Jan. 29, 2005

Final Stats

YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO - Youngstown State University outscored the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee by 17 points in the second half en route to a 79-67 victory in Horizon League women's basketball action. Nichole Drummond scored 18 points in a losing effort for the Panthers who fell to 9-10 overall and 6-3 in league action. With the victory Youngstown State improved to 9-11 overall and 3-6 in the loop.

Milwaukee played well early and controlled much of the first half. Nichole Drummond's jumper with 16:38 left in the first half gave the Panthers a 6-5 lead they would not relinquish the rest of the half. Aubrey Hampton nailed a three-pointer with 10:07 left in the half to make it 27-19 Panthers. UWM had numerous chances to extend the lead in the first half but struggled handling the ball.

The Panthers did go up nine, 35-26, with 4:17 in the half on a Kimberly Becker bucket but then got outscored six to two the rest of the way to take a 37-32 lead into the break. Both teams shot 50.0% in the first half but UWM owned a 17-10 edge in the rebounding department. Milwaukee did commit 15 first half turnovers to go with four blocked shots.

Things went south in the second half as YSU quickly tied the game at 42 just 4:32 into the frame. A Megan Rogers three-ball on UWM's next possession put Milwaukee back up three, 45-42, but YSU scored the next 10 points lead and grabbed a 52-45 lead it would not relinquish.

The Panthers did have one last push and got back to within one, 54-53, following a Drummond three-pointer and a Molly O'Brien three-point play with 9:01 to go. A Becker jumper made it 56-55 with 8:00 on the clock but Milwaukee was held without a field goal over the next 6:21 as Youngstown State put the game away with a 16-4 run to go up 72-59 with 1:39 to play. Milwaukee could get no closer the rest of the way as Youngstown State snapped UWM's eight-game winning streak in the series.

In addition to her team-high 18 points Drummond added a team-high six rebounds and two steals. Kimberly Becker added 13 points and three blocks as Molly O'Brien chipped in with 11 points and five boards. Kristy Gaudiose led the Penguins with a career-high 24 points while Jen Perugini added 18 and seven boards. YSU shot 59.3% in the second half and 54.7% for the game while UWM shot 47.2% in the game.

Milwaukee will finish its three-game road trip on Thursday (Feb. 3) when it travels to Dayton, Ohio to face Wright State University. The matchup between the Panthers and the Raiders is set to begin at 6 p.m. at the Nutter Center.