Women's Basketball November 25, 2017

Panthers, Leathernecks Set For Sunday Showdown

Rematch of last year’s thriller from Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE – After a decisive 22-point win in their home opener, the Milwaukee women's basketball team is back on the road this weekend for a showdown with fellow mid-major power Western Illinois Sunday afternoon. The Panthers and Leathernecks - who combined for 48 wins last season - will tip off at 4:30 pm from Western Hall. Sunday's game is a rematch of last year's early season thriller in Milwaukee - a 76-68 UWM win.

LOOKING AT THE LEATHERNECKS
Western Illinois heads into Sunday's game with a 5-1 record so far and ranked 22nd in the mid-major poll. WIU has put together some impressive offensive outings thus far this season, averaging 93.7 points/game through the first six contests.

The Leathernecks got a notable win earlier this week with a 77-67 takedown of in-state rival Illinois in Champaign. Five different players are averaging over 11 points/game so far, with senior guard Emily Clemens leading the way with 16.3 points/game.

SERIES HISTORY
After nearly a 14-year break in the series, the Panthers and Leathernecks will play for the sixth time in eight years Sunday. Milwaukee holds a 6-5 lead against WIU after a 76-68 win from the Klotsche Center last season.

UP NEXT
UWM returns home to start the month of December, welcoming North Dakota State to the Klotsche Center for a 7pm contest Friday night.

LAST GAME
Steph Kostowicz poured in 19 points and the defense did the rest of the work as the Milwaukee women's basketball team cruised to a 63-41 win over Loyola Tuesday night from the Klotsche Center.

UWM (2-2) held the Ramblers (0-4) to just 26.4 percent from the floor for the game and limited them to under 10 points in each of the first three quarters, while efficiently pulling away on the offensive end.

"I was really proud of the way we came out and executed our game plan," Milwaukee head coach Kyle Rechlicz said. "I think we forced four or five shot clock violations, which is great to see that we can lock in for a full 30 seconds and get a few of those. We're communicating better and we're really making that a stronghold for us this season. It's nice to see when I all comes together."

Kostowicz was on fire right from the start and finished with 19 points on 8-10 shooting from the floor to go with a perfect 3-3 performance from the charity stripe. She also added five rebounds and one block in just 24 minutes.

Jenny Lindner picked up right where she left off in Milwaukee's win on Saturday, finishing with 12 points in just 21 minutes Tuesday.

Alyssa Fischer finished third on the team in scoring, netting six points off the bench.

DE-FENSE
Milwaukee has put together some lock-down showings on the defensive side of the ball recently, including Tuesday's performance against Loyola. The Panthers limited the Ramblers to just 41 total points - the ninth time over the past two-plus seasons UWM has held an opponent to 50 points or less in a game. In fact, that marks the fewest points allowed by Milwaukee since head coach Kyle Rechlicz took over the program in 2012. The Panthers also held Loyola to just 26-percent shooting for the game - one of the lowest opponent shooting percentages in Milwaukee's Division I history.

SHE SHOOTS, SHE SCORES
Steph Kostowicz has come out of the gates on fire to start her senior season. The 6-2 forward opened the season with 26 points on 9-14 shooting from the floor and a perfect 8-8 showing from the free throw line. Then, in Tuesday's home opener, Kostowicz racked up another 19 points while going 8-10 from the floor. She enters Sunday's game with a .643 percentage from the field and a near-perfect .947 percent (18-19) from the charity stripe.

DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK
After missing the majority of last year with a foot injury, redshirt sophomore Alyssa Fischer got back to her old ways in Tuesday's win over Loyola. Fischer connected on a pair of three pointers to finish with six points in just eight minutes for an efficient return to the court.

RECAPPING THE PRESEASON WNIT
The Preseason Women's National Invitational Tournament is an annual invitation-only tournament featuring 16 of the nation's top women's Division I basketball teams. Milwaukee opened up at No. 3 in the Mid-Major poll Drake, finishing just short in the back-and-forth showdown, 77-73. The Panthers then were sent south to New Orleans, La. for their final two contests. Milwaukee started its trip in the Big Easy with a 74-59 loss to Houston before a great bounce-back showing against CSUN, 58-50.

RIGHT OUT OF THE GATES
McKaela Schmelzer and Sydney Staver both inked their names into the Panther record book before their first collegiate game even ended. That's because the duo both were in the starting lineup in their first collegiate game, becoming the first freshmen to achieve that feat since Kelsey Cunningham did so in her debut in 2014. In fact, it marks just the second time in program history two freshmen started the season opener, joining Angela Rodriguez and Courtney Lindfors back in 2010.

WELL THAT WAS FAST
Steph Kostowicz wasted little time in putting together an incredible performance to start her senior season. The 6-2 forward went off against mid-major power Drake for 26 points, 12 rebounds, two blocks, two assists and a steal. For her efforts, Kostowicz was named the Horizon League Player of the Week after just the first week of the season.

DOUBLE VISION
After turning in two double-doubles as a freshman, Steph Kostowicz has been a machine at putting together 10+ performances in points and rebounds. In fact, with her 26-point, 12-rebound performance in this year's season opener at Drake, Kostowicz now has 24 double-doubles in her collegiate career. That already ranks her fourth in program history and is just three shy of Lindsay Laur for third place all-time.

Teammate Jenny Lindner is also steadily climbing that chart after turning in a 19-point, 11-rebound performance in the win over CSUN. That marked Lindner's 13th career double-double, ranking eighth in program history and just four shy of sixth place.

CLIMBING THE CHARTS
It's no secret Jenny Lindner and Steph Kostowicz have already left their mark on this program heading into their senior year. The duo both eclipsed both the 1000-point and 500-rebound milestones as juniors and have continued to climb up the statistical charts. Entering Sunday's game, Lindner ranks ninth in scoring (1,284 points), ninth in rebounding (601), eighth in double-doubles (13) and tied for ninth in games started (96). Meanwhile, Kostowicz sits at 10th in career scoring (1,195 points), seventh in rebounding (701), third in blocks (119) and fourth in double-doubles (24).

PRESEASON RANKS
The Horizon League released its preseason rankings as voted on by coaches, media members and SIDs, with the Panthers picked to once again battle for the top this season. Milwaukee was tabbed fourth overall this year with 129 points, behind only Green Bay (246), Wright State (204) and Oakland (139). Steph Kostowicz was once again recognized when the votes were announced, earning preseason first-team all-league honors for the second-straight year.

EXHIBITION REWIND
UWM put together a total team performance to the tune of an 80-35 win over Cornell College this past Sunday. The three-leading scorers were new to Panther fans as redshirt transfer Ryaen Johnson led all players with 15 points, while redshirt freshman McKaela Schmelzer had 11, as did true freshman Sydney Staver. In all, the Milwaukee bench churned out 47 points, while the Panther defense limited the Rams to just single digits in each of the first three quarters.

PILING UP THE WINS
Over the past two seasons, Milwaukee has been racking up the total in the win column. With the win over Oakland in the conference tournament last year, the Panthers eclipsed the 20-win mark for just the third time in program history. UWM ran that total to 22 last year, tying program record for most wins in a season. previously set by the 2005-06 squad. Additionally, that marked the first time UWM has had back-to-back seasons with at least 16 wins since doing so in three-straight years from 99-2000 through 00-02.

INTO THE RECORD BOOKS
Last year was another memorable season for Milwaukee, with quite a number of team records being surpassed by the offensive powerhouse of a squad. The Panthers nearly re-wrote the whole record book last season, with some of the notable marks including:
-For the second-straight year, Milwaukee shattered the school's scoring record with 2,463 points last season, besting the 2015-16 mark of 2,131.

-While they racked up the points, the Panthers did so with an extremely effective shot selection. Last year's squad shot .434 overall on the season - fifth best in program history.

-Milwaukee also continued its trend of lighting up the nets from behind the arc, connecting on 247 triples on the year. That is the second most all time. In fact, five of the top-six years in that category have come with head coach Kyle Rechlicz at the helm.

-The Panthers were also one of the best in the country from the charity stripe last year, sinking 78.4 percent of their free throws. That mark now ranks second in program history, and was eighth best in the entire nation.

400 AND COUNTING!
The Panthers have been on fire from behind the arc of late, headlined by hitting 14 threes against Valparaiso Jan. 7 of last season. That's nothing new for Milwaukee, though, as they have been lighting it up from three-point range for a while now. In fact, the Panthers have made at least one three-point in every game dating back to an 0-for-4 showing against Marquette back on Nov. 26, 2002. That makes 459 games in a row heading into the game against the Leathernecks.

In fact, when Alexis Lindstrom hit her first three pointer against Green Bay on Feb. 17 of last season, the Panthers broke the league record for consecutive games with a made three. That topped the previous mark of 446 set by Loyola, halted six years ago when they went 0-11 against Butler. It's still a ways to go for the NCAA record, however, which is held by Canisius at 510 in a row (1994-2011). For comparison, the NBA's longest streak is the Dallas Mavericks at 1,108 in a row.

THE W's AND THE L's
As one might expect, there were certainly some statistical categories that stood out as the difference between Milwaukee's 22 wins compared to its 12 losses last season:

W's      L's
FG%                            .469     .385
Def FG%                      .407     .481
Rebound Margin         +10.4   +1.5
PPG                             78.4     64.1
PPG Against                62.2     78.5

BEST IN THE BADGER STATE
The Panthers made a case for themselves as one of the top teams within the Badger State last season. Milwaukee started its in-state rivalries a year ago with a big 80-63 win over Wisconsin before the 72-60 handling of conference foe Green Bay on Feb. 17. Had it not been for a woeful first quarter against Marquette - a game in which UWM drew back to within three late in the fourth before running out of gas in the final minutes - the Panthers would have claimed wins over all three fellow D-I foes within state lines for the first time in program history.

MILESTONE MEMORIES
Yet another notable moment from last year's run was marked by both Steph Kostowicz and Jenny Lindner surpassing the 1,000-point mark for their careers - both doing so during big wins at home.

With both reaching the 1,000-point mark in their junior seasons, they become the first duo to reach the century mark during the same season for the Black & Gold and just third pair of classmates to add their names to the prestigious list. The other two:

-Umenia White (1,597 points) and Cammie Nonhoff (1,087 points) from 1985-89

-Jaci Clark (1,830 points) and Marsha Housley (1,491 points) from 1979-83.

THE BIG 5-0...0
The same duo that has been lighting up the scoreboard for Milwaukee the past three seasons has also been getting things done on the glass. Not only have Steph Kostowicz and Jenny Linder both reached 1,000 career points, but both also cracked the 500-rebound list last season, as well. Not only are they two of the 25 players in program history with 500 rebounds to their name, but they are just the 13th and 14th in Milwaukee history to do so while also scoring 1,000 career points.

WORKING THE GLASS
Milwaukee has prided itself in its ability to control the boards over the past few years, with that standing out in a number of games last season. The Panthers' final home stand was a prime example, with Milwaukee outrebounding its two opponents over the weekend by a combined 84-45. In fact, against Youngstown State, the Panthers had 38 rebounds to YSU's 17 - a difference of +21, with UWM limiting the Penguins to just one offensive rebound for the whole game - the Panthers best showing of the year.

Here's a look at some of the largest rebounding margins for Milwaukee thus far this season:

1. +25 vs. Detroit Mercy (47-22)
2. +23 at Vermont (45-22)
3. +21 vs. Youngstown State (38-17)
4. + 19 vs. Chicago State (48-29)
5. + 18 at St. Francis (50-32)
6. + 17 - two times (N. Kentucky/S. Illinois)
8. + 16 - two times (Loyola/LIU-Brooklyn)

MAKING A NAME FOR HERSELF
Head coach Kyle Rechlicz was named the seventh coach in program history in May of 2012. After three years of hard work, the Panthers broke through in her fourth season at the helm with an incredible campaign last year. Milwaukee racked up 19 wins, finished second in the Horizon League and earned a trip to the WNIT. All that work did not go unnoticed, as Rechlicz was named Horizon League Coach of the Year at the end of last season, making her just the second coach in program history to earn that honor. She followed that up with an impressive 22 wins in 2016-17, tying the school record in that category and helping guide the team to its second consecutive postseason berth in program history.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
With its tournament win over Southern Illinois last week, the Panthers improved their home slate with a 12-3 record inside the Klotsche Center this season. That marks the first time the team has reached double-digit home wins since the 05-06 team went 13-3 on campus. UWM could potentially host the WBI championship contest should they advance that far, giving them one more chance to play on the court that they have defended mighty well this season.

CATCH ALL THE ACTION
Fans will have the opportunity to watch the Panthers all season long. All 13 of Milwaukee's home games will be carried live online on ESPN3, with 10 road contests also streaming live through ESPN, as well as the entirety of the Horizon League Tournament. An additional six games this season will be streamed through various opponent platforms. Milwaukee women's basketball will also make its TV debut on FOX Sports Wisconsin this season when they host Marquette inside the Klotsche Center on Dec. 17, with Bob Brainerd and former UWM great Maria Viall once again calling the action.

Panthers fans will also be able to listen this year's games everywhere they go this year, as Matt Menzl calls all the action on the Black & Gold Network. Menzl will be courtside for all 30 regular season contests, as well as the exhibition game against Cornell and all postseason action. The Black & Gold Network is streaming live online and can be accessed at MKEPanthers.com.

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Players Mentioned

#12 Kelsey Cunningham: G; 5' 9"; Senior

#21 Alyssa Fischer: G; 5' 9"; Redshirt Sophomore

#25 Ryaen Johnson: F; 6' 2"; Redshirt Junior

#32 Steph Kostowicz: F; 6' 2"; Senior

#20 Jenny Lindner: G; 6' 0"; Senior

#3 McKaela Schmelzer: G; 5' 7"; Redshirt Freshman

#1 Sydney Staver: G; 5' 11"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#12 Kelsey Cunningham
: 5' 9"; Senior
: G

#21 Alyssa Fischer
: 5' 9"; Redshirt Sophomore
: G

#25 Ryaen Johnson
: 6' 2"; Redshirt Junior
: F

#32 Steph Kostowicz
: 6' 2"; Senior
: F

#20 Jenny Lindner
: 6' 0"; Senior
: G

#3 McKaela Schmelzer
: 5' 7"; Redshirt Freshman
: G

#1 Sydney Staver
: 5' 11"; Freshman
: G