Women’s Basketball Returns Home To Host Illinois State

BradleyBraves.com

Women's Basketball 2/24/2021 2:23:00 PM

PEORIA, Ill. -- Bradley Women's Basketball closes out the 2020-21 regular-season schedule with a three-game home stand, opening the stretch Thursday with a rematch against I-74 rival Illinois State. The Braves and Redbirds will tip things off at 6 p.m. at Renaissance Coliseum.

The teams enter Thursday's contest separated by one game in the Missouri Valley Conference standings. Illinois State (12-6 overall, 9-6 MVC) is fourth in the Valley standings after taking both games of a weekend home series against Drake. Only two games separate Bradley (12-10 overall, 8-7 MVC) from second-place Drake (12-10 overall, 10-5 MVC) in the standings, however, heading into the final stretch that has the Braves closing the regular season with a three-game home stand for the first time since 2010-11.

Thursday's game will be available on ESPN3 and BradleyBraves.com will provide links to live stats along with the WIRL 1290 AM radio broadcast.

The Redbirds won the season's first meeting 66-54 in Normal, back on Jan. 27 to snap a two-game Bradley win streak in the series. The Braves have won four of the last six matchups in the series and BU is 7-1 in the last eight home games against the Redbirds. Overall, Illinois State holds a 55-35 edge in the series, which includes a 22-20 advantage in games played in Peoria. Bradley has managed at least a split in the regular-season series with its I-74 rival in each of the last eight years and the Braves are 12-7 in the series over that same stretch.

Bradley has swept three-game MVC home stands each of the past two seasons and the Braves are a combined 10-4 when playing at least three consecutive conference home contests over the last four seasons.

Junior Lasha Petree has certainly had her fair share of success in the I-74 rivalry, scoring 13 or more points in six career outings against Illinois State and owning a 19.2 career scoring average vs. the Redbirds. Petree has shot 39.5 percent (17-of-43) from three-point range in her six appearances against Illinois State, scoring 21 or more in three of the six contests. This season, Petree has averaged 19.8 points per game in her 11 home games with seven of her 10 performances with 20 or more points coming at Renaissance Coliseum.

Senior Gabi Haack scored her 1,500th career point Saturday at Missouri State, finishing with a game-high 24 points against the Bears. Haack is the sixth Brave to reach the 1,500-point mark and first Bradley player to do so dating back to Sara Bailey in 2002-03. Currently sixth in career scoring at Bradley, Haack is closing in on the top 10 in BU history in career rebounding. She is one of four players in the nation this season to make at least 55 three-pointers and pull down 140 or more rebounds and is one of just two active players in the country with 260 career three-pointers and 600 or more rebounds. Needing four rebounds to push her career total among Bradley's career top 10, she would be one of four players in program history to rank in the top 10 in both scoring and rebounding.

Currently leading the MVC in three-point field goals with 56, Haack is four triples short of becoming the first player in MVC history to make 60 or more three's in four different seasons.

Bradley follows up Thursday's outing against Illinois State with a two-game home series against Indiana State March 5 & 6 to finish off the regular-season slate.

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Players Mentioned

#3 Gabi Haack: G; 5' 10"; Senior

#11 Lasha Petree: G; 6' 0"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#3 Gabi Haack
: 5' 10"; Senior
: G

#11 Lasha Petree
: 6' 0"; Junior
: G

Women’s Basketball Returns Home To Host Illinois State

Players Mentioned

#3 Gabi Haack

#11 Lasha Petree

Players Mentioned

#3 Gabi Haack

#11 Lasha Petree