Women's Basketball December 13, 2017

Panthers, Badgers Square Off Thursday In Madison

Milwaukee looking for eighth-straight win

MILWAUKEE – Winners of their last seven in a row and now ranked in the Mid-Major Top-25, the Milwaukee women's basketball team heads to Madison for a Thursday contest against Wisconsin. The Panthers and Badgers will tip off at 7pm from the Kohl Center. UWM will be looking for its second straight win in the series, after defeating Wisconsin, 80-63 in Milwaukee last season. Fans can catch all the action with Matt Menzl's radio call on the Black & Gold Network. The game is also scheduled to be streamed on the Big Ten Network Plus or FloHoops.com.

LOOKING AT THE BADGERS
The Badgers are much improved under second-year head coach Jonathan Tsipis, already at 7-5 on the young season after going 9-22 a season ago.

Senior guard Cayla McMorris and junior forward Marsha Howard are the statistical leaders for UW thus far, combining to average 26.6 points and 15.4 rebounds per game.

SERIES HISTORY
After a two-year break, the Panthers and Badgers renewed their long-standing series last season with a big Milwaukee win, 80-63, from the Klotsche Center. Wisconsin still holds the all-time lead over Milwaukee at 19-2 since UWM moved to the Division I ranks in 1990.

UP NEXT
Milwaukee returns home to wrap up the busy week Sunday, playing host to Marquette at 4pm from the Klotsche Center. That game will be broadcast live on FOX Sports Wisconsin.

LAST GAME
Milwaukee never trailed in cruising to a 60-48 road win over Fort Wayne Sunday afternoon from Gates Sports Complex.

A total of 11 different players scored for UWM (7-2), which used a 17-3 run between the first and second quarters to establish a big lead early before coasting to their seventh consecutive win.

"It's a great thing, anytime you can come on the road and find a way to win," Milwaukee head coach Kyle Rechlicz said. "Our team came in incredibly focused. I thought our discipline at the start of the game was excellent. Our starters were really prepared. I'm a little concerned about how we finished the game, and that's something we've got to work on. We're trying to find those next set of rotations and we need some people to step up."

Steph Kostowicz led all players with 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting. She also hauled in a team-high six rebounds to go with three blocks and three assists in just 26 minutes.

Jenny Lindner was a perfect 3-for-3 from the floor and finished with eight points and five rebounds in just 20 minutes.

Jamie Reit scored seven to go with five rebounds, while Akaylah Hayes and Alyssa Fischer each finished with five points off the bench.

CRACKING THE POLLS
The Panthers once again found themselves ranked in the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll, as voted on by Division I Women's Basketball coaches. Milwaukee - which received its first ever ranking one year ago - broke into this week's poll at No. 25 after rattling off seven consecutive wins.

GOING STREAKING
Kyle Rechlicz has her team once again off to a strong start this season with wins in each of Milwaukee's last seven games. That marks the fourth time in the last 2-plus seasons the Panthers have put together at least five straight wins, and is now the longest run for UWM under Rechlicz, surpassing the six-game streak in the early going of last season. A 'W' on Thursday would inch the team closer to the longest win-streak for Milwaukee since they rattled off 12 straight late in the 2005-06 season on their way to the NCAA Tournament.

WINNING IN A VARIETY OF WAYS
Milwaukee's current seven game win streak has been impressive for a variety of reasons; one of those being they have proven they can win in a variety of ways. The team flipped a 13-point deficit at Western Illinois into a 10-point win Nov. 26. That was sandwiched by a pair of lopsided home wins over Loyola (Nov. 21) and North Dakota State (Dec. 1). UWM also dug deep on a pair of cold-shooting performances in wins at Northwestern (Dec. 3) and at home against Illinois State (Dec. 7).

FARLEY CATCHING FIRE
Bailey Farley has been a big part of Milwaukee's offense of late. The senior guard - who was a game-time decision at Northwestern - went off for a career-high 24 points on near-perfect shooting against the Wildcats. Farley finished 8-11 from the floor and a perfect 5-5 from the free throw line. She was also vital down the stretch, netting 11 of her 24 points in the fourth quarter to help put the game out of reach.

That hot shooting carried over for Farley, who finished with a game-high 19 points after tying her career high with five made three-pointers, providing the spark her team needed in the win over Illinois State.

The 43 combined points is the highest two-game total of her career.

DE-FENSE
Milwaukee has put together some lock-down showings on the defensive side of the ball recently, including the Dec. 1 performance against North Dakota State. The Panthers limited the Bison to just 38 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 and the third-fewest points allowed in the program's Division-I history. The Panthers also held Bison to just 29-percent shooting for the game - the second time this season UWM has held its opponent below 30 percent for four quarters.

UWM has also held teams to single digits in the scoring column for an entire quarter eight times now this season (not including overtime), including in both the second and fourth quarters against both NDSU and Illinois State.

The Panthers head into Thursday's game in Madison with their defense boasting some impressive national rankings, checking in at 38th in scoring defense (56.8 points/game against), 47th in field-goal percentage defense (35.9%) and 108th in three-point field goal defense (29.5%).

PLENTY OF CONNECTIONS
The Badgers and Panthers have plenty of ties between the two programs, starting with UWM head coach Kyle Rechlicz. Rechlicz - then Kyle Black - was a standout player for Wisconsin from 1998-2002, helping UW to four postseason appearances. She still has her name in plenty of places in the school's record book, including third in made three pointers in a single season with 78. Rechlicz also was an assistant in Madison for one season prior to being named the head coach at Milwaukee.

Panther assistant Anya Covington also played and coached at Wisconsin, earning All-Big Ten honorable-mention honors as a senior, as well as being the recipient of the Big Ten's Sportsmanship Award two times.

UWM Director of Operations Molly Hanson also served on the staff at Wisconsin for three years before coming to Milwaukee.

A B1G WIN
The Dec. 3 win at Northwestern marked the eighth time the Panthers have taken down a Big Ten foe since moving to Division I in 1990. It actually is the second time in just over one calendar year Milwaukee has defeated a Big Ten school, taking down Wisconsin 80-63 last season at home - the second time UWM has beaten the Badgers.

WINNING BIG
The Panthers have made a habit lately of posting some rather lopsided wins. Milwaukee put together nine 20-plus-point wins a season ago and has already done so twice this season. It started in the home opener with a 22-point smothering of Loyola (63-41) Nov. 21 before steamrolling North Dakota State by a whopping 36 points (74-38) Dec. 1.

Milwaukee's big win over NDSU marked the fifth-largest margin of victory for UWM since they moved to Division I heading into the 1990-91 season. Milwaukee only has two bigger wins in the last 15 years - the 38-point handling of LIU-Brooklyn last year and the school-record 54-point victory over Youngstown State back on Feb. 2, 2002.

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 the Nov. 21 home opener, Kostowicz racked up another 19 points while going 8-10 from the floor. She then duplicated that feat on Sunday at Fort Wayne, again finishing 8-10 from the floor with 19 points. Kostowicz enters Thursday's game with a .606 percentage from the field - 25th best in the entire NCAA.

WORKING THE GLASS
Milwaukee has prided itself in its ability to control the boards over the past few years. Last season, the Panthers won the rebounding battle in 26 of their 34 games. That dominance has carried over into this season, with Milwaukee claiming the rebounding edge in all nine games to start the season. In fact, six of those nine games have finished with a double-digit advantage by UWM, with the season high so far coming in the Dec. 1 drubbing of NDSU as Milwaukee finished that game with a 53-28 edge on the boards.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME
The Panthers have certainly enjoyed playing in front of their home fans recently. Milwaukee went an impressive 12-3 at home last season and is already 3-0 at the Klotsche Center this season with a pair of emphatic wins. UWM is now 24-8 in the last two-plus seasons when playing in front of their home fans.

In fact, the Panthers will take a 10-game home winning streak into the Dec. 17 game against Marquette. That is tied for the fourth-longest home win streak in the team's Division I history.

1. 12 games (Feb. 25, 1992-Feb. 20, 1993)
2. 11 games (Jan. 22, 2000-Dec. 28-2000)
2. 11 games (Jan. 5, 2006-Nov. 19-2006)
4. 10 games (Jan. 13, 2016-present)
5. 9 games (Jan. 8-2004-March 4, 2004)

WHAT A WIN
Milwaukee's 77-67 win over Western Illinois Nov. 26 was significant for a number of reasons:

-The Panthers trailed by 13 points with just over five minutes left in the third quarter and finished with a 10-point win; a 23-point swing over the final 15:20.

-The home loss was the first for WIU in nearly 10 months (12/31/17) after going 13-1 at Western Hall last year.

-The Leathernecks entered that game ranked in the mid-major top-25. That marks the second win for Milwaukee over a mid-major-ranked team in a short span, taking down highly ranked Green Bay late last year, 72-60.

COMEBACK KIDS
Milwaukee's 13-point comeback over Western Illinois Nov. 26 isn't a program record, but it certainly is a memorable one. It marks the largest come-from-behind win since the Panthers turned a 44-28 deficit (16 points) in a 60-57 win over Toledo back in 2011.

Fans shouldn't be too surprised by Milwaukee's comeback win over WIU though. UWM set a program record with seven come-from-behind (trailing at halftime) wins last season, besting the previous mark of six set back in the 2006-07 season.

A CAREER PERFORMANCE
Jenny Lindner turned in one of her best performances to date in Milwaukee's road win at Western Illinois Nov. 26. The senior poured in a career-high 34 points - 21 of which came in the second half - to go with 10 rebounds to lead all players in both categories. That marks the third time in her career Lindner has finished with 30+ and it surpasses her previous high of 32 set late in her sophomore season in a win at Oakland.

In fact, her 34 points were the most by a Panther since Courtney Lindfors netted 35 in a road win over Chicago State Nov. 16, 2010.

EARLY HONORS
Just four weeks into the 2017-18 season, Milwaukee has already turned in some of the top performances in the entire Horizon League. Steph Kostowicz was named Horizon League Player of the Week after just the first week of the season, going off for 26 points, 12 rebounds, two blocks, two assists and one steal at perennial power Drake in the Preseason WNIT. Then, Jenny Lindner was named player of the week by the conference after pouring in a career-high 34 points to go with 10 rebounds in the road win at Western Illinois Nov. 26.

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.

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. With her 17-point, 13-rebound performance on Dec. 7 against Illinois State, Kostowicz now has 26 double-doubles in her collegiate career. That already ranks her fourth in program history and is just one shy of Lindsay Laur for third place all-time.

Teammate Jenny Lindner is also steadily climbing that chart in this season's early going. The senior turned in a 19-point, 11-rebound performance in the win over CSUN Nov. 18 before exploding for 34 points and 10 rebounds in the comeback win over Western Illinois eight days later. Those marked Lindner's 13th and 14th career double-doubles, ranking eighth in program history and just three 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 Thursday's game, Lindner ranks eighth in scoring (1,353 points), eighth in rebounding (628), eighth in double-doubles (14) and eighth in games started (101). Meanwhile, Kostowicz sits at 10th in career scoring (1,279 points), seventh in rebounding (748), third in blocks (131) and fourth in double-doubles (26).

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.

PILING UP THE WINS
Over the past two seasons, Milwaukee has been racking up the total in the win column. The Panthers eclipsed the 20-win mark for just the third time in program history last season, finishing with a program-record-tying 22 wins on their way to the WBI Semifinals. 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.

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 464 games in a row heading into the game against the Badgers.

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.

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 that 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.

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 at 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.

Panther fans will also be able to listen to this year's games everywhere they go, 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

#4 Bailey Farley: G; 5' 10"; Redshirt Senior

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

#2 Akaylah Hayes: G; 5' 11"; Junior

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

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

#10 Jamie Reit: G; 5' 9"; Sophomore

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

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

Players Mentioned

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

#4 Bailey Farley
: 5' 10"; Redshirt Senior
: G

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

#2 Akaylah Hayes
: 5' 11"; Junior
: G

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

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

#10 Jamie Reit
: 5' 9"; Sophomore
: G

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

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