Bradford becomes all-time CMU women’s scorer
Early in the second half of Saturday’s game against Ohio, senior guard Crystal Bradford twisted her body past a pair of defenders to score her signature left-handed layup.
The score was good for Bradford’s 1,940th career point, passing Sue Nissen for the most points in Central Michigan University women’s basketball history.
“I’m grateful and I am thankful. It has been a blessing,” Bradford said. “I’m very thankful to be here in my career.”
Bradford is no stranger to breaking records at CMU. The Inkster senior holds program records in three other categories.
Bradford broke the all-time rebounding record on Jan. 24 against Akron, bringing down her 1,090th career rebound. She has since pushed her career total to 1,118, which is 29 more than any other player in program history.
The 6-foot-1 inch forward also holds records for most field goals made with 781 and blocked shots with 174.
“Crystal is an all-time player,” Head Coach Sue Guevara said. “She can score from a variety of ways. She is a special player.”
Bradford finished Saturday’s game with 29 points, 14 rebounds, three steals and two assists.
While she said she was happy to break the record, Bradford was frustrated her performance did not come during a Chippewas’ win.
“With every award and accolade I get, there seems to be a loss after it,” Bradford said. “It’s never an enjoyable thing. I’m always frustrated when I get the news. I will sink in later.”
Guevara said Bradford is one of the best players she has coached during her 35-year career.
“I’ve coached some very good players at Michigan and Michigan State,” Guevara said. “CB is maybe a little bit more versatile than all of them.”
Central Michigan has 10 more games left in the regular season, giving Bradford plenty of time to break more school records. She sits in third on the list of overall steal leaders with 272. Bradford will need 27 more takeaways to top Julie Roberts as the program’s leader in steals.
Bradford is also second in career scoring average putting up 16.7 points per game during her career. She trails Nissen who leads the program with 17 points per game.
