MILWAUKEE, Wis. – Jamie Reit poured in a career-high 31 points as Milwaukee outlasted Parkside 84-77 in the Panthers' season opener. MKE outscored the Rangers 14-7 in the extra period to open the season 1-0.
 
Trailing 72-71 early on in the overtime period, Brandi Bisping knocked down a bucket and Reit followed with a triple as Milwaukee built a four-point advantage.
 
Reit added two more free throws before another Bisping layup had the Panthers up by five. From there, Milwaukee took care of business from the line, going 4-for-4 from the charity stripe down the stretch to seal the victory.
 
"I was really proud of how they stepped up," head coach Kyle Rechlicz commented. "We were resilient down the stretch."
 
In the first half, Parkside could not miss from downtown, hitting 12 of its 21 attempts (57.1 percent) to build and early lead. The Panthers worked the paint, outscoring Parkside 14-4 in the lane and holding a 20-14 rebounding advantage but trading two points for three had Milwaukee in a 43-34 hole at the half.
 
With a layup at the 7:40 mark of the third quarter, the Rangers built their largest lead of the game at 10, but then the Panthers stepped up the pressure.
 
Milwaukee locked down its defense and five different Panthers contributed on the offensive end, going on a 10-0 run to knot it at 48-48 with 4:07 to play.
 
The two traded points back and forth and Reit converted a layup with 29 seconds remaining to pull within one but Parkside's Maddy Harrison responded with a layup for a three-point advantage through three quarters.
 
After a triple from Reit, Sydney Staver converted an and-one to hand Milwaukee its first lead since the first quarter with 7:13 left to play.
 
Later, a Parkside layup tied the game 68-68 before Tadri Heard snuck in a reverse layup for the two-point lead with 1:07 to play. The Rangers responded on the ensuing possession, however, and final attempts were off the mark as the two headed to extra time.
 
Reit played 38 minutes on Wednesday night, netting her career high. The senior finished 9-for-16 from the field and 4-for-6 from three-point range. Additionally, Reit hit nine of 10 free throw attempts and added seven rebounds, four assists, and three steals.
 
"Jamie is capable of being one of the best players in our league," Rechlicz stated. "When she wants to take over, she can take over. There was not a time tonight that I didn't want the ball in her hands."
 
Bisping also cashed in for a career-high, going 7-for-10 from the floor for 17 points. The junior added 10 rebounds as she recorded her second career double-double.
 
"Brandi is starting to score more now, and she is taking on that role very seriously. She is a leader on the court and she's consistent," Rechlicz said.
 
Joining the two in double digits was Staver with 11 points and Sydney Levy with 10.
 
As a team, Milwaukee finished 20-for-25 from the line while Parkside attempted just 10 free throws.
 
"Our team did a great job of communicating in the second half," Rechlicz commented when asked about halftime adjustments. "Our goal as to run them off the three-point line and make them try and score in a variety of ways and I thought we did that well."
 
Milwaukee was 50.9 percent from the field in the win, its highest field goal percentage since a win over Cleveland State on February 15.
 
The Panthers will next hit the road as they take on Purdue. Tipoff from West Lafayette, Indiana is scheduled for 1:00 pm CT. Live video on Big Ten Plus along with the call from Matt Menzl on the Black and Gold Network can be found on MKEPanthers.com.