Dec. 29, 2011

Box Score

MILWAUKEE - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's basketball team cut an 18-point second-half deficit to just four points late in the game, but Loyola University sealed the 81-73 victory from the free throw line in the final minute Thursday night at the Klotsche Center.

"Give Loyola a lot of credit," Milwaukee head coach Sandy Botham said. "They came in with a lot of determination and were on a mission. Our kids stayed determined. They persevered and fought back and it's definitely something that we pride ourselves in, but it was too little, too late. We had to take care of business earlier and we shouldn't have gotten down like we did. And that was the difference in the game."

Sophomore Courtney Lindfors led four Panthers (4-7, 0-1 Horizon League) in double-figures with 23 points. Freshman Ashley Green added 16 points, five rebounds and four steals while playing all 40 minutes.

Simone Law paced two Rambler (6-6, 1-0 Horizon League) double-doubles by scoring 22 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. Lauren Hibbard added 13 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.

Trailing Loyola, 62-44, with just over 10 minutes to play, Milwaukee got back into the game with strong shooting and full-court defense that cut the deficit to 10 on a pair of occasions. The final rally came late, using a 12-2 run to make it a four-point game when a Lindfors layup made it 77-73 with 47 seconds left. However, that was as close as it would get as four consecutive free throws by Loyola put the game away.

The other contributing factor was rebounding, as UWM was outrebounded by a 47-to-25 total on the night, including a 23-11 advantage on the offensive glass. That led to 32 second-chance points by the Ramblers and provided the main difference in the game.

"The rebounding was the difference," Botham said. "They came in and were physical and that was the difference in the game. You just can't beat teams if you let them dominate the boards like we did."

The Panthers were up, 19-12, midway through the first half and were seemingly in control. That was when Loyola took momentum, using an 8-0 run to take its first lead since making the first basket of the game. Back-and-forth the rest of the first half, UWM had no answer for the rebounding differential and by halftime, 17 offensive rebounds led to 19 second-chance points by the Ramblers and a 33-27 lead.

Sophomore Angela Rodriguez had 14 points and junior Sami Tucker added 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds in the contest. Rodriguez entered play tonight with 488 career points to now sit at 502 - the 30th player in Milwaukee history to record 500 in a career.

The loss was just Milwaukee's second-ever to Loyola at home, falling to 18-2 all-time in the series in games played at the Klotsche Center.

The Panthers continue Horizon League action and close out the homestand, and 2011, with a New Year's Eve matinee contest against UIC. Tip is set for 2 p.m.