Starting Five: Badgers look to bounce back against Braves

Friday, November 19

Peoria, IL

6:30 p.m.

Wisconsin Badgers

Bradley

Photo by: Tom Lynn

Starting Five: Badgers look to bounce back against Braves

November 17, 2021 | Women's Basketball

Wisconsin plays at Bradley in first road game of season

By: Victoria Dombeck

Venue	Renaissance Coliseum , Peoria, Ill.
Game Notes	Wisconsin \| Bradley
Season Statistics	Wisconsin \| Bradley
Stream	ESPN+
Radio	Listen Live on Fox Sports 1070
Live Stats	vs. Bradley
Social Media	Facebook \| Twitter \| Instagram

MADISON, Wis. -- The Wisconsin women's basketball team (1-1) hits the road for the first time this season as the Badgers take on the Braves of Bradley University. Tip-off is set for 6:30 p.m. on Friday and here are five things you need to know before tuning in:

1. ON THE ROAD AGAIN: The Badgers look to start their road season on a positive note as Wisconsin's matchup at Bradley acts as the first of four away games over the next 10, split up by a home game against Chicago State on Monday. Following the Chicago State game, the Badgers travel to Milwaukee in an I-94 battle against the Panthers on Wednesday. Wisconsin then heads to Colorado over Thanksgiving weekend for two games in the Rocky Mountain Hoops Classic in Boulder.

2. HIGH-LOW DUO: In the Badgers' last time out, Wisconsin got its well-known high-low duo back into double-digit scoring in juniors Sydney Hilliard and Sara Stapleton. With the Badgers being a team that relies heavily on their guard play, a great outing from Stapleton in Wisconsin's last game is something that Badger fans can be hopeful of moving into the road season. The forward saw limited playing time in Wisconsin's first game against St. Thomas due to early foul trouble, but Stapleton finished last Sunday's game with 16 points, tying her career high, and six rebounds in 30 minutes of play, just a minute under her career high. Hilliard was the Badgers' leading scorer against NJIT with 18 points while adding five steals.

3. WISCONSIN TOUGHNESS: One thing the Badgers will look to improve on in their upcoming road slate is their all-around toughness in both rebounding and defense as a whole. Wisconsin gave up 16 second-chance points on 13 offensive rebounds in its loss to NJIT last Sunday, as well as being outscored in the paint, 28-24. In her post-game press conference on Sunday, head coach Marisa Moseley said, "We've got to get way tougher… [in] execution and being more gritty on the defensive end."

5. WELCOME BACK JULIE!: The Badgers welcome back junior Julie Pospisilova, who missed the first two games of the season playing with the Czech Republic National Team in the European Championships. The Czech team lost to Belarus, 66-60, on Nov. 13 with Pospisilova scoring four points, adding two assists and one steal. On Sunday, the team defeated Ireland, 70-54, with Pospisilova scoring seven points and adding three rebounds, thee assists and one steal. Over the two games, Pospisilova averaged 18 minutes, 5.5 points, 1.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.0 steals per game.

5. SCOUTING BRADLEY: The Braves currently sit 2-0 this season, with both contests happening at home. Bradley boast wins over Wright State (84-65) and Upper Iowa (83-53). The team's high-scoring offense will be something that the Badgers will either need to limit, or keep up with. Freshman guard Caroline Waite has been Bradley's main offensive threat, averaging 23.5 points per game while shooting 50% (10-20) from the 3-point line. Bradley's two other players averaging in double digits are guard Gabi Haack (11.0 ppg) and forward Dajia Powell (10.0 ppg). Defensively, Bradley has limited teams' points in the paint, but allowed points off of turnovers to its opponents.