Dec. 5, 2000

MILWAUKEE--Sophomore guard Jessica Wilhite matched a career-high 22 points as she led the UWM women's basketball team past the Northern Illinois Huskies, 58-52, Tuesday night at the Klotsche Center.

The Panthers (1-3) ended a three-game losing streak as they won their first home game of the season and continue on a nine-game winning streak at Klotsche that began last season. The Huskies slide to 2-5 on their season as they lost their second consecutive game.

"We needed a victory," said UWM coach Sandy Botham. "It's great to be back at Klotsche after three games on the road."

The victory saw Wilhite shoot 6-of-16 from the field and convert all four free-throw attempts. UWM's top leading scorer with an average of 14 points per game, she recorded five rebounds and two assists in the game while being the lone Panther to score from behind the arc on 2-of-9 shooting.

"We lost a lot of (scorers) since last year, and so we need someone to step up. Though we have a lot of players who can score, Jess is pretty much our go-to-player," said Botham. "I thought she came out with a lot of tenacity tonight. She came out looking to shoot."

Tied with 29 points a piece at halftime, UWM never trailed in the second half and led by as much as 11 points. The Panthers moved ahead, 49-38, on a pair of free throws from junior forward Stefanie Kaufmann with 8:29 remaining. Northern Illinois finished on a 14-9 run, but the deficit was too much to make up.

With 3:40 left in the game, Wilhite hit one of her two three-pointers to give UWM the 52-46 edge. The Panthers' final six points all came on free throws, made by sophomore center Liz Fletcher, Wilhite, and junior guard Alison Klaas.

"I thought we came out and shot really well. Our nerves were kind of working us in the second half because we all wanted (the win) so bad. But our defense toughened-up towards the end to carry us," said Botham.

UWM hit 46 percent shooting on 13-of-28 field goal attempts in the first half, but were 0-of-7 from the three-point line. Northern Illinois shot 55 percent in the half, but made just 8-of-28 field goals in the second half to finish with 38 percent, the same as UWM.

Though outrebounded 39-24, the Panthers forced the Huskies to 18 turnovers on just eight assists. UWM recorded 14 turnovers and 12 assists, but were 88 percent from behind the line on 14-of-16 free throws.

"After the first half, we made adjustments to take away their shooting from down-low. I thought we did that by just recognizing what they were doing inside," Botham said.

Northern Illinois center Michelle Johnson scored most of her game-high 23 points on lay-ups in recording a double-double. She was 5-of-6 from the field in the first half, and finished on 9-of-13 shooting while grabbing a game-high 12 boards. Forward Jennifer Youngblood also recorded a double-double for the Huskies, scoring 10 points and pulling 10 rebounds.

Kaufmann and senior guard Nicole Luchsinger added seven points to the Panther attack, while Fletcher was the team's high rebounder with seven.

The Panthers look to add another win when they take to the road for Friday night's game against Creighton. The game is set for 7:05 p.m. in Omaha, Neb.