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SEMO Spoils Bradley Home Opener 70-65

Braves Return Home To Host Shockers Friday

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BradleyBraves.com Women's Basketball 1/14/2015 9:15:00 PM

PEORIA, Ill. -- The Bradley women's basketball team returns to Renaissance Coliseum to host defending Missouri Valley Conference co-champion and preseason league favorite Wichita State Friday at 7 p.m. to open a brief two-game home stand for the Braves.

Third-year Bradley head coach Michael Brooks will give a pre-game Chalk Talk at 6:15 p.m. in the Zobrist Room and Friday's game will be Girl Scout Night in addition to featuring a special halftime performance by the Pulse of Peoria Drumline, presented by PICK Percussions.  The Morton Junior High Band will also be performing during Friday's contest against the Shockers. 

Bradley's first five MVC games are against the top five teams in the league's preseason poll, with the Braves wrapping up the tough opening stretch with a home game against the team which received 36 of 40 first-place votes in Wichita State Friday.  The game kicks off a stretch in which Bradley plays four of the next seven and seven of the next 12 at Renaissance Coliseum.

A subscription video stream will be available at BradleyBraves.com in addition to links to live stats and an audio stream of the WIRL 1290 AM/102.7 FM broadcast.

Bradley and Wichita State have split the regular-season series eight of the last nine seasons.  The Shockers hold a slim 33-30 edge in the all-time series, with the Braves boasting an 18-13 home mark in the series. 

Wichita State (12-3 overall, 3-0 MVC) is one of four undefeated teams in Valley play entering the third week of conference action and the Shockers bring a six-game win streak to Renaissance Coliseum.  Friday's game is the second road game in a month for Wichita State and just the fourth true road contest of the year for the Shockers, who have posted nine of their 12 wins this season at home.

Sophomore Leti Lerma (Muscatine, Iowa/Muscatine) is coming off an 18-point, 15-rebound effort at Evansville Monday and has averaged 8.0 rebounds per game over the last five outings.  Lerma, who was 9-for-14 from the field against the Purple Aces, was the first Brave with 15 points and 15 rebounds while shooting over 50 percent from the field since Monica Rogers had 26 points and 16 boards against Drake on Feb. 21, 2009.

Senior Michelle Young (Woodbury, Minn./Woodbury) played in her 100th career game earlier this week and scored the 900th point of her Bradley career Monday at Evansville.  Young is second in the MVC in made free throws this season with 56 despite not making a free throw in four of the last five games and needs 13 more made free throws to break into Bradley's career top 10 in the category.  She is also nearing the top 20 in career scoring at Bradley, needing 22 points to move into a tie for 20th all-time on The Hilltop.

Sophomore Whitney Tinjum (Stacy, Minn./Chisago Lakes/Washington State) is averaging 14.1 points per game and has collected 99 points in her seven games since she made her Bradley debut on Dec. 18 against Chicago State.  Tinjum needs one point to become the first Brave to score 100 or more points in their first eight games on the Hilltop since Stephanie White (eight games) in 1998-99 and 12th overall to accomplish the feat. 

The Braves will close out a two-game home stand Sunday with a 2 p.m. matchup against Missouri State. 

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Players Mentioned

Michelle Young

#1 Michelle Young

G
5' 9"
Freshman
Leti Lerma

#23 Leti Lerma

G
5' 10"
Freshman
Whitney Tinjum

#30 Whitney Tinjum

F
6' 1"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Michelle Young

#1 Michelle Young

5' 9"
Freshman
G
Leti Lerma

#23 Leti Lerma

5' 10"
Freshman
G
Whitney Tinjum

#30 Whitney Tinjum

6' 1"
Sophomore
F