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Jenny Lindner, Steph Kostowicz

Women's Basketball

Busy Stretch Continues as UWM Heads To UIC Monday

Panthers look to keep momentum rolling after two big wins

MILWAUKEE – Playing their third game in five days, the Milwaukee women's basketball team starts a three-game road trip Monday with the short drive to Chicago to take on UIC at 1pm from the UIC Pavilion. The Panthers are coming off a pair of thrilling wins, taking down Cleveland State on Thursday in front of 2,610 Milwaukee-area students before Jamie Reit hit a game winner at the buzzer on Saturday to send UWM past Youngstown State.
 
LOOKING AT THE FLAMES
The Flames put together an impressive non-conference record of 7-4 but have struggled in the early going of conference play to now sit at 7-9.
 
Despite their struggles to find results, UIC has been right there in the majority of their games. Their last three losses have come by a combined 10 points and nine of their games overall have finished within 10 points.
 
Individually, junior guards Brittany Byrd and Taylor Toney have been the key players thus far for the Flames, combining to average 30.2 points and 11.8 rebounds per game.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Milwaukee has won the last four against UIC and now leads the all-time series, 31-21. The Flames' last win in the series came at home when Kendyl Nunn's layup was good in the closing seconds of a 72-70 contest back on Feb. 25, 2015.
 
UP NEXT
UWM continues its stretch of five games in 10 days with a road trip to the Wolverine State, starting with a match up against Oakland Thursday evening.
 
LAST GAME
Jamie Reit's jumper went through the hoop as time expired to give the Milwaukee women's basketball team a 62-61 win over Youngstown State Saturday from the Klotsche Center.
 
A back-and-forth battle that featured 11 lead changes saw Milwaukee (12-5, 3-2 Horizon) score the final seven points of the game to collect their second straight win.
 
"I give a lot of credit to Youngstown State, because they must have seen that play," Milwaukee head coach Kyle Rechlicz said. "We haven't used that play all year and I was waiting for the moment to use it. It was a decoy play for Bailey (Farley) to come off. Steph (Kostowicz) took it baseline, which is how we drew it up.
 
"I thought Jenny had incredible fill action on the back side…she just couldn't get her hands on the ball, so it became this loose-ball situation and time was running down. Jamie just scooped it up and – being the shooter that she is – nailed the shot.
 
"Big moment for a sophomore. Huge."
 
Reit – the hero of the game – finished a perfect 3-3 from the floor with eight points in 19 minutes.
 
Steph Kostowicz notched her 28th career double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds to go with a pair of blocks and one steal.
 
Jenny Lindner just missed another double-double with 15 points and nine rebounds.
 
REIT PLACE, REIT TIME
Sophomore Jamie Reit may not have been the designed recipient of Saturday's game-winner shot, but the sophomore was Johnny on the spot when the ball came her way, drilling the mid-range jumper as time expired to send Milwaukee past Youngstown State, 62-61.
 
BUZZER BEATER HISTORY
Milwaukee has made somewhat of a habit of buzzer-beater wins over the past few seasons. Jamie Reit's winner at the horn on Saturday against Youngstown State brings back memories of last year's road win at Cleveland State when Steph Kostowicz's reverse layup went in with 0.1 seconds left on the clock.
 
Former Panther Sierra Ford-Washington also had numerous memorable shots in her time in the Black & Gold, including a pair of runners during the 2015-16 season (Jan. 14 vs. UIC & Feb. 11 vs. Cleveland State).
 
Ashley Green also finds her name in this category, hitting a jumper with less that five seconds left on the clock back on Jan. 24, 2015 for a 64-63 win over UIC.
 
COMEBACK KIDS
The Panthers have proven multiple times this season that they should never be counted out of any game. 
 
Milwaukee has already put together a pair of 15-point comeback efforts against Northern Kentucky (Dec. 28) and Cleveland State (Jan. 11) in the early going on conference play. Those both mark the largest come-from-behind wins since the Panthers turned a 44-28 deficit (16 points) into a 60-57 win over Toledo back in 2011.
 
That also marks the fourth time this season UWM has erased double-digit deficits, trailing at Western Illinois by 13 in the second half Nov. 26 before winning by 10. Milwaukee also trailed Illinois State by 10 Dec. 7 before claiming an overtime win.
 
In all, the Panthers now have five comeback wins already this season. Fans shouldn't be too surprised by Milwaukee's comeback efforts 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.
 
SCHOOL DAY SUCCESS
UWM has put together quite a number of memorable performances during school day games of late. On Thursday, the Panthers erased a 15-point deficit for a 79-72 win over Cleveland State in front of 2,610 Milwaukee area students and fans. That comes one year after the Panthers finished the game on a 26-10 run to take down Detroit Mercy and again erased a fourth-quarter deficit at the Klotsche Center. In 2015-16, Sierra Ford-Washington's runner in the lane with 6.7 seconds left again sent UWM past Cleveland State.
 
It's not just home success in front of the youthful crowds as Milwaukee stormed back from down 13 at Cleveland State last year before Steph Kostowicz beat the buzzer to send the Panthers home with yet another school day win.
 
TAKING ON THE TOP TALENT
In just their first 17 games of the season, the Panthers have faced quite a number of challenging foes, including five that were either ranked or receiving votes in the Mid-Major Top 25. Four of those five early season meetings took place on the road. UWM opened the season with a narrow 77-73 loss at Drake (Nov. 10) before an impressive 77-67 win at Western Illinois (Nov. 26). Milwaukee then dropped a 56-51 decision at Wright State (Dec. 30) and a 52-29 contest at Green Bay (Jan. 6), before an impressive 79-72 win over Cleveland State (Jan. 11).
 
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 16 of the first 17 games to start the season. In fact, 10 of those 17 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.
 
Through its first 17 games, the Panthers are out-rebounding their opponents 690-529 for a +9.5 margin per game. That ranks 18th in the nation heading into Monday's game.
 
Here's a look at the best rebounding performances thus far this season by UWM:
 
1. +25 vs. NDSU (53-28)
2. +23 at Chicago State (42-19)
3. +16 vs. Youngstown State (42-26)
4. +14 at Drake (44-30)
5. +13 vs. Loyola (43-30)
6. +12 - three times
 
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, 10-rebound performance Jan. 13 against Wright State, Kostowicz now has 28 double-doubles in her collegiate career. That moves her into sole possession of third place in program history, one past former Panther great Lindsay Laur.
 
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 as the catalyst in the comeback win over Cleveland State Jan. 11. That marked the 16th career double-double for the Neillsville native, ranking seventh in program history and just one shy of a tie for sixth place.
 
ROAD WARRIORS
UWM is about to hit the road for yet another three-game stint away from home - a familiar story for the Panthers, who will play 17 of their 30 regular season games away from the Klotsche Center this season. Milwaukee has proven to feel right at home on the road so far this year, with a 7-4 record in road/neutral games. One more win and they will match last year's regular season total of eight before even reaching the midway point of the schedule.
 
CRACKING THE POLLS
The Panthers dropped out of the CollegeInsider.com Mid-Major Poll for the first time in a month last week. The rankings - voted on by Division I Women's Basketball coaches - debuted Milwaukee at No. 25 back on Dec. 12, with the Panthers staying in the top-25 for three straight weeks.
 
GETTING EVERYONE INVOLVED
Coach Rechlicz has a much deeper bench this season compared to years past, as evident to just how many different people can score for UWM this year. Milwaukee has had at least 10 different players score in a single game six times already this year, with five of those six featuring 11 or more scorers. The season high came against North Dakota State when 12 different players got in on the fun. The six games already matches last year's season total with at least 14 games left on the schedule.
 
MORE B1G WINS
With wins over both Northwestern (Dec. 3) and Wisconsin (Dec. 14) this season, the Panthers now own two wins over Big Ten foes in the same season for the first time in program history. While it marks just the eighth and ninth wins all-time against the current Big Ten schools, the success should come as no surprise. Milwaukee thumped the Badgers, 80-63, at home a year ago and dropped a 65-63 heartbreaker to NU a few weeks later. That came one year after nearly upsetting Minnesota in the WNIT to close out the 2015-16 season.
 
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS
With a 9-3 non-conference record, Milwaukee wrapped up this season's early going with the best non-conference start in Division-I history. This year's squad surpassed last year's 8-3 mark and the 1997-98 team's 8-4 record.
 
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 11 times now this season (excluding overtime), including in both the second and fourth quarters against both NDSU and Illinois State.
 
The Panthers head into Monday's game against UIC with their defense boasting some impressive national rankings, checking in at 63rd in scoring defense (59.2 points/game against) and 64th in field-goal percentage defense (37.4%).
 
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 Dec. 10 at Fort Wayne, again finishing 8-10 from the floor with 19 points. Kostowicz enters this Monday's game with a sparkling .569 percentage from the field - 30th best in the entire NCAA.
 
GOING STREAKING
The Dec. 17 loss to Marquette brought Milwaukee's eight-game win streak to a close. The impressive run finishes tied as the fourth longest in the Division-I history of the program, with only a pair of nine-game runs and the school-record 12-game streak longer than this year's early season start. It also marks the fourth time in the last two-plus seasons the Panthers have put together at least five consecutive wins, with this year's run setting the new mark for the longest under head coach Kyle Rechlicz.
 
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 5-1 at the Klotsche Center this season with a pair of emphatic wins. UWM is now 26-9 in the last two-plus seasons when playing in front of their home fans.
 
In fact, the Panthers just closed out a 10-game home winning streak with the win over Illinois State Dec. 7. That finishes as the fourth-longest home win streak in the team's Division I history.
 
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 three times 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 and a 25-point (84-59) handling of Chicago State Dec. 21.
 
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.
 
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.
 
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 01-02.
 
EARLY HONORS
Still early in conference play, 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.
 
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 Monday's game, Lindner ranks sixth in scoring (1,443 points), eighth in rebounding (686), seventh in double-doubles (16) and tied for fourth in games started (108). Meanwhile, Kostowicz sits at ninth in career scoring (1,382 points), third in rebounding (812), third in blocks (148) and third in double-doubles (28).
 
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.
 
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

Steph Kostowicz

#32 Steph Kostowicz

F
6' 2"
Senior
Jenny Lindner

#20 Jenny Lindner

G
6' 0"
Senior
Jamie Reit

#10 Jamie Reit

G
5' 9"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Steph Kostowicz

#32 Steph Kostowicz

6' 2"
Senior
F
Jenny Lindner

#20 Jenny Lindner

6' 0"
Senior
G
Jamie Reit

#10 Jamie Reit

5' 9"
Sophomore
G