VERMILLION, S.D.—A younger sister of two basketball brothers, the game was simply a part of life for freshman guard
Jaycee Bradley growing up in Norfolk, Neb.
Bradley's oldest brother, Jonah, averaged 7.6 points and 3.0 rebounds during his career at Nebraska Wesleyan. After graduation, Jonah moved into a teaching and coaching role at Lincoln Southeast High School in Nebraska.
The middle sibling, Jalen, transferred to Oral Roberts prior to the season's start. He's worked his way into the Golden Eagles starting lineup while averaging 9.4 points per game.
"When we were younger, they kind of beat up on me a bit," said Bradley. "To be honest, that made me who I am today. Watching how hard they worked and how often they were in the gym encouraged me to follow in their footsteps.
"As much as we have a sibling competition going on, we are still each other's biggest fans."
With Jalen's decision following Jaycee's signing with South Dakota, the Bradleys became a Summit League basketball family. Her dad, Aaron, used to play basketball himself while her mom, Crystal, was a cheerleader.
"My parents have only missed one home game," said Bradley. "It's been great having that support system for a lot of games. I know they try and travel down to Tulsa to watch Jalen as often as they can too."
Although Bradley's mom and dad have been able to watch both Jaycee and Jalen play, the siblings have yet to watch one another play in person due to scheduling conflicts. The closest meeting came in January as South Dakota flew into Tulsa, Okla., for a game. The Oral Roberts men's team was in the airport as well, en route to Denver. The pair met at the gate to chat for a few minutes before parting ways. When Oral Roberts' men played in Vermillion last weekend, the Coyote women were in Omaha for a road game.
Bradley, a two-time all-state selection, graduated from Norfolk High School with the school record for career points (1,603). She tied a Nebraska Class A Tournament record when she scored 34 points in the opening round to lead the Panthers past top-ranked Omaha Benson.
In 11.5 minutes a game for the Coyotes as a true freshman, Bradley has averaged 3.8 points and 1.6 rebounds this season.
"Freshman year has been a learning experience," said Bradley. "The transition from high school to college isn't the easiest, but our upperclassmen have made that transition a lot better. They have been so helpful along the way."
Bradley had a career game at Illinois, scoring 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting outside the 3-point arc. She also reached double figures with 10 points against Portland State.
South Dakota hosts Oral Roberts Saturday at 2 p.m. The Golden Eagles are the only Summit League team to hand the top-ranked Coyotes a loss so far this season.
"It's definitely a win we are hungry to get," Bradley said.
