Jan. 21, 2012

Box Score | Postgame Report | Postgame Interview: Alex Klawitter

MILWAUKEE - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's basketball team shot a season-high 56.3 percent and never trailed in handing Youngstown State University a 76-68 loss Saturday afternoon at the Klotsche Center.

Junior Sami Tucker led four players in double-figures with a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds. Sophomore Angela Rodriguez added 15 points on 4-of-6 shooting from three-point range, sophomore Courtney Lindfors also had 15 and freshman Ashley Green rounded out the list with 14 points.

Kenya Middlebrooks paced the visitors with 19 points, including five three-pointers.

"We talked about being consistent, so to put a total game together was great," Milwaukee head coach Sandy Botham said. "We outrebounded them, shot well, got to the free throw line, knocked down our free throws and our three's. I thought we did a nice job collectively as a team."

The Panthers (5-12, 1-6 Horizon League) led by as many as 16 points in the first half, only to see the Penguins (8-10, 2-5 Horizon League) close the gap to as few as three with just over 10 minutes left. UWM used a quick 7-2 run at that point to take back control and led comfortably the rest of the way to improve its winning streak over YSU to 14 games in front of a spirited crowd of 757.

"When they made that run, I was a little nervous about how our players would respond," Botham said. "They had poise, they stayed focused and that is something that we really talked about - staying in the moment no matter what happens good or bad. They stayed aggressive."

Lindfors added seven rebounds to go with her 15 points in just 17 minutes of action. Green just missed a double-double of her own with nine rebounds. In addition, freshman Kiki Wilson handed out a season-high eight assists.

"To have four players in double-figures, that was great," Botham said. "That is how you win. We had a lot of players contributing."

The Panthers held Brandi Brown to 14 points and eight rebounds, as the Horizon League Preseason Player of the Year was hampered by first-half foul trouble.

The Panthers led, 47-34, on a three-pointer by senior Alex Klawitter at the 15:39 mark. But YSU responded, putting together a 15-6 run to eventually get within three at 55-52 with just over 10 minutes to play. UWM put a stop to it there, with Rodriguez answering with a three as part of a 7-2 spurt that gave it back control. The Penguins would get no closer than six the rest of the way.

The Panthers played well in the first half and were in full command up until Youngstown State finally responded in the final minutes. In fact, Milwaukee built a lead of 25-9 after freshman Janna Swopshire converted a free throw for a three-point play at the 7:39 mark.

The Penguins then made a dent in the deficit, scoring 18 of the final 27 points of the half, including an 8-0 run in the final 1:37 of the half to make it a 34-27 game at intermission.

After suffering through some slow starts in recent games, it was UWM that was quick out of the gates today. A trio of three-pointers - two by Rodriguez - helped it to a 9-1 lead. The Panthers would build that to 15-7 and a 10-0 scoring run would push the lead to its largest at 25-9.

Tucker had 11 in the first half alone, as Milwaukee made 50 percent (12-of-24) shots in the first 20 minutes. YSU was at just 33.3 percent (10-of-30), including 25 percent (3-for-12) on three-pointers.

Overall, Milwaukee shot 56.3 percent for the game, including an impressive 62.5 percent (15-of-24) in the second half. The team also won the rebound battle, 40-28, and limited YSU to 39.3 percent (24-of-61) shooting on the day.

Up next, the Panthers close out January with a two-game road trip, getting things underway Thursday at Valparaiso. Tip off against the Crusaders is set for 7 p.m.