Game 8 ? Butler Bulldogs (7-0) at Bradley Braves (4-3)
Dec. 10, 2008 ? 7:05 p.m. ? Peoria, Ill. ? Carver Arena
Braves Start Home Stretch Against Hot Butler Squad
PEORIA, Ill. ? After playing five of its first seven games away from home, the Bradley men's basketball team will play four of its next five at Carver Arena, beginning with a tough challenge Wednesday night against an undefeated Butler (7-0) squad that began the week ranked third in the RPI rankings. Wednesday's game will be preceded by the first Braves Club Gameday Luncheon of the Year, as well as a Pre-Game Tailgate Party from 5-7 p.m. at the Peoria Civic Center Exhibit Hall D. In addition, the first 4,000 fans in attendance will receive a Better Banks Bradley Basketball Hand Banner.
Game Information
TV: Comcast ? Peoria Comcast channel 74 and Mediacom channel 78 (Frank Bussone, Dick Versace and Danny Adams)
Radio: 1470 WMBD (Dave Snell, Chuck Buescher and Joe Stowell)
Video and Audio Streams: BradleyBraves.com
Live Stats: BradleyBraves.com
Tickets: Available, $9-20
Series: Bradley leads 11-10
Last: Butler, 83-64 -- Dec. 19, 2007 at Butler
Bradley Braves
2008-09 Record: 4-3
MVC: 0-0
Head Coach: Jim Les (Bradley '86)
Career: 109-93 (7th year)
at Bradley: Same
Website: www.BradleyBraves.com
Butler Bulldogs
2008-09 Record: 7-0
Horizon League: 2-0
Head Coach: Brad Stevens (DePauw '99)
Career: 37-4 (2nd year)
at Butler: Same
Website: www.ButlerSports.com
Starting Five
? Coming off Sunday's 75-59 loss to #12 Michigan State, Bradley returns to action against the No. 3 RPI team, an undefeated Butler squad that went 30-4 last year and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
? Having played five of its first seven games away from home, Bradley will play four of its next five games at Carver Arena.
? Seventh-year Bradley head coach Jim Les owns a 37-5 (.881) non-conference home record, including a 32-2 (.941) mark since the start of the 2003-04 season.
? Bradley owns an 11-10 lead in the all-time series against Butler and the home team has won 15 straight regular-season meetings.
? Wednesday's game will be preceded by the first
Gameday Luncheon of the Year, as well as a Pre-Game Tailgate Party at the Peoria Civic Center.
Carver Arena - Home Of The Braves
? The Peoria Civic Center's Carver Arena has served as the Bradley men's basketball program's home arena since the start of the 1982-83 season.
? Now in its 27th year playing in downtown Peoria, Bradley enters Wednesday's game against Butler with a 286-91 (.759) record at Carver Arena.
? The Braves own a 126-29 (.813) non-conference record at Carver Arena, where Bradley has won five consecutive non-conference games.
? Seventh-year head coach Jim Les owns a 37-5 (.881) non-conference home record, including a 32-2 (.941) record since the start of the 2003-04 season.
Injury Bug Bites Again
? For the third consecutive year, the injury bug has taken a big bite out of the Bradley lineup.
? Junior guard Andrew Warren, the team's top returning scorer (13.2 ppg in 2007-08), has yet to suit up this season as he continues to recover from offseason surgery to repair a broken foot.
? Sophomore center Will Egolf, who was making his third career start, suffered a torn ACL in his right knee with 10:02 remaining Nov. 29 versus East Tennessee State and is to undergo season-ending surgery.
? The absence of Egolf and Warren thins the available Bradley lineup to four returning scholarship lettermen.
New-Look Braves
? While returning seven lettermen from the 2007-08 squad, Bradley is working six newcomers and a redshirt freshman into the lineup this season.
? Bradley entered the season with only two scholarship players boasting more than one year of experience in the program -- fifth-year senior center Sam Singh and junior guard Andrew Warren.
Three Is The Key
? Due in large part to the loss of all-star big men Patrick O'Bryant (early entry NBA lottery pick) and Marcellus Sommerville (graduation) following the 2006 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 season, head coach Jim Les installed a “spread motion” offense modeled after the Phoenix Suns' system in 2006-07.
? Bradley has recruited to the system for three years and has assembled an athletic, skilled lineup that continues to fit with the uptempo style of play.
? The system often utilizes a four-guard attack and has helped Bradley rank third nationally with 738 3-point field goals since the start of the 2006-07 season and finish among the two highest-scoring teams in the Missouri Valley Conference each of the last two years.
? More notably, Bradley has won at least 21 games three consecutive seasons and is tied for eighth nationally with seven postseason wins the last three years.
About Butler
? Butler lost seven lettermen, including four starters from its 2007-08 squad that went 30-4, won the Horizon League with a 16-2 league record and reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
? Graduation has not slowed the Bulldogs, though, as they have won seven straight wins to start the year.
? Butler's lone returning starter is sophomore forward Matt Howard, who leads the Bulldogs in scoring (13.4 ppg), rebounds (6.6 rpg) and blocked shots (1.9 bpg).
? The Bulldogs have not shot the ball particularly well in the early going, 42.8 percent from the field, but defensively they are holding the opposition to 52.4 ppg on 36.6 percent field goal shooting and 4.6 3-pointers per game.
? Butler also commits just 11.0 turnovers per game, while forcing 16.6 turnovers by the opposition.
Bradley-Butler Series
? Bradley owns an 11-10 lead in the all-time series against Butler, which dates back to an 83-77 Braves win in the first round of the 1959 National Invitation Tournament at Madison Square Garden.
? Wednesday's meeting will be the sixth in Jim Les' seven years as Bradley head coach and he is 2-3 against the Bulldogs (2-0 at home).
? The home team has won 15 consecutive regular-season meetings, although Butler did pull out a 51-50 win in the first round of the 1999 NIT at Carver Arena.
? Bradley earned the last regular-season win by a visitor in the series, earning an 87-81 victory Dec. 8, 1962 in Indianapolis.
Another Horizon Matchup
? The game against Butler will be the second of at least three against the Horizon League this season.
? The Braves knocked off visiting UIC, 67-61, in the season-opener Nov. 14 and will visit Milwaukee Dec. 20.
? Bradley played five games against the Horizon last season, going 3-2 with wins against Wright State, Loyola and Milwaukee and losses at Butler and UIC.
? Conversely, Butler already is 2-0 against the Missouri Valley Conference this season, beating Drake (58-48) and Evansville (75-59).
? The Bulldogs played five games against The Valley last season with a 4-1 record, knocking off Indiana State, Evansville, Bradley and Southern Illinois, before falling to Drake in BracketBusters.
Horizon Home Winning Streak
? Although the Braves have lost a pair of first-round NIT games to Butler (1999) and Detroit (2001), the Braves have won 18 consecutive regular-season home games against the current Horizon League membership.
? Bradley's last regular-season home loss to a current Horizon League member was a 59-48 loss to Loyola Dec. 15, 1984.
Michigan State Bounce Backs
? For the third consecutive season, Bradley is faced with trying to bounce back from a December loss to Michigan State.
? In each of the two previous years, the Braves bounced back with a win against a Horizon League member in its next game.
? In 2006, the Braves rebounded with an 88-49 home win against Wright State and last year Bradley went on the road to knock off Wright State in overtime, 72-65.
Let It Fly
? Wednesday's combatants have combined to make 1,435 3-point baskets the last three seasons.
? Bradley ranks third nationally with 738 treys since the start of the 2006-07 season, while Butler is seventh with 697 3-pointers.
? While Bradley has gotten off to a slow start from 3-point range by shooting just 29.9 percent through seven games, Butler is averaging 8.1 treys per game and is shooting 35.2 percent from behind the arc.
New-Look Matchup
? Both Bradley and Butler figure to play plenty of newcomers Wednesday night.
? Bradley starts a pair of junior college transfers in the backcourt -- juniors Dodie Dunson and Chris Roberts -- while three freshmen average better than 12 mpg -- Taylor Brown, Eddren McCain and Darian Norris.
? Butler has started three freshmen in each of their first seven games, while a fourth freshman averages 8.9 minutes per game off the bench.
Newcomer Impact
? With junior guard Andrew Warren (foot) likely out and sophomore forward Will Egolf (knee) unavailable, Bradley's rotation figures to feature five newcomers and four returning players.
? Junior college transfer Dodie Dunson (13.6 ppg) is the team's top scorer.
? The five newcomers -- Dunson (32.9 mpg), Chris Roberts (27.7), Eddren McCain (18.0), Taylor Brown (12.9) and Darian Norris (12.3) -- have combined for 726 of the team's 1400 total minutes played.
Category Returners (4) Newcomers (5)
Points Per Game 28.7 34.6
Rebounds Per Game 15.4 13.4
Assists Per Game 6.3 5.9
Turnovers Per Game 7.6 8.3
Blocks Per Game 1.9 0.6
Steals Per Game 3.4 2.4
Minutes Per Game 85.6 103.7
Getting To The Line
? Bradley enters the week second in The Valley by averaging 25.9 free throw attempts per game.
? By comparison, the 2007-08 Braves averaged 20.4 free throw attempts per game.
? Through the first seven games, Bradley has made 126-of-181 (.696) free throw attempts.
? Bradley's number of made free throws are just two less than the number of attempts by its opponents.
? The Braves have outscored the opposition by 30 points, 126-96, at the stripe through seven games.
Leading The Parade To The Line
? Senior forward Theron Wilson continues to lead the parade to the line.
? After easily pacing the Braves with 179 free throw attempts last season (4.8 FTA/gm), Wilson has attempted 55 charity shots in the first seven games (7.9 FTA/gm).
? Wilson already has been fouled 55 times in seven games, drawing better than 35 percent of the total fouls (155) committed against the Braves.
Turnovers Slow The Offense
? Bradley has committed 120 turnovers (17.1 tpg) in the first seven games.
? On the defensive end, the Braves have forced just 107 turnovers (15.3 tpg).
? The disparity has helped the opposition to a 120-93 advantage in points off turnovers.
Scoring In Threes
? Bradley is third nationally with 738 total treys since the start of 2006-07.
? Bradley became the first-ever Missouri Valley Conference team to make as many as 300 3-pointers in a season with 349 during the 2006-07 season and the Braves followed with 346 more last season.
Maui Jim 3-Point Challenge
? Peoria manufacturer Maui Jim is sponsoring Bradley's 3-point shooting in 2008-09, with proceeds to benefit the Jimmy V Foundation for Cancer Research.
? For every 3-pointer the team makes throughout the season, Maui Jim will donate $10 to the Jimmy V Foundation and the company is encouraging fans to join the challenge.
? For every pledge, participants will be entered into a postseason drawing for a pair of Maui Jim Sunglasses, as well as two tickets to the 2008-09 Bradley Basketball Postseason Banquet.
? For more information and to make your pledge, visit the men's basketball page at www.BradleyBraves.com and click on the Maui Jim 3-Point Challenge graphic.
Scoring Big
? A player standing no taller than 6-foot-5 has led Bradley in scoring in 59 consecutive games, a streak dating back to Jan. 20, 2007 when 6-foot-8 Zach Andrews paced the Braves with 21 points versus Wichita State.
105th Season
? Bradley has started its 105th men's basketball season and the Braves rank 26th in NCAA Division I history with 1,520 all-time wins.
? Bradley played its first men's basketball game Jan. 1, 1903 defeating a YMCA program known as the Invincibles, 12-8.
Postseason Streak
? The Braves are attempting to reach the postseason for a fourth consecutive season, a streak the program has not enjoyed since 1994-97.
? In addition, Bradley has won at least one postseason game in each of the last three years, an accomplishment only previously achieved from 1949-51.
Unique Staff Makeup
? Bradley's coaching staff is believed to be one of just two in the country to boast two staff members with NCAA Tournament head coaching victories.
? Seventh-year head coach Jim Les led the Braves to the 2006 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16, while second-year Bradley assistant Steve Merfeld coached Hampton to the second round of the 2001 NCAA Tournament.
? North Carolina assistant Steve Robinson led Tulsa (1997) and Florida State (1998) to NCAA Tourney wins.
Graduate Players
? For the fourth consecutive year, Bradley's roster features a player who already owns his degree.
? Fifth-year senior center Sam Singh received his bachelor's degree in communications-public relations during commencement ceremonies May 17, 2008.
? Previously, Brandyn Heemskerk (?05), Danny Adams (?06) and Daniel Ruffin (?07) all earned their degrees before completing their eligibility the following season.
Future Braves
? Bradley signed a pair of 6-foot-8 high school players during the Early Signing Period Nov. 12.
Milos Knezevic, Henderson, Nev., Liberty H.S.
? Averaged 14 ppg and 8 rpg as a junior
? Friends with Bradley guard Darian Norris, a freshman from Las Vegas Mojave High School.
Jordan Prosser, Eureka, Ill., Eureka H.S.
? First-team all-state in 2007-08 (Illinois 2A)
? Averaged 19.5 ppg and 11.7 rpg as a junior.
Looking Ahead
? Bradley will host Southeast Missouri State (2-6) Sunday at 1:05 p.m. at Carver Arena, then will have a week to prepare for its next road game, Dec. 20 at Milwaukee.
