MILWAUKEE - There's a big girls basketball game tonight in the Milwaukee City Conference as Bradley Tech hosts Milwaukee Rufus King.

The Trojans are coming into the game with a shot of confidence. The team has vastly improved in the last few weeks, buying into coach Alina Cunningham’s mindset - hard work pays off.

BUILDING A WIN STREAK...

Bradley Tech is riding a three-game win streak. On Tuesday, they beat Milwaukee Washington 38-36. A solid sign of improvement as the team lost to the Purgolders last month 65-40. 

Amber Coggs is team captain.  “We’re getting our team together,” she said. “We’re starting to build and make a name for ourselves.

“Last year the team didn’t win any conference games and this year we’ve already won three. It’s a shocker but this team is starting to make history right now.”

Coggs bought into the Cunningham program early. A transfer student from Milwaukee Pius, the 16-year-old has seen success.

As a sophomore with a 4.0 grade point average, Coggs brings a strong maturity to the Bradley Tech Trojans along with a will to win.

“We played against King earlier this season and we lost, but this time we’re prepared to play defense and run our offense better and talk more on the court. We're hungry for the win now.”

Junior forward Shana Lee,17, has always believed in her team. “After our third win in a row last week, I cried.”

One of the few upperclassmen on the squad, Lee is a leader with a never-give-up attitude.

“We’ve been talking about King the whole week. Other teams know we’ve been playing hard and we want to win,” said Lee who carries a 3.2 grade point average.

Nikeyia Jones,17, is a 5-foot-6 shooting guard and a transplant from Mississippi. She said the Bradley Tech team is really starting to gel as a family and a lot of credit goes to coach Cunningham.

“One of us mess up and we all mess up; one do good we all do good.

“We’ve won three conference games now and we’re making a good reputation for the school,” said Jones.

HOLDING A TEAM ACCOUNTABLE...

This is the first season at Bradley Tech for coach Cunningham who succeeded long-time head coach Ken Williams.

Cunningham entered the program with a strong reputation for winning. That was something new for Bradley Tech which finished 1-20 and in last place in the Milwaukee City Conference in 2009.

Despite entering a struggling program Cunningham set the bar high demanding commitment, dedication and respect.

“If a coach doesn’t say anything to you at all, that means she doesn’t care. But when she yells at everybody we just know she loves us and wants us to get better from here on out,” said Coggs.

Angela Christ is a sophomore at Bradley Tech. The 16-year-old plays small forward and said coach Cunningham has a style that differs from what they were used to last season.

“I love her and all but if we mess up one time we run, if we don’t talk on defense we run, if we don’t communicate we run.  But, it’s helping us out in games and you can see it in our record,” she said.

Nearly half-way through the season the Trojans are 7-6 and in fifth place in the City Conference at 3-5.

TONIGHT'S FOCUS ON KING...

Tonight, Bradley Tech tips off against Milwaukee King; it's the second meeting between the two this season.

King enters with an overall record of 11-4. The Generals are 7-1 in City Conference. Last month King clobbered Bradley Tech 65-33.

Coach Craig Machut’s King Generals were riding a 10-game win streak earlier this season however they’ve faced some challenges of late.

Within the last two weeks, King suffered back-to-back losses on the road. The Generals fell to powerhouse Milwaukee Vincent 52-32 and then lost in Illinois, 57-52, against Chicago Bogan.

Milwaukee King regrouped this week and posted a 50-28 win over Milwaukee Hamilton.

Coach Cunningham said in order to beat King tonight the team is going to have to focus on fundamentals. “Boxing out and getting in the triple-threat position and jabbing every time you get the ball on offense and getting into our defensive sets as quickly as possible and talking on defense,” she said.

Bradley Tech will also focus on stopping 5-10 King forward Jasmyne Reynolds who led the Generals with 19 points the last time the two teams met.

“We’ve really changed in the last month; the wins have helped, they’re seeing hard work pay off and now they’re taking it more seriously,” said Cunningham.

“I know we’re not the most talented and King definitely has more weapons but we’re going to try to see if we have more heart.”

Tonight’s game at Bradley Tech tips off at 7:30 p.m.