Jan. 31, 2004

Box Score

MILWAUKEE - Nichole Drummond tied a career-high with 17 points and three players reached double figures as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's basketball team claimed a 62-56 victory over Youngstown State University in Horizon League action here Saturday (Jan. 31). The Panthers built a 24-point second half lead before using a variety of players to finish the game. With the win, UWM improves to 9-10 overall and 6-3 in the Horizon League while Youngstown State fell to 2-18 on the season and 0-9 in league play.

"I'm a little disappointed in our play late in the game but it's still good to get our second straight win," UWM head coach Sandy Botham said. "We came home, got a couple victories and got back on track. Our depth played a pretty big factor tonight and we set the tone early on."

Milwaukee controlled the game from the get-go as an 11-0 stretch from the 17:18 mark to the 12:05 mark pushed a 4-2 deficit into a 13-4 lead. The Panthers then scored seven of the next 12 points to grab a 20-9 cushion on a Kiley Johnson three-pointer with 8:45 in the first half. UWM went up by as many as 14 in the first half before a pair of late YSU three-pointers made it a 32-21 game at the break.

UWM shot just 35.5% in the first half but connected on nine-of-ten free throws in the stanza to grab the 11-point lead. The Panthers forced 11 Penguin turnovers in the half as Maria Viall led all players with ten points.

The Panthers turned up the pressure immediately in the second half and jumped out to a 44-24 lead on an Anne Witte baseline jumper with 13:41 to play. Viall scored four points in the run before sitting out the rest of the game to rest her ailing right foot. Milwaukee continued to hound YSU with full-court pressure and grabbed its largest lead of the game, 48-24, on a Witte breakaway layup with 12:14 left.

Youngstown State continued to battle and made a late push in the game's final minutes. The Penguins went on a 12-3 run in the final 2:11 to create the final six-point margin. Drummond hit six-of-11 shots en route to her career-best tying 17 points to go with five rebounds and two assists. Viall added 14 points and four rebounds in just 18 minutes of playing time while Witte contributed a season-high 12 points, three boards, and two assists on five-of-eight shooting. Cathy Hanek led the Penguins with 13 points while Tara Fleming added 10.

UWM will look for its first three-game winning streak of the season on Thursday (Feb. 5) when the Raiders of Wright State University come to town. The game is set to tipoff at 7:00 p.m. in the Klotsche Center.