For Starters
Bradley (4-8 overall, 0-2 MVC) will host Evansville (3-9 overall, 0-1 MVC) in its Missouri Valley Conference home opener Thursday. The Braves and Purple Aces both opened Valley play on the road and are both looking for their first league win of the season.
Bradley is playing its first home game since a Dec. 8 home loss against Missouri and is looking to end a two-game losing skid overall and two-game home losing streak. The Braves opened MVC play with a 72-67 loss at Missouri State and followed it up with a 55-69 loss at Wichita State. Thursday's game against Evansville is the first game in a season-long three-game homestand for the Braves as BU looks to avenge last year's 81-84 overtime loss to UE in the semifinals of the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament in St. Charles, Mo.
The Purple Aces opened up Valley action with a 68-79 loss at Southern Illinois Saturday and have lost three of their last four. Evansville is 1-4 on the road this season and 1-6 away from home, including two neutral site losses. The Purple Aces are the only NCAA Tournament team from 2008-09 on Bradley's schedule this season.
About Evansville
Evansville returned six of 13 letterwinners, including two starters from last year's team which won four games in four days to claim the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Tournament title and advance to the NCAA Tournament. The Aces finished the 2008-09 season with a 15-19 overall record and were tied for ninth in the Valley at 4-14.
Off to a 3-9 start to the year, Evansville lost its first six games, but boasts a 3-3 record since with winst against Saint Louis, Ball State and at Lipscomb.
Senior guard Amy Gallagher leads the Aces in scoring at 11.3 pinots per game and also leads the team in assists (2.5 apg).
Freshman center Samantha Heck is Evansville's rop rebounder at 6.5 boards per game and is second on the squad in scoring (7.3 ppg). Junior Stephanie Bamberger adds 6.8 points per outing and leads Evansville with 15 three-pointers (33.3 percent shooting from beyond the arc).
Evansville ranks fifth in the MVC in turnover margin (-0.08) and ranks fourth in the Valley in turnovers forced per game (18.4). UE is third in the league in steals per game (8.3) and have limited opponents to 29.5 percent shooting from three-point range.
About Bradley
A year removed from featuring one of the most experienced rosters in the Missouri Valley Conference, youth is prevalent on the 2009-10 roster for the Bradley Women's Basketball.
Despite returning four of its top eight scorers from 2008-09 and one of the top inside players in the Missouri Valley Conference, the Braves roster features just two seniors and a total of four upperclassmen (two juniors) to go along with five sophomores and three freshmen.
Headlining a group which represents 50 percent of last year's scoring and 56 percent of the rebounding is junior forward Sonya Harris. A game-changer on both ends of the floor, Harris averaged 9.3 points per game and was third in the MVC in rebounding at 8.5 boards per game as a sophomore in 2008-09. She earned Second-Team All-MVC honors after posting a league-leading and school-season record 79 blocked shots and was second on the team in steals with 36, while garnering MVC All-Defensive Team honors. This season, she is averaging 8.5 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.8 blocked shots per game on the young season after reaching double figures in rebounds in eight of the first 12 games. Harris is second in the conference in rebounding and third in blocked shots.
Freshman Katie Yohn has led the team in scoring in four of her first 12 games and has started nine contests. A versatile player with the ability to shoot from the outside or penetrate, she is averaging a team-best 9.6 points per outing and her 22 three-pointers is the fourth-best total by a Bradley freshman.
Junior Raisa Taylor is shooting a team-best 50 percent from the field and is third on the team in scoring at 8.3 points per outing after scoring in double figures in three of the last four games. Taylor is 21-for-37 from the field over the last five games (56.8 percent) and is scoring 10.8 points per game during that time.
Senior co-captain Jenny Van Kirk is adding 6.5 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game, while leading the team with a 1.7 assist-to-turnover ratio.
Bradley picked up where it left off last year, outrebounding 10 of the first 12 opponents on the schedule by an average margin of +5.9. The Braves lead the Valley in rebounding (43.3 rpg) and rank second in the league in rebounding margin. BU also leads the MVC in blocked shots (5.3) and rank third in the conference in both field goal percentage (41.4%) and field goal percentage defense (37.8 percent).
The Coaches
The dean of Missouri Valley Conference Women's Basketball coaches, Paula Buscher (Missouri State, '86) is in her 10th year at Bradley and has a record of 121-150 (.446) at BU. Buscher led teams to improved records in each of her first five seasons as a collegiate head coach and 10 of her 13 seasons overall, culminating in last year's 21-10 season. The 2008-09 Rawlings Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year, Buscher owns a 164-188 (.466) career record and is in her 13th year as a collegiate head coach. She is the second winningest coach in school history with 121 wins and needs just three wins to pass Lisa Boyer. Last season she led Bradley to a school-record 21 victories (21-10 overall) and best conference finish (11-7 MVC; 4th place) since tying for third in 1991-92. 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.
Misty Murphy (Colorado State '98) is in her second season as head coach at Evansville and has an 18-28 (.391) record as the head coach of the Purple Aces. In her first season with the Purple Aces, she led her team on a late-season run which culminated in an MVC Tournament title and NCAA Tournament appearance. In her eighth year as a collegiate head coach, she spent the three seasons prior to Evansville as an assistant coach at Rice, but had head coaching stops at Colorado State-Pueblo (2001-02 through 2004-05) and Sheridan College (1999-2000 and 2000-01). Murphy owns a 126-93 (.575) career coaching mark.
Last Time Out
Bradley opened Missouri Valley Conference play with a pair of losses, falling at Missouri State (67-72) and at Wichita State (55-69). The Braves led 40-34 at halftime against Missouri State, but the Bears limited BU to 32.3 percent shooting in the second half and rallied from a 12-point deficit to edge Bradley 72-67. Freshman Katie Yohn had a team-best 18 points, while junior Raisa Taylor added 13 points. Junior Sonya Harris had 13 points and 11 rebounds Saturday at Wichita State, but the Shockers held Bradley to 33.3 percent shooting and the Braves shot a season-low 16.7 percent from beyond the arc. Bradley forced Wichita State into a season-low nine turnovers in the 55-69 loss.
Evansville Series
Bradley will play its first home game in nearly a month when Evansville comes to a town Jan. 7 for BU's home conference opener. The Braves and Purple Aces met in last year's MVC Tournament semifinals with UE posting an 84-81 overtime victory. Bradley holds a 16-15 lead in the all-time series after taking two of three meetings last year. The Braves and Aces have alternated regular-season sweeps over the last seven seasons and the series has resulted in a sweep 11 of the 15 seasons since the Purple Aces joined the Valley. BU holds a 10-5 edge in games played in Peoria and Bradley is 9-10 against Evansville under head coach Paula Buscher.
MVC Home Openers
The Braves ended a four-game losing streak in Missouri Valley Conference home openers last year with a 73-49 victory against Southern Illinois in the first home conference game of the 2008-09 season. Bradley is 10-16 (.385) all-time in Missouri Valley Conference home openers and is looking to win back-to-back league home openers since winning four straight (1993-94, 1994-95, 1995-96 and 1996-97). Bradley will play Evansville in its MVC home opener for the first time since 1996-97 (an 83-53 BU victory) and just the second time overall. The Braves are 3-6 in Valley home openers under head coach Paula Buscher.
Home, Sweet Home
Thursday's game against Evansville brings to an end a season-long five-game month-long road swing for the Braves and kicks off a season-long three-game homestand. Bradley's last home game was Dec. 8 against Missouri. The Braves have played a league-leading eight road games and will have had 29 days between home contests when BU takes on the Purple Aces Thursday at Lorene Ramsey Gym. Bradley has not had a 29-day stretch between home games since the 1981-82 season.
Five-Game Road Swing In The Books
The Braves recently completed the longest road swing since the 1993-94 season, playing five consecutive road games. The road swing marked the seventh in program history of five games or more and was the first since the 1977-78 to feature five true road games. Bradley finished with a 2-3 record on it's five-game road swing and has now finished with two or more victories on six of its last seven stretches which featured five or more consecutive games away from home.
Home Cooking
While it's been noted Bradley has had 29 days between home games, the Braves are also approaching nearly two months since their last victory at home. BU has played a league-low three home games to date and lost back-to-back home games in December during the team's last home stand. Since playing the second game of the season at home, Bradley has played eight of the last 10 games away from home and has not won at home since posting a 79-64 victory against Illinois-Chicago on Nov. 15. The Braves have not lost three consecutive home games since ending the 2006-07 season with back-to-back home losses and falling in the home opener in 2007-08.
Aces Wild
Junior Raisa Taylor averaged 16.3 points per game against Evansville last year and has scored in double figures in four consecutive contests against the Purple Aces. In five career games against UE, she owns a 13.6 points-per-game average and is shooting 51.3 percent from the field. Taylor also owns a 2.8 assist-per-game average against the Purple Aces.
Climbing The Charts
Junior Sonya Harris pulled down her 500th career rebound Saturday at Wichita State, making her the 15th player in program history to collect 500 boards. She is poised to climb higher on Bradley's career rebounding list this weekend, needing just three boards to pass Heidi Nelson. Harris had 11 rebounds at Wichita State, marking the 26th time in her career she pulled down 10 or more boards in a game. Bradley's career record for double-digit rebounding games is 32 by Dena Williams. Harris is the Braves active career leader in scoring (547 points) and rebounding (509).
From Long Range
Freshman Katie Yohn has connected on a team-leading 22 three-pointers and is the Braves top scorer at 9.6 points per outing. Yohn's 22 trey's is the fourth-best season total in school history and she is just 12 three-pointers from taking over second place among BU freshmen. Michelle Lund set the Bradley freshman record last season with 75 three-pointers.
Up Next
Bradley continues its season-long three-game homestand Saturday against Southern Illinois. The Salukis hold a 41-15 lead in the all-time series, but Bradley has won four of the last five meetings overall and each of the last four regular-season games between the longtime conference rivals. Southern Illinois won 38 of the first 41 meetings in the all-time series, but the Braves have won 13 of the last 18 meetings overall and own a 13-6 record vs. the Salukis under head coach Paula Buscher. Bradley is 8-18 in home games in the series, having won four of the last five meetings.
Pounding The Boards
After leading the league in rebounding in 2008-09 with a 41.5 rebounds per game average, Bradley is once again dominating the glass. The Braves lead the Missouri Valley Conference in rebounding (43.3 rpg) and rank second in the Valley in rebounding margin (+5.9). The last team to lead the MVC in rebounding in back-to-back seasons was Northern Iowa in 1997-98 and again in 1998-99. Bradley has outrebounded 10 of 12 opponents this season and has matched our outrebounded its foe in 35 of the last 43 games.
Hot Hand
Junior Raisa Taylor has had a hot hand as of late, connecting on 21-of-37 (.568) shots from the field over the last five games and averaging a team-best 10.8 points per game during that stretch. Taylor is 27-of-49 (.551) over the last eight games and is a combined 29-for-52 (.558) in BU's six road games.
Getting Defensive
After surrendering an average of 73.0 points per game in the first five games of the season, Bradley has limited its last seven opponents to 62.4 points per game and 35.9 percent shooting from the floor. The Braves limited Air Force to 29.3 percent shooting and the Falcons managed just 45 points against BU's defense, marking the second time Bradley held an opponent to less than 30 percent shooting. BU has not held two opponents to less than 30 percent shooting in the same season since 2002-03 and the 45 points by the Falcons are the fewest surrendered by the Braves since posting a 70-44 victory at Chicago State on Dec. 20, 2007.
Non-Conference Finale
Ending the non-conference schedule on a high note has been a habit for the Braves. Bradley has won its final non-conference game six of the last seven years and boasts an 8-2 record in the final non-conference game of the season under head coach Paula Buscher. In fact BU is 16-3 (.842) in the final non-league game of the season over the last 19 years and 21-6 (.778) overall since joining the Gateway Conference for the 1983-84 season.
Braves Rally For Win
The Braves rallied from a halftime deficit to post a win for the first time this season with a 72-66 win at Saint Louis to wrap up the non-conference schedule. Bradley, which is now 1-6 when trailing at the half, had lost 35 consecutive road games in which it trailed at the break. BU's last road win in a game in which it trailed at halftime, was a 72-69 victory at Missouri State on March 3, 2005.
Bench Coming Up Big
Bradley has had at least one player come off the bench and score in double figures in eight of 12 games this season. BU's reserves have accounted for 48 percent of the team's offense this season and the Braves' bench has been outscored by the opponent's counterparts in just two of 12 outings. Bradley's bench is averaging 30.1 points per game and boasts an average scoring margin of +12.2 per game compared to the opponents' reserves.
Success Against The Mountain West
Bradley is 3-5 on the road this season, with two of three road wins coming on the home courts of Mountain West Conference foes after a 62-45 victory at Air Force (Dec. 19). The Braves have won four consecutive games against current members of the Mountain West Conference and own a 4-1 overall record against the league.
Tinkering With The Lineup
Sophomore Hanna Muegge became the 10th different player to start a game for the Braves this season, earning her first career start at Saint Louis on Dec. 29. Head coach Paula Buscher and the Braves have used a total of six different starting lineups through the first 12 games of the season.
Defense Not Enough
Bradley limited Missouri to 26.9 percent shooting when the two teams met earlier this month, but fell to the Tigers 52-46. The 26.9 percent field goal percentage is the lowest for a BU opponent since Southern Illinois shot 23.4 percent from the field on Jan. 31, 2003. The loss to the Tigers is the first time Bradley held an opponent under 27 percent shooting and lost. The 52 points surrendered were a then season low and also marked the fewest points surrendered in a loss since falling to Evansville 51-49 on Feb. 4, 2005.
Non-Conference Home Win Streak Snapped
Arkansas-Little Rock snapped Bradley's 10-game non-conference home win streak with a 58-51 victory against the Braves on Dec. 5 at Woodruff High School. The 10-game non-conference home win streak is the longest since Bradley joined the Gateway Conference for the 1983-84 season. The Braves still boast an eight-game home win streak against in-state non-conference foes. Bradley is 28-13 (.683) at home against non-conference opponents under 10th-year head coach Paula Buscher.
The Young And The Restless
Through 12 games, Bradley has had eight different players lead the squad in scoring. All three freshmen have paced the Braves in scoring at least once and frosh Katie Yohn has led BU in scoring a team-best four times. Three of Bradley's top seven scorers are freshmen, led by Yohn's team-best 9.6 points per game scoring average. Brooke Bisping has improved her scoring average to 4.8 per outing and Olivia Allen is adding 5.0 points per game. The Braves' freshmen class has combined for 30 percent of the team's scoring.
High Scoring Freshman
Freshman Katie Yohn scored a team-best 25 points to help lead Bradley to a victory at UNLV (Nov. 29). Yohn's 25 points is the most scored by a BU freshman since Raisa Taylor had 28 at Southern Illinois on Feb. 28, 2008 and is the second most points contributed by a freshman under head coach Paula Buscher. Judy Burns scored 25 or more points twice as a freshman in 1981-82. Since Burns freshman season, only five different BU freshman have scored 25 or more points in a game.
Lund Takes Leave
Sophomore guard Michelle Lund has taken a leave of absence from the team citing personal reasons. Lund missed the Braves first exhibition game with the flu and sat out the season opener at Northern Illinois, before returning to the lineup and averaging 6.0 points per game in two appearances. She has missed the last seven games.
Buscher Nearing School Wins Record
Head coach Paula Buscher is in her 10th season on The Hilltop and needs just three victories to pass Lisa Boyer as the winningest coach in program history. The 2008-09 Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year, Buscher owns a 121-150 (.446) record at Bradley and led the Braves to a school-record 21 victories (21-10 overall) last year. Boyer was 123-150 (.451) as Bradley head coach from 1986-87 through the 1995-96 season. Buscher will match Boyer as the longest tenured coach in program history following the 2009-10 campaign and the duo has combined for 244 of Bradley's 420 all-time wins (58.1 percent).
In-State Opponents
Bradley opened the season with three consecutive games against in-state opponents, marking the second consecutive year the Braves started a season with three in-state foes. BU is 26-16 (.619) against in-state non-conference opponents under 10th-year head coach Paula Buscher, including a 10-4 (.714) mark since the start of the 2007-08 season. Bradley is 45-33 (.577) against in-state foes during Buscher's tenure, which includes a 20-18 combined mark against Illinois State and Southern Illinois.
Yohn Named MVC Newcomer of the Week
Freshman Katie Yohn was named the Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week for the week of Nov. 16 after scoring in double figures in each of her first two games. She led the Braves in scoring in the first outing of her career, finishing with 16 points and a game-high five assists off the bench in the season opener at Northern Illinois. Yohn made her first career start Sunday against Illinois-Chicago and responded by making 6-of-10 shots. In addition to dishing out a game-high five assists, she contributed 13 points, five rebounds, one block and one steal as she helped the Braves to a 79-64 win against the Flames. Yohn averaged 14.5 points, 4.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists over her first two games and is the first Bradley freshman to score in double figures in her first two games since Judy Burns in 1981-82.
Double Trouble
Junior Sonya Harris collected her team-leading third double-double of the year, pushing her career total to 17. Harris, who had eight double-doubles last year as a sophomore, is tied for fourth in school history with her 17 career double-doubles. She has the most double-doubles by a Bradley player since Dena Williams collected 19 from 2001-05. Harris nearly averaged a double-double in Missouri Valley Conference play in 2008-09, scoring 9.7 points per game while grabbing 10.1 boards per contest and is contributing 8.5 points and 10.4 rebounds per game this season.
Strong Debuts
Freshmen guards Katie Yohn and Olivia Allen both reached double figures in scoring in each of their first two games. Just the ninth and 10th freshman in school history to score 10 or more points in their debut, they joined Judy Burns as the only players to score in double figures in each of their first two outings as a Brave. Burns accomplished the feat during the 1981-82 season. Yohn leads the team in scoring at 9.6 points per game, while Allen is third on the team in scoring at 6.9 points per game. Yohn's 16 points in the season opener against NIU ranks as the third best scoring output by a freshman in their first game and Allen's 15 points vs. the Huskies is the fourth-highest point-total in a debut since 1981-82. Below is a chart detailing the top-10 scoring efforts by Bradley freshman in their debuts.
10 Or More Boards
Junior Sonya Harris is one of the top returning rebounders in the Missouri Valley Conference and she picked up where she left off in 2008-09, pulling down 10.4 boards per game this season. She has reached double digits in rebounds in 26 games in her two-plus seasons, including eight of 12 outings to open the 2009-10 slate. Her 26 career double-digit rebounding efforts is the fourth most in program history and just six short of Dena Williams' career mark of 32. Harris had 12 outings with 10 or more boards in 2008-09 and averaged better than 10 rebounds per game in Missouri Valley Conference play last year.
Home Away From Home
The Braves will once again call Illinois Central College's Lorene Ramsey Gym home as construction of a new on-campus facility continues and will be completed this spring. The Braves boasted an 11-2 record at Lorene Ramsey Gym last year and finished the season with a 12-2 home mark, including an 81-65 win against Air Force which was played at Richwoods High School. Bradley tied a school record with 12 home wins last season and the 12-2 home mark is the second-best home winning percentage in school history behind the 1979-80 squad's 10-1 home record. The Braves are an impressive 12-3 (.800) at Lorene Ramsey Gym including this season's 1-1 record in the facility.
Bradley Picked Sixth In MVC Poll
Bradley was picked to finish sixth in the preseason Missouri Valley Conference poll. The sixth-place selection is the highest the Braves have been picked since they were selected to finish sixth in 2002-03. Bradley has finished higher than its predicted finish in each of the last three years and seven of the last nine years under head coach Paula Buscher. The Braves were 36 points behind fifth-place Indiana State and 26 points ahead of seventh-place Missouri State.
2009-10 MVC Preseason Poll
Rank Team (First-Place Votes) Points
1. Creighton (34) 393
2. Illinois State (6) 340
3. Drake 296
4. Northern Iowa 253
5. Indiana State 250
6. BRADLEY 214
7. Missouri State 188
8. Evansville 108
9. Wichita State 97
10. Southern Illinois 61
Braves Break School Record For Wins In 08-09
Bradley is coming off arguably its most successful season since joining the Missouri Valley Conference, after posting a 21-10 record in 2008-09. The 21 victories were a school record and the Braves finished with just the second 20-win season in program history. Bradley's only other 20-win season came in 1979-80, when the Braves posted a 20-9 overall mark. Bradley's 21 victories last year were the most since playing a full NCAA Division I schedule. In addition, the Braves' 11 Missouri Valley Conference wins were the most since finishing 1991-92 with an 11-7 conference mark.
What's Back
Bradley returns 10 of 14 letterwinners, including three starters from last year's team which finished with a school-record 21 victories. The Braves, which feature five of the top eight scorers and three of the top four rebounders from 2008-09, have two returning players that averaged 8.8 points per game or better. Junior forward Sonya Harris was a Second-Team All-MVC selection after averaging 9.3 points and a team-best 8.5 rebounds per game. Harris led The Valley in blocked shots and was third in rebounding in the league, while capturing MVC All-Defensive Team honors in 2008-09. Junior forward Raisa Taylor started 12 games and averaged 8.8 points per contest.
Feeling Rejected
Junior Sonya Harris is currently 13th in Missouri Valley Conference history with 135 career blocked shots. Harris is currently third in the MVC in blocked shots, averaging 1.8 per game. Last season she had a school-record 79 blocks and averaged 2.7 per tilt as a sophomore. Harris is currently third in school history in rejections, needing 19 blocked shots to overtake Heather Best for second place (9th in MVC history).
Lowe's Senior CLASS Award
Senior forward Jenny Van Kirk is one of 30 national candidates for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as a NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - classroom, character, community and competition. Van Kirk joins former teammate Kelly Krumwiede as national candidates for the award. Van Kirk owns a 4.0 cumulative grade point average and was a second-team MVC Scholar-Athlete last year. She also was a Second-Team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District V selection in addition to earning Division I-AAA Athletic Director's Scholar-Athlete honors.
On The Rebound
Junior Sonya Harris ranked third in the Missouri Valley Conference in rebounding last year, pulling down an average of 8.5 boards per game. Her 247 rebounds last season was the best season total by a Bradley player since Carrie Coffman had a school-record 302 boards in 1994-95 and is the most rebounds by an underclassmen in program history. This season she is pulling down an average of 10.2 boards per game and is on pace to finish the regular season with 292 rebounds. She needs 106 rebounds to join Roxanne Grabow as the only players in program history with two seasons with 230 rebounds or more.
