Here's the preview for game one of the season. This will be a very tough test for Bradley as the opening game of the Mountain West-Missouri Valley Challenge.
| 6th | 2009-10 Conf. Poll | 1st | |
| 3/2 | Starters Returning/Lost | 4/1 | |
| 21-15 | Record (Overall) | 25-8 | |
| 10-8 (4th) | Record (Conference) | 12-4 (t-1st) | |
| 67.1/66.3 | Points/Game (Off./Def.) | 77.1/65.2 | |
| 32.2 | Rebounds/Game (Defense) | 36.2 | |
| 12.6 | Assists/Game (Defense) | 16.3 | |
| 7.8 | Steals/Game (Defense) | 7.3 | |
| 3.5 | Blocks/Game (Defense) | 3.6 | |
| 14.5 | Turnovers/Game (Defense) | 11.4 | |
| 44.0.4/43.3 | FG% (Offense/Defense) | 48.4/40.7 | |
| 32.8/34.5 | 3PT% (Offense/Defense) | 38.1/30.1 | |
| 6.0 | 3PT/Game (Made) | 7.2 | |
| 71.9 | FT% (Defense) | 72.9 |
On paper, this doesn't look too promising for Bradley. Not only is BYU a dynamic scoring team but the Cougars also held their opponents to a meager 40.7 percent from the floor and 30.1 percent from the 3-point line.
BYU notes (.pdf): Here
Bradley notes (.pdf): Here
Some other reasons for concern, from the BYU press release:
"The Cougars are coming off a season in which they finished 25-8 overall and 12-4 in the Mountain West Conference to claim their third-straight regular season league title and earn a third-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament."
This team was really good last season and they've got four of five starters back. Two were named to the preseason all-conference team, senior forward Jonathan Tavernari and junior guard Jimmer Fredette. The latter was also named as the Mountain West's Preseason Player of the Year.
"Since [Head Coach Dave] Rose took over as head coach of BYU basketball, the Cougars are 61-3 in the Marriott Center, including a 53-game winning streak from 2005 to 2008 — the longest in school history. The Cougars were 14-2 at home last season."
Beating BYU on a cruise ship in the Caribbean would be difficult, but winning in Provo, Utah is nearly impossible the past few seasons for any team.
After their final preseason game, coach Rose noted:
“We still have a lot of evaluation left to do. We’ll watch Bradley and our lineup up may be determined by their personnel but I think we have eight or nine different players who could start.”
This team does indeed have depth, but one aspect that bodes well for Bradley is the size of BYU's four returning starters. The Cougars go 6-2, 6-3, 6-6 and 6-11, with Tavernari as an undersized post player at 6-6. So, the prospective lineups might be:
Sam Maniscalco (6-0)/Eddren McCain (5-11) vs. Lamont Morgan Jr. (5-10)
Dodie Dunson (6-3) vs. Jimmer Fredette (6-2)
Andrew Warren (6-5)/Chris Roberts (6-4) vs. Jackson Emery (6-3)
Taylor Brown (6-6) vs. Jonathan Tavernari (6-6)
Will Egolf (6-9) vs. Chris Miles (6-11)
So, if that's really how it shakes out, Bradley won't be dominated with a huge size disadvantage as they often are against good opponents. Of course, what really matters is what both sides can do on the floor. Height only makes a small difference if the talent level is drastically different.
Tips to victoryIf Bradley's going to take down such a good opponent, the Braves are going to need to really play good defense and take care of the basketball. These seem like two very simple facts, but generally it has provided a formula for success. If somehow Bradley can keep this game in the 60s, there's a chance at winning. But, if Tavernari starts raining 3-pointers (he's second on the all-time BYU list) and the Braves get into a running game, this could get ugly.
Final score: BYU 82 Bradley 68
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