LEXINGTON, Ky. – Wright State head coach Mike Bradbury has quietly turned a program that struggled to reach 10 wins a season into a Horizon League powerhouse.
Bradbury’s journey at WSU began in the 2010-11 when he left Morehead State to take the top job at Wright State. He instantly turned a program that only had one winning campaign in 23 in years in Division I to a 20-win team.
That season, Bradbury’s Raiders shattered the team’s Division I win total by four games.
Fast forward to this season. Wright State won 24 games, the Horizon League Championship, and went to the NCAA Tournament for the first time program history.
Wright State Director of Athletics Bob Grant said he is excited by what Bradbury has brought to WSU and the future of the program.
“Not that you expect this, but we expected great things,” Grant said. “He is a tremendous recruiter, a tremendous coach, he has a great staff. They are tireless workers. For those of us close to the program, this is success is no surprise.”
Recruiting is something Bradbury has done well despite not having the brand name of an Ohio State, Tennessee, or UConn. He has in short order pieced a lineup together of junior college transfers, local players and Horizon League Player of the Year Kim Demmings into a winning bunch.
When Wright State played Kentucky Saturday in the NCAA Tournament, it was a battle of David versus Goliath.
“We can continue to recruit because that’s what it’s all about,” Bradbury said. “We don’t have any McDonald’s All-Americans and they’ve got three or four. That’s where it’s at. It’s a different level and let’s not pretend it’s not. Their budget is eight times what ours is.”
Despite the mismatch in resources, Grant is confident that Bradbury will continue the program in its upward direction.
“You could see this building,” Grant said “He has a great situation going on here. I think the future is extremely bright for women’s basketball. Obviously it is a young team here. Very exciting.”
Though Wright State lost its first-round matchup in the NCAA Tournament 106-60 at Kentucky, the experience of reaching the tournament could go a long ways towards keeping the program at the top of the Horizon League.
“I think we can use this to hopefully continue to improve our program, be good in our league, be good at our level and hopefully you get in a game like this, on the right day, something good happens,” Bradbury said.
With Wright State returning the reigning conference Player of the Year, another winning season is expected from the Raiders.
Though the 2015 NCAA Tournament is an entire year away, Demmings was quick to predict the Raiders will return to the Big Dance.
“It is a great experience and I am glad I got to enjoy (the NCAA Tournament) with all of these great ladies,” Demmings said. “It is an experience I will get to learn from honestly. Everybody on the team, all of us coming back next year will take from it, learn and we’ll be back next year.”
