Game Notes (pdf)

MILWAUKEE (5-3) vs. SIU EDWARDSVILLE (1-5)
December 3, 2015 – 6 p.m. CT
UWM Panther Arena – Milwaukee, Wis.
TV: ESPN3
Radio: WISN (AM 1130)
 
 
THE OPENING TIP
• After playing seven of its first eight games away from home, Milwaukee returns to UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena where it will take on SIU Edwardsville Thursday night. Thursday's game will begin a stretch in which the Panthers will play five of the next seven games at home, where they have posted an 11-4 mark since the start of the 2014-15 campaign. Through games of November 30, Milwaukee was ranked No. 100 in the RPI and was one of three Horizon League teams ranked in the top 100, joining Valparaiso (7) and Oakland (91).
 
• Milwaukee posted a very respectable 5-3 record during a grueling season-opening stretch that featured eight games in 13 days. Making that opening stretch even more difficult to navigate was that seven of those eight contests were played away from home. Over the first 13 days of the 2015-16 season, Milwaukee traveled a total of 7,450 miles and played in four states.
 
• Over the last pair of contests, the Panthers are averaging a whopping 88.0 points per game and stretched out over the last four games, that figure is still 81.0 ppg. Milwaukee has scored 71 or more points in seven of its eight outings this season. In the last two games, Milwaukee also has committed only 10.5 turnovers per game after committing 14.7 through the first six outings of the year and the Panthers have made a total of 67 trips to the foul line in the last two contests after toeing the stripe just 16 times in the previous two games.
 
• Off the court, the Panthers had a phenomenal year in 2014-15, achieving high marks in the classroom, while also earning the Horizon League's Community Outreach Award after performing nearly 1,000 hours of community service. Milwaukee men's basketball players posted a team grade point average over 3.0 during the 2014-15 academic year and the team's total of four individuals on the Horizon League Academic Honor Roll was the highest in the conference. Continuing with the academic theme, Milwaukee placed two student-athletes - Evan Richard and Cody Wichmann - on the National Association of Basketball Coaches Honors Court and the Panthers also posted a perfect Academic Progress Rate (APR) score.
 
SERIES STUFF
Milwaukee and SIU Edwardsville are meeting for the 14th time in a series that dates back to the 1970-71 season. The Panthers own an 8-5 edge in the series, but stumbled, 61-56, in last year's meeting in Edwardsville, Ill., despite 16 points from Matt Tiby. Milwaukee is 19-29 (.396) all-time against current members of the Ohio Valley Conference and last week, suffered a heartbreaking, 66-63 loss to Murray State in the opening round at the Gulf Coast Showcase.
 
ABOUT SIU EDWARDSVILLE
Under the direction of first-year head coach and former Marquette standout Jon Harris, the Cougars have dropped five straight games after defeating Arkansas State in their season opener. SIU Edwardsville, which is yielding 80.0 ppg, is coming off of an 87-69 loss to Green Bay Monday night. Senior post player Grant Fiorentinos and junior guard Burak Eslik are each averaging 13.8 ppg for the Cougars, who are shooting just 27.5 percent (30-for-109) from beyond the arc as a team.
 
TIBY TIDBITS
Senior Matt Tiby, the Panthers' emotional leader and a Second Team All-Horizon League pick a year ago, has picked up where he left off last season. Over the last pair of outings, Tiby is contributing 22.0 ppg and shooting 55.6 percent (15-for-27) from the field and 54.5 percent (6-for-11) from three-point territory. He has posted a double-double in four of his last nine appearances dating back to last season. At No. 18 Notre Dame on November 17, Tiby totaled 16 points and 13 rebounds, then collected 14 points and 13 boards against Trinity International. Milwaukee is now 11-5 in his career when he totals 10 or more points and rebounds. The Urbandale, Iowa native has scored 10 or more points in 27 of the last 29 outings and in last Tuesday's loss to Duquesne, erupted for a career-best 29 points, the most by a Panther since Jordan Aaron tallied 30 points at Green Bay on February 8, 2014. In his last 10 appearances, the 6-foot-8 forward is putting up 16.7 ppg, 8.5 rpg and 2.0 apg. A 2015-16 Preseason First Team All-Horizon League selection, Tiby's seven double-doubles in 2014-15 were the most by a Panther in a single season since Adrian Tigert had nine in 2005-06. A starter in each of the 73 games in which he has appeared during his Milwaukee career, Tiby totaled a team-high 16 points in last season's game at SIU Edwardsville. Tiby has converted 7 of his last 14 (.500) three-point attempts after opening the year just 2-for-12 (.167) from three-point land. Through games of November 30, he and Bobby Hain (Youngstown State) were the only players to rank among the top seven in the Horizon League in both scoring and rebounding.
 
SPRINGS FEVER
Akeem Springs has elevated his play over the last six outings, and is averaging 14.8 ppg, 5.2 rpg and 2.2 apg, while shooting 54.4 percent (31-for-57) from the field and 50 percent (11-for-22) from triple territory. In the first two games of 2015-16, the junior guard managed 7.5 ppg and 4.0 rpg, but shot only 37.5 percent (6-for-16) from the field and 33.3 percent (2-for-6) from long distance. He was impressive at both ends of the floor in Milwaukee's victory at Santa Clara on November 15, finishing with 17 points and 10 rebounds for his first double-double since February 10 against Oakland (13 points, 10 boards), and in a November 17 game at then-No. 18 Notre Dame equaled a career high with 21 points. The transfer from Northern Illinois has scored in double figures in 17 of his last 25 contests and the Panthers are 8-4 in the last 12 games in which he has scored 10 or more points. Springs has buried 23 of his last 27 (.852) tries from the charity stripe. A starter in 23 consecutive contests, the Waukegan, Ill., native is accounting for 13.7 ppg, 6.8 rpg, 2.4 apg, and is shooting 46.9 percent (46-for-98) from the field in his last nine games at Panther Arena. In three games at the Gulf Coast Showcase last week, Springs pitched in 14.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg and 2.3 apg, while connecting on 50 percent (15-for-30) of his field goal tries and 42.8 percent (6-for-14) of his three-point attempts.
 
PANOSKE PRODUCES
J.J. Panoske has come into his own since mid-February of last season and over his last 13 games is pitching in 11.4 ppg, 5.7 rpg and 1.5 bpg, while shooting 50.9 percent (57-for-112) from the field and 42.9 percent (18-for-42) from beyond the arc. Already the Panthers' Division I career leader with 109 blocked shots, the 6-foot-10 forward, who has helped Milwaukee to a 9-4 record over the last 13 games, has found life to be good at home, where he is contributing 13.0 ppg, 4.3 rpg and 1.3 bpg in his last three games at Panther Arena. Last season's team leader in free throw percentage (.857), the Brodhead, Wis., native has drained 37 of his last 42 (.881) attempts from the foul line. He has connected on 19 of his last 44 (.432) attempts from beyond the arc and since the start of the 2014-15 season, Milwaukee is 6-2 when he drains two or more treys. After opening the 2015-16 season by hitting just 7 of his first 17 (.412) field goal attempts, the senior forward has buried 27 of his last 50 (.540) field goal tries. Against Lipscomb on November 14, Panoske ripped down a career-best 15 rebounds, the most by a Panther since Matt Tiby corralled 17 versus Oakland on February 2, 2014, and added 12 points for his first career double-double. He also swatted five shots against the Bisons. In Milwaukee's five wins this season, Panoske is accounting for 11.8 ppg, 7.4 rpg and is knocking down 56.4 percent (22-for-39) of his field goal attempts. He tallied 12 points and six caroms at SIU Edwardsville last season.
 
AUSTIN'S POINTS POWER PANTHERS
One of the premier shooters in the Horizon League, Austin Arians paced the conference in three-pointers per game (3.1) through games of November 30. The 6-foot-6 forward, who redshirted the 2014-15 season, has scored in double figures in 10 of his last 12 appearances and in last Tuesday's loss to Duquesne contributed a season-best 21 points, his most since a career-best, 28-point effort at Youngstown State on February 20, 2014. Named MVP of the Cable Car Classic after putting up 15.3 ppg, Arians had 19 points at Notre Dame November 17. Through eight games, he ranks second on the team with 13.9 ppg and is shooting 37.3 percent (25-for-67) from long range. In 2013-14, he connected on 36.7 percent (65-for-177) of his tries from three-point range en route to 11.1 ppg. Milwaukee has registered a 20-8 record the last 28 times the Stoughton, Wis., native has scored in double digits. He has drained at least on three-pointer in 12 straight appearances. Arians, who has knocked down 28 of his last 31 attempts (.903) from the charity stripe, is producing 14.5 ppg and 4.1 rpg in his last 10 games versus non-league foes. After posting 16.3 ppg and shooting 43.6 percent (17-for-39) from long range in the first four games of 2015-16, Arians' output has dipped to 11.5 ppg on 28.6 percent (8-for-28) shooting from downtown in the last four contests.
 
THE "D" IS KEY
In its five wins, Milwaukee has limited opponents to 65.4 ppg and 43.2 percent (121-for-280) shooting from the field. However, in three losses, the Panthers have yielded 82.7 ppg and seen foes sink 54.2 percent (91-for-168) of their field goal attempts.
 
CODY'S CONTRIBUTIONS
Cody Wichmann came off the bench to produce a career-best 17 points, hitting all five of his three-point attempts, in only 13 minutes of action in the Panthers' victory over Trinity International on November 20. Milwaukee is now 9-2 in his career when he scores in double figures. The 6-foot-5 junior has knocked down 8 of his last 10 attempts from beyond the arc and since starting the year just 1-for-5 (.200) from three-point land, has buried 10 of his last 13 (.769) shots. In addition to leading the team in three-point field goals made (47) and three-point field goal percentage (.402) a season ago, Wichmann pitched in 6.1 ppg, 2.3 rpg and 1.1 apg, while appearing in all 30 contests. His marksmanship helped the Panthers to success in 2014-15 as he contributed 7.2 ppg and knocked down 50.7 percent (34-for-67) of his field goal tries and 52 percent (26-for-50) of his three-point attempts in Milwaukee's wins. Over his last 15 appearances at home, Wichmann is contributing 8.5 ppg and shooting a sizzling 56.8 percent (42-for-74) from the field and 57.9 percent (33-for-57) from three-point land. Wichmann is averaging 10.7 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.5 apg and converting shots at a ridiculous 61.1 percent (22-for-36) clip from the field and 61.5 percent (16-for-26) rate from long range in his last six nonconference games at Panther Arena. He is on track to earn his accounting degree in less than four years.
 
JORDAN RULES
Junior Jordan Johnson, a transfer from John Wood Community College, has burst onto the scene and is one of the top set-up men in the nation. Through games of November 30, the lightning quick Johnson ranked second in the Horizon League and third in the nation, behind only Kay Felder of Oakland  (10.8) and Denzel Valentine of Michigan State (8.6) with 8.5 apg. If he maintains that pace, the 5-foot-9 point guard will easily shatter the Milwaukee Division I record of 7.0 assists per game set by Marc Mitchell in 1992-93. Over the last three contests, Johnson is tallying 12.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 10.3 apg and 1.3 spg. His 13 assists versus Duquesne on November 24 were the most by a Panther since Kaylon Williams had a school-record 14 helpers at UIC, February 12, 2011. The 2014-15 NJCAA Division II All-America selection is coming off an 18-point, 9-assist performance against Central Michigan at the Gulf Coast Showcase on November 25.
 
A CHIEF AMONG US
Former Milwaukee forward Demetrius Harris (2011-13) is once again on the active roster for the National Football League's Kansas City Chiefs. The first Panther to play in the NFL since 1983, Harris played two seasons at Milwaukee and helped the team to a College Basketball Invitational appearance in 2012 before putting up 9.1 ppg and 5.3 rpg in 2012-13. Last season, the 6-foot-7 Harris appeared in eight games as a tight end for the Chiefs and hauled in three passes for 20 yards before suffering a season-ending foot injury during warm-ups against Buffalo in early November.
 
GOTTA GET BACK IN TIME
The 2015-16 season marks the 10-year anniversary of one of the best years in Milwaukee basketball history. Led by the play of Joah Tucker, Boo Davis and Adrian Tigert, the Panthers knocked off Oklahoma in the NCAA Tournament before falling to eventual national champion Florida. Two members of Rob Jeter's current staff - Chris Hill and Allan Hanson - were on that team, which won a NCAA Tournament game for a second consecutive season. Milwaukee finished the 2005-06 season with a 22-9 record in Jeter's first season as the Panthers' bench boss.
 
THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
Milwaukee went 10-4 at home last season and has won seven of its last eight games at UWM Panther Arena. Over that eight-game stretch, the Panthers have lit up the scoreboard for 71.1 ppg, while shooting 47.8 percent (205-for-429) from the field and a healthy 42.4 percent (67-for-158) from three-point territory.
 
THREE-MENDOUS
In a loss at Notre Dame two weeks ago, the Panthers shot a blistering 66.7 percent (14-for-21) from beyond the arc. A year ago, Milwaukee averaged 7.0 threes per game, but has pushed that number to 9.1 per contest through eight games in 2015-16.
 
THE BEST THINGS IN LIFE ARE FREE
As a team, Milwaukee is shooting a robust 78.5 percent (142-for-181) from the foul line in its last nine contests dating back to last season. Milwaukee nearly set a single-season school record by draining 73.7 percent (434-for-589) of its free throw attempts in 2014-15 for the second-best accuracy rate in Division I program history. That percentage placed the Panthers tied for 32nd in the nation and tied with UIC for the top spot in the Horizon League. Milwaukee matched a single-game school record for free throw accuracy by sinking all 22 of its attempts in the regular-season finale at Youngstown State on February 28, 2015. The Panthers had twice previously connected on all of their foul shots in a game (minimum 10 attempts) - versus Green Bay (20-for-20) on January 9, 2009 and against Youngstown State (15-for-15) on January 7, 2008. Through eight games this year, Milwaukee is converting 75.5 percent (120-for-159) of its charity tosses, a figure that ranks third in the Horizon League. After getting to the foul line just 8.0 times in the previous two outings, the Panthers have attempted 33.5 freebies per game over the last two contests.
 
THAT 70s SHOW
Milwaukee, which has scored 71 or more points in eight of its first nine contests of the 2015-16 season, has now prevailed in 13 of its last 17 games when scoring 70 or more points.
 
MILWAUKEE MOMENTUM
Dating back to the 2014-15 campaign, the Panthers have won 12 of their last 17 games. An 86-78 loss at No. 18 Notre Dame on November 17 halted Milwaukee's seven-game winning streak, the program's longest since the 2010-11 season.
 
CABLE CAR CLASSIC CHAMPS
Milwaukee captured the tournament title by going 3-0 at the season-opening Cable Car Classic hosted by Santa Clara. This marks the third straight season the Panthers have won an in-season tournament title, as they claimed the middleweight division of the 2014 MGM Grand Main Event a year ago and the NIU Showcase in 2013-14.