Jan. 10, 2002
Dayton, Ohio - Freshman Malika Willoughby scored a career-high 13 points to lead UWM (9-5, 3-0 Horizon League) to a 70-52 victory over Wright State (3-12, 1-3 Horizon League) Thursday night at the Ervin J. Nutter Center. The Panthers won their fifth straight to remain undefeated in the league.
"We came out strong and played with a lot of confidence, and took it to them right away," UWM coach Sandy Botham said. "I thought our defense created a lot of our offense tonight. In the second half, they went to a 2-3 zone and I thought it affected our defense. They made a game of it for a little bit and it came as a wake-up call for us, but it was a little too late for them."
UWM forced the Raiders to turn the ball over 30 times and enabled the Panthers to convert 28 points off of them. UWM's shooting was consistent in both halves, finishing with 43.5 percent from the field. After hitting just 6-of-22 shots in the first half, Wright State recorded 53.6 percent shooting in the second half to finish with 42 percent accuracy. The Panthers made 20 assists and 21 turnovers on the game. Both teams pulled down 34 boards.
"I was happy with our defense, because that is what wins championships," Botham said. "But I wasn't pleased with how many turnovers we made, we have to take better care of the ball."
Holly Tamm recorded 12 points, four assists and a season-high five steals, while Jessica Wilhite added 11 to help aid UWM's balanced attack. Stefanie Kaufmann came through for the Panthers down the stretch and finished with eight points. Tiffany Webb led Wright State with 18 points, while Jill Ransdell added 16.
UWM used a 12-player rotation in the first half to outlast Wright State, who went only seven players deep, and build the 37-16 lead at halftime. The Panthers extended their lead to as many as 32 points in the second half, but let up slightly midway through. The Raiders suddenly got hot and eventually cut their deficit to 11 points, but UWM pulled back ahead down the stretch to take the 18-point advantage.
Early scoring was highlighted by Wilhite's amazing 25-foot three pointer that gave UWM the 6-0 advantage. Willoughby demonstrated her awareness and athleticism when she picked off a pass and exploded down court for the layup.
Willoughby and Wilhite combined on a great execution to open the second half. With nine seconds left on the shot clock, Willoughby penetrated the lane and sucked in the defense before dishing it off. She found an open Wilhite, who buried her second three pointer of the game.
The next play gave the Panthers their 10th steal when Holly Tamm picked it off at half court and ran the floor for an easy layup. With nine steals in the first half, UWM finished with a season-high 16 steals.
Fourteen minutes left in the game, Wright State finally recorded as many points as they had turnovers when Angie Ott hit a trey for 23 Raider points. Trailing UWM by 30 points, Wright State scored its longest streak so far into the game with seven straight points and cut it to 53-30 with 12 minutes remaining. Over the next seven minutes, the Raiders outscored UWM 16-4 to make it an 11-point deficit. Stefanie Kaufmann finally broke WSU's rhythm with a jumper at the 5:03 mark.
Viall finished with six points, the first time she recorded single digits since the season opener. She had scored in double figures for 12 straight games and was coming off consecutive double-double performances. Her match-up against the 6-foot-4 Swain, who grabbed a game-high 13 rebounds, proved difficult inside.
UWM will try to make it six-straight wins when it continues on the road with Butler on Saturday. The Bulldogs host Milwaukee for a 1 p.m. start central standard time.
