Nov. 3, 2012

Box Score

MILWAUKEE - Senior Sami Tucker posted a double-double of 19 points and 14 rebounds to lead the way for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's basketball team as it cruised to an 88-55 victory over Hillsdale College in an exhibition contest Saturday night at the Klotsche Center.

A total of four players scored in double-figures for the Panthers, with junior Emily Decorah and freshman Avyanna Young each finishing with 11 and freshman Jordyn Swan adding 10 points.

"Sami Tucker brought the energy and excitement with a double-double for us," UWM head coach Kyle Rechlicz said. "You can't help but notice that. We had some great people step in from the bench - we had three of our freshmen play tremendously well tonight. It was a great all-around effort. It was our chance to get out there and show what we have been working on the past few months."

The contest marked the debut of Rechlicz as the head coach for Milwaukee.

"The energy, the excitement, the intensity that they bring every single day - it is why I love being here," Rechlicz said. "To have them showcase that talent was really big tonight. I really thought our team shined tonight."

The Panthers came out a bit slow, falling behind by a score of 7-2. But, they quickly regrouped to tie the game at 10-10. After trading points to 13-13, Milwaukee took over. A 15-0 run gave it control, with a layup by sophomore Janna Swopshire making it 28-13 with 6:38 left in the first half. Swopshire had a pair of baskets in the run, with Tucker scoring four and Swan chipping in five in the spurt.

"It started out slow, but I kind of new that was going to happen," Rechlicz said. "We were finally in front of fans, finally had three officials on the court reffing the game, and it's kind of just finding your momentum and that groove. I was really happy when we went on our run."

With a 42-22 lead at intermission, UWM went on another run in the second half as well. With the score 48-26, the Panthers reeled off 10 points in a row in a span of just under two minutes to push their lead to 58-26 on a pair of Young free throws with 13:22 remaining. The team would build its advantage to as many as 35 before settling in on the 88-55 final score.

The 88 points marked the most for a Milwaukee squad since an 88-65 win over SIU Edwardsville back in November of 2008.

For the game, UWM shot 39.7 percent (31-for-78) from the floor, while limiting the Chargers to just 29.7 percent (19-for-64) on the defensive side. In addition, Milwaukee forced 29 turnovers and held a 36-to-9 advantage in points off those turnovers.

Young added seven rebounds to her 11 points in just 15 minutes of action, while Swan netted her 10 points in just 10 minutes on the floor. Swopshire finished with eight points, seven rebounds and three blocks, with sophomore Macie Dorow chipping in nine points as well. Junior Angela Rodriguez finished with four points, but had a team-high eight assists and just two turnovers.

Megan Fogt paced Hillsdale with a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds.

Up next, the regular season begins, as Milwaukee heads to Illinois to take on Chicago State Friday November 9.