ST. LOUIS, Mo. -- Senior center Leah Kassing (Mt. Sterling, Ill./Brown County) was named Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week and freshman guard Shronda Butts (Des Moines, Iowa/East) picked up Missouri Valley Conference Newcomer of the Week honors as the Braves swept the league's weekly awards announced Monday.
Butts is the first BU player to earn Valley Newcomer of the Week honors since Katie Yohn (Elgin, Ill./St. Edward) earned the award on Feb. 22, 2010 and Bradley (6-3 overall) had both Player and Newcomer of the Week winners in the same week since that same date.
Bradley's leading scorer and rebounder this season, Kassing scored 19.3 points on 62.5 percent shooting and pulled down 10.7 rebounds in three games last week. She opened the week with a career-best 23 points on 10-of-16 shooting and also had seven rebounds in a four-point setback to Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Kassing collected her second double-double of the year with 13 points and 11 boards to help highlight a 50-45 win at Butler and capped the week with 22 points and a career-high 14 rebounds in an 86-79 road win at Central Michigan. She connected on 10-of-15 shots from the field in a career-high 33 minutes against the Chippewas as she helped Bradley improve to 4-0 in road games this season.
Butts averaged 11.7 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.0 steals, while making the first two starts of her career last week. She started the week with a then season-best 13 points and also had three boards, two assists and a steal in the home loss to Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
In her first career start, Butts had seven points and two rebounds in a five-point win at 2011 WNIT participant Butler, before turning in her best effort of the year at Central Michigan. Butts tallied season highs of 15 points, five rebounds, five assists, two blocks and three steals in addition to making all four of her free throws in the final minute to help Bradley hold on for the win against the Chippewas.
On the season, Kassing owns career-best averages of 14.4 points and 8.1 rebounds per game in addition to ranking among the conference leaders with a 57.9 field goal percentage. She owns a team-best three double-doubles this year and has scored in double figures in seven of nine games after scoring 10 or more points in nine of her first 84 career games.
Butts has started each of the last two games and has raised her scoring average to 6.4 points per game. Currently third on the team in assists at 2.0 per game, she is one of two players on the roster with more assists than turnovers and is second on the squad in steals.
Bradley returns to action Tuesday, closing out a three-game road swing with a 5:30 p.m. game at SIU Edwardsville.
