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WBB 2016 TD Bank Classic Champs
68
Winner Milwaukee UWM 5-1
44
Vermont VERMONT 2-4
Winner
Milwaukee UWM
5-1
68
Final
44
Vermont VERMONT
2-4
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 4 F
Milwaukee UWM 18 16 19 15 68
Vermont VERMONT 5 15 10 14 44

Game Recap: Women's Basketball |

Women’s Basketball Claims TD Bank Classic Title With 24-Point Win

Kostowicz named tournament MVP

BURLINGTON, Vt. – The Milwaukee women's basketball team raced out to another big first-quarter lead on its way to a 24-point win over Vermont to win the TD Bank Classic title Saturday from Patrick Gymnasium.
 
Alexis Lindstrom, Sierra Ford-Washington and Bailey Farley were all named to the all-tournament team, with Steph Kostowicz also earning an all-tournament nod in addition to being named tournament MVP.
 
This marks the first in-season tournament championship for Milwaukee since going 2-0 at the SMU Hoops for the Cure Classic in 2006.
 
"This is huge for our program," Milwaukee head coach Kyle Rechlicz said. "We haven't won one of these tournaments since 2006 and we haven't gone 5-1 to start since we were NAIA, so this is really big for our program.
 
"I thought our team played so-so today. We came out so strong yesterday, with the one-day turnaround, you never know what you're going to get. We had moments of greatness and moments of lulls. We've got to continue working to play a complete game, but our energy was great. Our team was really bought in and a lot of people stepped up."
 
Lizzie Odegard led all players with 14 points and seven rebounds off the bench, also adding one steal.
 
Tournament MVP Kostowicz fought Vermont's (2-4) numerous talented post players for 10 points and 12 rebounds – her fourth double-double in just the sixth game of the year.
 
Lindner – the leader of Friday's big win – was limited due to foul trouble but still scored 12 points and had four rebounds, two assists and one steal in just 17 minutes.
 
The rest of Milwaukee's all-tournament representatives were also big. Lindstrom scored nine and had three steals, Farley netted eight and had three assists and a pair of steals, while Ford-Washington had seven points, four rebounds and four assists.
 
After a bit of a slow start in the game's opening minutes, Milwaukee responded in a big way. Tied at 5-5 heading into the first media timeout, the Panthers came out of the huddle on fire, finishing the opening quarter on a 15-0 run to blitzkrieg the Catamounts.
 
In fact, after starting the game 1-6 from the floor, UWM didn't miss the rest of the way, going 7-7 from the field in the final five minutes of the first quarter.
It wasn't just offense though, as the Panthers forced four-straight turnovers during that big run, including back-to-back shot clock violations by UVM.
 
From there, Milwaukee slowly and steadily pulled away.
 
A three pointer from Farley midway through the second gave UWM a 15-point lead before leading 34-20 at the break.
 
The lead stretched to 20 after a pair of Lindner free throws at the 5:20 mark in the third quarter and Milwaukee was up by as many as 26 in this one after a pair of freebies from Alyssa Fischer with 2:24 remaining in the game.
 
All 13 players saw the court during the tournament title, with 10 different players scoring at least two points for UWM.
 
The Panthers out-rebounded Vermont, 45-22, and had 16 second-chance points and 25 points off turnovers. UWM also connected on 19 of their 20 free-throw shots Saturday.
 
In addition to winning the tournament, the win also marks the first time Milwaukee has started the season 5-1 in its Division-I history. The next best start dates all the way back to the NAIA era, when the 1988-89 team started that year 5-0.
 
UWM will now have a week to rest before its next game – a home contest against North Dakota State on Saturday, Dec. 3 at 2 pm from the Klotsche Center.
 
 
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