Illinois State (11-9, 4-4 MVC)
at
Bradley (8-13, 3-5 MVC)

When: Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2014 | 7:00 p.m.
Where: Peoria, Ill. | Carver Arena (11,094)

Game Coverage
TV: WTVP | Brian Bedo (play-by-play) and Danny Adams (analyst)
Radio: 1470 WMBD | Dave Snell (play-by-play), Chad Kleine (analyst) and Dan DiOrio (Braves Plus pregame)
Video Streaming: Bradley All-Access (subscription)
Audio Streaming: Bradley All-Access (free)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast.com
Twitter: @BradleySIDLive | #BRADvILS

Bradley Pregame Notes (PDF) | Illinois State Basketball Website

Coaches
Bradley: Geno Ford | 33-55 in 3rd year at Bradley; 152-124 in 9th year overall
Illinois State: Dan Muller | 29-24 in 2nd year at Illinois State and overall

Series History
117th all-time meeting | Bradley leads 62-54, including 41-18 at home
Trend: Illinois State has won eight of the last nine in the series

Tip-Off
As many as 15 players could get their first taste of the Interstate 74 Rivalry when Illlinois State and its nine newcomers visits Bradley and its seven newbies for the first installment in the 2013-14 series ... With a win, Bradley could pull even with the rival Redbirds in the Missouri Valley Conference standings at the halfway point of the league's 18-game, double round-robin schedule ... Wednesday's game will be the 117th all-time meeting between the local rivals in a series that dates back to the 1904-05 season ... Although Bradley owns a 62-54 all-time series lead, Illinois State has won eight of the last nine meetings, including three of the last four at Carver Arena ... Bradley will try to win its third consecutive home game before hitting the road for four of its first six games to start the month of February.

Promotions
The Jesse White Tumblers are scheduled to perform at halftime Wednesday ... Tickets begin at just $8 and may be purchased in advance through TicketMaster at BradleyBraves.com or in person at the Peoria Civic Center Box Office.

Series History
Wednesday's game will be the 117th in the all-time series between Interstate 74 rivals Bradley and Illinois State, which dates back to ISU's 39-13 home win during the 1904-05 season ... Bradley owns a 62-54 record in the series, including a 41-18 home record against the Redbirds ... In his third year as Bradley's head coach, Geno Ford is 1-3 against Illinois State, while 2nd-year Redbirds head coach Dan Muller is 1-1 against Bradley ... While Bradley's roster includes seven active first-year players, Illinois State's roster includes eight newcomers, meaning as many as 15 players could see the floor for the first time in an I-74 Rivalry game.

Turning The In-State Tide
For three years from 2009-10 through 2011-12, Bradley lost 9-of-10 home games to in-state opponents with the lone win a 66-63 victory against Northern Illinois Nov. 16, 2010 ... As Bradley prepares for Wednesday night's visit by Illinois State, the Braves have won five straight home games against in-state rivals since the start of the 2012-13 campaign.

Historic Turnaround
Bradley opened the conference season Jan. 1 with an 80-46 loss at Northern Iowa ... The 34-point defeat was Bradley's seventh consecutive loss ... The Braves immediately bounced back with a 68-57 home win Jan. 4 versus Drake and are 3-4 in the seven games since the UNI defeat ... Two of the losses came in road games at Indiana State and Wichita State (combined 20-0 at home) ... In their last home game, the Braves avenged the loss at UNI with a 69-65 win Wednesday night at Carver Arena, marking the first time Bradley had ever defeated a team it lost to by at least 30 points in the season's previous meeting.

Tough Five-Game Start
Bradley easily drew the toughest 5-game start to the MVC season, facing five teams that now boast a 72-29 (.713) overall record ... Three of Bradley's first five Valley games were played on the road against the league's three remaining unbeaten home teams - at UNI, Indiana State and Wichita State (27-0 combined home record).

January's Final Four
After enduring the The Valley's toughest 5-game start, Bradley's league schedule has softened for the remainder of the month ... Bradley is closing out the month of January with four games against teams that now have a combined 37-45 (.451) overall record ... Wednesday's game will be Bradley's third home game in its final January push against a trio of teams that have combined for a 5-21 (.192) road record.

Tight Games
Including each of the last three games, Bradley has played nine games this season that have been decided by no more than six points ... After winning two straight tight ball games, the 66-60 loss Sunday at Evansville dropped the Braves to 2-7 this season in games decided by six points or less ... As the Braves prepare to host Illinois State Wednesday night, five of Bradley's last six home games have been decided by six points or less.

Exclusive Club
Senior guard Walt Lemon, Jr. has joined an exclusive Bradley Basketball club, sharing the company of just two other players in program history ... Lemon has became the third player in program history to eclipse both 1,500 career points and 300 assists ... He currently boasts 1,507 career points and 327 career assists assists, joining all-time Bradley greats Hersey Hawkins and Anthony Parker as the only Braves to produce both 1,500 career points and 300 assists.

Chart Climber
Senior guard Walt Lemon, Jr. has climbed 13th on Bradley's all-time scoring list with 1,507 career points, the most among The Valley's active players ... Currently averaging 17.2 ppg, Lemon is on pace to climb to eighth on the school's all-time scoring list by season's end ... If he maintains his current average for at least 11 more games, Lemon will be the highest scoring Brave in the quarter century since Hersey Hawkins graduated in 1988 ... Lemon also has climbed to seventh in school history with 187 career steals and is on pace to become just the fifth player in program history to record at least 200 steals ... Currently with 327 career assists, if Lemon can produce 37 more assists and 114 more points, he will join Hawkins as the only players in program history to rank among the career top 10 for both points and assists.

MVC 1,500 Club
Bradley senior guard Walt Lemon, Jr. has become the 78th player in Missouri Valley Conference history to score at least 1,500 career points ... Lemon enters Wednesday's game 76th on the league's all-time scoring list with 1,507 points.
MVC Career Points

Big Media Numbers
Dave Snell has served as the radio Voice of the Braves the last 34 seasons and has worked on 1,072 Bradley Basketball game broadcasts, all in succession, on 1470 WMBD since taking over play-by-play duties for the 1979-80 season ... Peoria Journal Star beat writer Dave Reynolds has covered 736 consecutive Bradley games since taking over the beat for the start of the 1990-91 season ... In his 38th season, public address announcer Paul Herzog has been at the mic for 553 Bradley Basketball home games.

Looking Ahead
Following Wednesday's game against the rival Redbirds, Bradley will start February by playing four of the month's first six games on the road ... The road-heavy stretch will start with a Saturday afternoon trip to Missouri State, followed by a Feb. 6 visit to Loyola Chicago.