Jan. 9, 2003

Box Score

CHICAGO - The University of Illinois-Chicago shot 53.6% from the field and placed five players in double figures en route to an 84-72 victory over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in Horizon League women's basketball action here Thursday (Jan. 9). UWM put four players in double figures but turned the ball over 24 times and shot 41.9% from the field in falling to 5-9 overall and 1-3 in the league. With the victory UIC improves to 8-7 overall and 2-2 in league action. The three conference losses are the most by a Milwaukee team since the 1999-2000 squad finished 12-4.

Unfortunately for UWM the contest was never in doubt, as UIC jumped ahead 7-0 in the games first 1:07 and 12-2 with 16:13 remaining in the first half. Milwaukee never led in the game and could only get as close as eight, 25-17, on an Anne Witte jumper with 7:26 left in the first stanza. The Flames used a 13-3 run to grab their biggest lead of the game, 38-20, with a Tina Thompson layup with 5:08 left in the first half.

UIC took a 48-36 lead into the break, fueled by remarkable 61.5% shooting from the field. Milwaukee turned the ball over 16 times in the first half which led to 12 Flame steals and 16 points off turnovers.

Milwaukee played the Flames evenly in the second half but could never get under the 10-point barrier. Freshman point guard Anne Witte fueled a pair of different UWM runs, cutting the UIC lead to ten on two different occasions. Witte drilled a three-pointer from the right side to make it 59-49 with 13:48 left before her traditional three-point play cut the lead to 76-66 with 4:07 left. However the Flames continued to push the ball in transition as the Panthers were unable to get a key stop or make a big shot on the offensive end.

Maria Viall, despite being held to two points in the first half, paced UWM with 15 points. Kimberly Becker added 14 points and six rebounds while Witte added 12 points and Jessica Wilhite 11. LeKesha Williams led all scorers with 20 points while Zsuzsu Tarnia added 17.

The Panthers will stay on the road and face Youngstown State Saturday (Jan. 11) in Youngstown, Ohio. Game time is set for 6 p.m. CST.