Louis to wrap up the 2005-06 non-conference schedule and downing Chicago State to open the 2006-07 season.

    Like Bradley, Toledo has won two of its last three games and brings a 3-3 record into the contest.  Both the Braves and Rockets have home wins over Eastern Illinois.  Bradley downed the Panthers 83-57, while Toledo won 72-66.

About Toledo

    The Rockets feature seven returning letterwinners, including two starters from last year's team that finished 11-19 overall and was tied for fourth in their division in the Mid-American Conference.  Toledo returns 45 percent of its scoring from last season after losing a trio of 300 point scorers from last year.

    Toledo brings a 3-3 record into Saturday's game and is averaging 67.2 points per game.  Sophomore guard Allie Clifton is the team's leading scorer at 16.3 points per game and is also averaging 7.8 rebounds per game.  Senior Ta'Yani Clark (9.8 ppg) and Tamesha Scotton (9.5 ppg) are the only other players to start all six games this season.  Scotton leads the Rockets in rebounding at 8.3 boards per game.   

    Toledo boasts four players averaging 5.3 rebounds per game or better and is hauling down 40 boards per tilt as a team.  To date, the Rockets have limited opponents to 37.4 shooting and have held their last two opponents to an average of 49.0 points per game. 

About Bradley

    Bradley returns seven of 12 letterwinners, including two starters from last year's team that finished seventh in the Missouri Valley Conference with a 12-19 overall record and 7-11 Valley mark.  The Braves return just one of its top five scorers, however, from last year in senior Devyn Flanagan.

    Junior transfer Monica Rogers is the Braves top scorer and rebounder, averaging 10.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game after playing in each of the last six games.  Rogers is shooting 48 percent from the field, but has scored five points in the last two games. Sophomore guard Skye Johnson is averaging 8.6 points, 2.9 assists and 2.6 steals per game after missing last season.  Sophomore forward Jenny Van Kirk scored nine points as a freshman, but is averaging 8.6 points per game and is shooting a team-best 51 percent from the field.  Van Kirk has also hit seven of her last 10 three-point attempts.

    Senior guard Devyn Flanagan is the Braves top returning scorer and active career scoring leader, but struggled in the early going.  She may have broken out of her early season slump Tuesday, however, netting a season-best 18 points at Loyola on 8-of-13 shooting.  Flanagan is scoring 7.4 points per game, but is averaging 3.1 board, 3.1 assists and 1.5 steals per contest.

    The Braves are averaging 61.0 points per game and have topped 70 points just twice this season, but have averaged nearly 68 points per game over the last three games.  Bradley is giving up 59.3 points per tilt over the last contests and an average of 62.6 points per game for the season.

Series History

    Bradley will return home for one of its two December home contests when the Braves play host to Toledo on Saturday, Dec. 8.  The Braves and Rockets are meeting for just the second time.  Toledo won the first meeting, claiming a 72-64 victory over Bradley on Nov. 24, 1990 in the season opener for both teams at the Rice Classic in Houston, Texas.

The Coaches

    Paula Buscher (Missouri State, ?86) is in her eighth year at Bradley and has a record of 87-119 (.422) at BU.  Buscher led teams to improved records in each of her first five seasons as a collegiate head coach and seven of her 10 seasons overall.  Buscher owns a 130-157 (.453) career record and is in her 11th year as a collegiate head coach.  She is the second winningest coach in school history and led Bradley to its first MVC Tournament victory since 1996 last season.  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.

    Mark Ehlen (Ohio State ?75) is in his 13th year as head coach at Toledo and 22nd overall as a head coach.  The four-time Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year has led the Rockets to a 229-136 (.627) record during his tenure.  Toledo has won five regular-season MAC titles and made four NCAA Tournament and two WNIT appearances during his tenure.  Ehlen was head coach at Xavier prior to taking over the Toledo head coaching position.  He has an overall coaching mark of 351-266 (.569).

Offense Coming Around

    Bradley is averaging 67.7 points per game over the last three games after averaging 57.0 points per game in the first five contests.  The Braves recent offensive surge is even more impressive when you factor in the season-low 40-point outing at Arkansas-Little Rock is factored into the recent improved scoring.  UALR ranks as one of the top defensive teams in the nation and was third in the nation in opponents points per game in 2006-07. 

Flanagan Finding The Stroke?

    One of the reasons for the Braves offensive woes to open the season was that senior Devyn Flanagan had been struggling offensively.  Bradley active career scoring leader and top returning scorer, was averaging just 5.9 points per game through the first seven games of the season.  Flanagan, who had scored a total of 12 points in the last four games, broke out of her slump with a season-best 18-point effort on 8-of-13 shooting Wednesday at Loyola.

Braves End Road Skid

    Bradley ended a seven-game losing streak in non-conference road games Wednesday with an 80-56 victory at Loyola.  Bradley's last non-conference road victory was Dec. 2, 2005 at Loyola, as the Braves posted a 61-50 against the Ramblers at the Gentile Center.  BU had lost six consecutive games away from home heading into Wednesday's game in Chicago.  The Braves last win away from Robertson Memorial Field House was a 65-56 triumph against Missouri State in the first round of the State Farm MVC Tournament. 

Rare Road Blow Out

    Bradley's 24-point blow out at Loyola not only ended the Braves road losing streak, but it provided a rare blowout victory for BU on the road.  The 24-point win was the largest margin of victory for the Braves in a road contest since defeating Southern Illinois 68-42 in Carbondale, Ill., on Jan. 16, 2005.  The last non-conference road game won by 24 points or more for Bradley was an 86-56 rout of Saint Louis on Dec. 21, 2004. 

Bradley Against The MAC

    Saturday's game against Toledo is the last of two games scheduled against teams from the Mid-American Conference.  Bradley is 11-13 all-time against schools from the MAC after suffering a 48-54 loss at Northern Illinois in the season opener.  The Braves are 1-4 against MAC schools under eighth-year head coach Paula Buscher with the lone victory on Dec. 21, 2003 in Peoria against NIU.  Saturday's game against Toledo will be the first game against a MAC school besides Northern Illinois since Paula Buscher's first game as head coach at Bradley.  The Braves fell at Ball State on Nov. 18, 2000 in Buscher's first game on the bench for the Braves.  NIU is the only MAC school to visit Robertson Memorial Field House since Ball State played in Peoria, Ill., on Dec. 1, 1999. 

Flanagan In Rare Air

    Senior Devyn Flanagan was already in elite company to open the season, starting the year in 28th place in career scoring.  The senior has since joined an even more elite group as she is one of nine players in program history with 800 points, 300 rebounds, 200 assists and 100 steals in a career.  She currently has 812 points, 330 rebounds, 223 assists and 120 steals during her time as a Brave.  Flanagan needs just 20 rebounds to become the sixth player in program history with 800 points, 350 rebounds, 200 assists and 100 steals.

Flanagan Cracks Top 25 In Scoring

    Senior Devyn Flanagan scored a season-best 18 points Wednesday at Loyola to climb three places on Bradley's career scoring list and is now 23rd all-time at BU.  Flanagan leaped passed Karen Richardson (798 points), Kathy Stokes (802) and former teammate Jen Brown (805) to take over 23rd place.  She needs five points to pass Erika Grogg for 22nd all-time and is 19 points away from a tie for 20th place.  Flanagan is the first player to have more than 700 points entering their senior season since Genny Mueller in 2004-05.  All 11 players that scored 700 or more points before their final season reached the 1,000-point mark during their last season as a Brave.  Junior Kelly Krumwiede is second among active players with 435 career points.

Bradley's Career Scoring Leaders

Frericks Ties School Record

    Sophomore guard Renee Frericks tied a school record with eight three-point baskets in the Braves 83-57 victory against Eastern Illinois.  Frericks entered the game with nine career points and was 1-for-11 in her career from three-point range, but connected on 8-of-11 trey's against the Panthers to tie Andrea McAllister's school record of eight three-pointers set Jan. 27, 1990.  The eight trey's also broke a Robertson Memorial Field House record, which was held by six individuals (including four former Bradley players) and is tied for the third highest game total in Missouri Valley Conference history.  Frericks finished the game with a career-best 26 points, crushing her previous high of four points.  She has hit 11 of her last 18 three-point attempts (61.1 percent).

In-State Foes

    Wednesday's game at Loyola was the fourth of nine games against teams from the state of Illinois.  The Braves are 3-1 in those in-state battles, after going 3-9 against teams from the Prairie State last year.

Bradley ended a nine-game losing streak to in-state opponents that dated back to last December's home win against Loyola with a 69-62 victory over Illinois-Chicago earlier this season.  The Braves are now 35-25 (.583) against teams from the Land of Lincoln under eighth-year head coach Paula Buscher.  Bradley is 118-138 (.461) against Division I teams from Illinois all-time, but owns an 84-60 (.583) mark against Division I non-conference foes from Illinois.

Braves Top 70 For First Time

    Bradley scored a season-high 83 points in last Tuesday's victory against Eastern Illinois, ending a streak of 10 consecutive games in which the Braves didn't reach the 70-point mark dating back to last season.  The 10-game stretch under 70 points was the first for the Braves since failing to score 70 or more in the first 35 games of intercollegiate competition.  Bradley was held to under 70 points for the entire 1975-76 (11 games) and 1976-77 (18 games) seasons in addition to the first six games of the 1977-78 campaign.  The Braves have reached 80 points in two of the three games and have emerged as one of the top defensive teams in the conference, limiting foes to 62.6 points per game. 

Braves Finish Horizon League Tour

    Wednesday's game at Loyola-Chicago marked the Bradley's fourth and final game against Horizon League opponents.  The Braves finished 2-2 against Horizon League teams this season, posting wins against Illinois-Chicago and Loyola.  BU is 37-21 (.638) against current members of the Horizon League, including a 28-18 (.609) against this year's Horizon League foes.  Bradley is 15-7 (.682) against current members of the Horizon League under eighth-year head coach Paula Buscher.

Braves Dial In From Downtown

    Bradley opened the season struggling from long distance, shooting 26.8 percent (15-for-56) from beyond the arc over the first five games of the season.  The Braves have heated up, hitting 17-of-36 (47.2 percent) from three-point range over the last three contests.  The recent three-point shooting binge started when the Braves shot 64.3 percent from three-point range in an 83-57 home win against Eastern Illinois, knocking down nine of 14 three-point attempts.  The 64.3 percent from three-point range is the third best shooting performance in school history and was the best since setting a school record for accuracy against Northern Iowa, hitting 9-of-11 three-point attempts on Feb. 10, 2001.  Bradley also shot 50 percent (6-for-12) from beyond the arc at Loyola.

Jenny On The Spot

    Sophomore Jenny Van Kirk has emerged as one of the Braves top scoring threats after seeing very little time as a freshman.  Van Kirk scored nine points as a freshman, but has started the last three games and is averaging 8.6 points per game through the first eight games.  Over the last six contests, Van Kirk is shooting 51.1 percent from the field (23-for-45) and averaging 10.2 points per game.  She has started each of the last three games and has hit seven of her last 10 three-point attempts heading into Saturday's game against Toledo.

Won't You Be My Neighbor?

    Junior Monica Rogers has made a big impact in her first few games as a Brave.  After missing both exhibition games and the first two regular-season contests, Rogers is averaging team highs of 10.5 points and 6.3 rebounds per game over her first six games in a Bradley uniform.  The Hampton transfer is shooting 48 percent from the field and is also averaging nearly one steal per game.  She transferred to Bradley from Hampton following her sophomore season, where she averaged 10.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game while leading the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference with nine double-doubles in 2005-06.

Braves Make Trek North To Alaska                         

    The Bradley women's basketball team finished fourth at the annual Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout in Anchorage, Alaska, losing to Santa Clara (61-69) and Cleveland State (61-82).  Tournament host Alaska Anchorage won its second consecutive tournament title.  The Braves were the first Missouri Valley Conference women's team to participate in the Great Alaska Shootout since Drake and Wichita State both took part in the 1983-84 event.  The Bradley men's basketball team is the only other team in school history to compete in Alaska, taking part in the 1979 tournament. 

In-Season Tournaments

   Bradley is 7-9 in in-season tournaments under head coach Paula Buscher and has finished second or better in four of the eight tournaments during her tenure.  The Braves are 22-25 during in-season tournaments since the start of 1985-86 season, including a 17-15 mark since 1993-94.  Bradley has finished second or better in seven of 16 tournaments since the beginning of 1993-94 campaign.

Putting It In Neutral

    Bradley went 0-2 at the Carrs/Safeway Great Alaska Shootout, dropping the Braves record to 28-31 all-time in neutral site games.  BU fell to 6-11 all-time in neutral site games under eighth-year head coach Paula Buscher.  The Braves will have a chance to improve its neutral court record later this season at the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament in St. Charles, Mo., in March.

Home Opening Notes

    Bradley had a three-game win streak in home openers snapped with a 56-46 loss to Butler.  The Braves fell to 23-10 (.697) in home openers all-time, including a 5-3 (.625) mark under head coach Paula Buscher.  The 46 points scored were the fewest scored by Bradley in a home opener, eclipsing the previous mark of 47.  The Braves scored 47 points in their very first contest, a 47-32 home win against Eureka on Jan. 22, 1976.

Buscher Reaches 200 Games At BU

    Bradley's game against Butler (Nov. 13) marked eighth-year head coach Paula Buscher's 200th game as head coach at BU.  She enters Wednesday's tilt at Loyola with a record of 87-119 (.422) at BU, including a 38-34 (.528) mark against non-conference opponents.  Only Lisa Boyer had a longer tenure as head coach of the Braves, sitting on the Bradley bench for 273 games over 10 seasons.  Buscher is second behind Boyer's school record 124 victories.

Up Next

    The Braves will take a few days off for finals before playing their final road game of the non-conference schedule on Thursday, December 20 at Chicago State.    Bradley holds an 11-0 lead in the series with Chicago State, including a 4-0 mark on the road.  The Braves will be playing at Chicago State for the first time since Jan. 18, 1994, when the Braves topped the Cougars 89-66.  Bradley posted a 67-60 win against Chicago State at Robertson Memorial Field House last season.

Braves On The Internet

    Bradley women's basketball fans can catch all of this year's home and away games via the internet at www.bubraves.com  Free audio will be available for each game in addition to a pay-per-view video stream for all home games and some road contests.

See You In St. Charles

    While the 2007-08 season will mark the end of an era with the final season of Robertson Memorial Field House, it also marks the beginning of another era for the Missouri Valley Conference.  After 22 years of playing the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament at campus sites, the 2007-08 State Farm MVC Women's Basketball Tournament will be the first held at a neutral site.  All 10 teams will advance to this year's tournament that will be held March 13-16 at the Family Arena in St. Charles, Mo.  All-session tickets purchased before Dec. 1 are available at the Bradley Athletics Ticket Office for $20.  All-session tickets purchased after Dec. 1 will be $40.  For ticket information, contact the Bradley Athletics Ticket Office at (309) 677-2625.

Field House Finale

                The 2007-08 season will mark the final year for Robertson Memorial Field House.  A new facility, which includes an arena for women's basketball with seating for 4,500 people, and men's basketball practice facility is planned for the current site that Robertson Field House sits on.  The Bradley women's basketball team has posted a 202-164 (.552) record all-time in the facility and have finished .500 or better in 23 of 31 seasons playing in the building.  The Braves are 49-43 (.533) at Robertson Field House under head coach Paula Buscher and own a 51-43 (.543) home record during eight years, having won two games played at Carver Arena.