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7-0 in Valley Play
Bradley ended a pair of lengthy series losing streaks over the weekend to stay perfect in MVC play, topping Northern Iowa 61-47 to snap a 16-game skid in the series with the Panthers Friday, before a 77-76 victory over Drake to end a 12-game losing streak in the series with the Bulldogs. The Braves are 7-0 to start MVC play for the first time in school history and sit alone atop the Valley standings heading into Friday’s game at second-place Missouri State. Bradley is the 18th team to start MVC play 7-0 since 1992-93. Eleven of the last 17 teams to start league play 7-0 went on to win the title and five claimed at least a share of second place. All 17 teams finished in the top three of the league standings.
Bradley swept UNI & Drake in the same weekend for the first time since 1991-92, which was head coach Andrea Gorski's senior year. The Braves swept the regular-season series from both opponents that year.
League Leaders
Bradley’s 7-0 league start matches 17 others who have started with at least seven-straight league wins in 2019-20 (through Jan. 27 games).
NCAA Teams With Perfect League Marks
9-0 DePaul, Fresno State, Gonzaga, Louisville
8-0 UConn, Rice, Robert Morris, South Dakota, Tennessee Tech
7-0 Bradley, Central Michigan, Dayton, Florida Gulf Coast, Jackson State, Rider, South Carolina, Stony Brook, UMass-Lowell
6-0 Baylor, Norfolk State, VCU
Win Streaks
Bradley brings an eight-game win streak into Friday’s outing against Missouri State and the Braves have won seven consecutive Missouri Valley Conference games. The seven-game MVC win streak is the longest in school history, surpassing six-game league win streaks by the 2009-10 and 2008-09 Braves. The eight-game overall win streak is tied for the third longest in school history, behind nine-game win streaks by the 2018-19 and 2001-02 teams.
What’s the Difference?
Over the past 20 seasons (since 1999-2000), 12 MVC teams have registered a scoring margin of +12 or better for a season. Currently, three Valley teams have a scoring margin over 12 points. Drake leads with a +13.8 margin, followed by Bradley (+13.2) and Missouri State (+12.1). Last year Drake finished with a +13.9 ppg margin. This would be the fifth-straight season with a scoring margin of +12 for the Bulldogs.
Closing in on 2,000
Drake's Sara Rhine needs to score just 12 points to reach the impressive 2,000 point milestone. Rhine who will become just the fourth-ever Bulldog to reach the mark and ninth MVC player will have a chance Friday at the Knapp Center when Valparaiso visits. Her teammate, Becca Hittner, had a big weekend to bring her magic number to the 2K milestone below the century mark as she is 96 away. The duo will be the first-ever MVC (men’s and women’s basketball) teammates to reach the milestone together in the same season.
Streaking Salukis
The Salukis won their third-straight Valley game with a commanding 78-55 win at Indiana State on Sunday. Southern set season-bests in both field goal percentage (57.7%) and three-point field goal percentage (57.1%) in the win. SIU also recorded 26 assists on 30 field goals, won the rebounding battle, 32-to-24, and came away with 10 steals on 15 turnovers. SIU’s 26 assists were not only a season-high, but are tied for the sixth-most in a game in school history and are its most since March 4, 2017.
Rally Queens
Valpo rallied from down double figures in the fourth quarter for the second time this year in the win over Loyola, as it trailed by as many as 13 points in the fourth quarter, was still down 12 with 3:45 to play and found the deficit sitting at 11 points at 57-46 as the clock ticked under three minutes. The 13-point deficit overcome in the fourth quarter was Valpo’s largest since the women’s game moved to four quarters. Ironically, the last time Valpo rallied from that kind of deficit within the game’s final 10 minutes came at Loyola on Feb. 17, 2011.
Home Sweet Home
Four MVC teams remain unbeaten at home entering the week: Bradley (9-0), Drake (8-0), Missouri State (8-0) and UNI (6-0) have unblemished records on their home courts this season.
The Valley currently has two teams with a home win streak of 14 or more. Bradley stretched its program record streak to 15-straight (5th-longest nationally) over the weekend, while Drake has won 14-straight at home (8th-longest nationally).
Top Freshman
Abby Feit of Evansville is the league’s top scoring and top rebounding freshman, as she is averaging 14.4 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. Feit is one of only two freshmen in the nation averaging at least 14.0 points and 8.5 rebounds per game, joining Kansas State’s Avonka Lee (15.4 ppg, 10.9 rpg).
The last player to lead the MVC as the highest scoring and rebounding freshman was Sara Rhine of Drake in 2015-16 (13.3 ppg, 7.0 rpg)
RPI Update
The latest weekly installment of the NCAA RPI Report (Jan. 28) has six Valley teams that rank in the top-100, including four in the top 60. Missouri State sits No. 13 in the RPI, Drake comes in at No. 30, Bradley No. 53 and UNI No. 58 this week. Southern Illinois (88) and Illinois State (95) also appear in the Top 100 with Loyola Chicago just outside at No. 103.
The Valley joins the Power Five leagues and the Big East as the only leagues to have six or more Top 100 teams.
ESPN Bracketology
The latest ESPN.com women’s basketball bracketology from Charlie Creme (Jan. 28) has three MVC teams in the field of 64. Bradley represents The Valley’s AQ and is an 11 seed in Iowa City playing LSU. Missouri State is a No. 6 seed playing Old Dominion in Corvallis, while Drake is a No. 11 seed playing Princeton in Starkville. The MVC is one of just six leagues receiving three or more bids, joining the Power Five leagues.
8 X 11
Entering this week, the MVC has 8 of its 10 teams with 11 or more victories and a +.600 win percentage on the season. Only the Big 12 (8 of 10, 80%) matches the MVC with 80% of its membership reaching the milestones. The Big Ten (11 of 14, 78.6%), SEC (11 of 14, 78.6%), Pac-12 (8 of 12, 66.7%), ACC (9 of 15, 60%) and Conference USA (8 of 14, 57.1%) are the other conferences with eight or more teams with 11+ wins.
1,000 Point Club
The Valley has seven active players in the 1,000 point club. Sara Rhine sits fourth on the NCAA career scoring chart, while Hittner sits seventh. The duo is the second highest teammate scoring tandem in the country behind Oregon’s Sabrina Ionescu and Ruthy Hebard.
Current MVC Players in 1,000 Point Club
1,988 - Sara Rhine, Drake
1,904 - Becca Hittner, Drake
1,368 - Alexa Willard, Missouri State
1,271 - Nicole Martin, Southern Illinois
1,046 - Makenzie Silvey, Southern Illinois
1,033 - Gabi Haack, Bradley
1,021 - Abby O’Connor, Loyola Chicago
Current MVC Players approaching 1,000
985 - Grace Hales, Valparaiso
974 - Chelsea Brackmann, Bradley
High Percentage
Drake enters this week ranking 8th nationally in Field Goal Percentage (48.0%). Drake finished 10th in FG% last year, 5th in 2017-18, and 2nd in 2016-17. UConn is the only other school to finish in the top 10 in the last three seasons. The Huskies currently sit 10th nationally.
Drake’s Sara Rhine enters the week ranking 3rd nationally in field goal percentage (67.0%).
The Valley as a whole is shooting 42.6% from the field this season, ranking 5th nationally among NCAA DI Conferences.
Field Goal Percentage (By Conference)
1. Big Ten 43.2%
2. SEC 43.1%
3. Big 12 43.0%
4. Pac-12 42.8%
5. Missouri Valley 42.6%
6. ACC 41.7%
High Scoring League
Drake enters this week ranking 6th nationally in scoring offense, while Missouri State ranks 23rd. The Bulldogs are averaging 82.3 points per game, while the Lady Bears average 76.8.
Drake has led the league in scoring five straight seasons and is looking for its sixth-straight year leading the league in that category.
The Valley as a whole is averaging 70.0 points per game this season, ranking 3rd nationally among NCAA DI Conferences.
Points Per Game (By Conference)
1. Big 12 74.0
2. Big Ten 71.0
3. Missouri Valley 70.0
SEC 70.0
Pac-12 70.0
Summit League 70.0
Poll Position
Missouri State reentered this week’s AP Top 25 Poll, coming in at No. 24 this week after a one week absence.
The Lady Bears continue to appear in the latest USA Today Coaches Top 25 poll, sitting at No. 21 this week. Bradley is receiving three points in the USA Today poll this week, marking the first time the Braves have received votes in a poll since Week 5 of the 2008-09 season (AP poll).