MILWAUKEE, Wis. - The Milwaukee women's basketball team began the Horizon League schedule 1-1 with a highlight win over defending champions Wright State on opening weekend. The Panthers wrapped up the longest home stretch in over 35 years and now return to the road, traveling to Green Bay on Saturday.
 
SCOUTING THE PHOENIX
Green Bay is off to an uncharacteristic start this season, holding a 6-8 overall record and a Horizon League mark of 1-1. The Phoenix have recorded highlight victories over No. 18 Syracuse and Mizzou but have lost five of their last six games.
 
In his 17th season for Green Bay, Kevin Borseth has led the Phoenix to 15 straight 20-win seasons and 15 league titles.  
 
Green Bay is an experience squad with seven upperclassmen including a trio of seniors in Mackenzie Wolf, Madison Wolf, and Frankie Wurtz. Wurtz leads the team with 15.6 points per game which ranks fourth in the Horizon League. The senior also leads the league in three-pointers made (36) and attempted (94). As a team, the Phoenix lead the Horizon League in multiple categories including assists, assist to turnover ratio, and free throws made.
 
LAST TIME THEY MET
The Panthers scored 22 points in the fourth quarter but fell 59-45 at the Kress Center in Green Bay. Ryaen Johnson recorded a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds while Jamie Reit tallied eight points and five assists.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Green Bay has had Milwaukee's number, winning 13 of the last 14 matchups. Overall, the Phoenix hold a 51-12 record over the Panthers. Milwaukee's last victory over Green Bay was February 17, 2017 while the last Panthers' win in the Kress Center was January 11, 2014.
 
WHATS ON TAP?
Milwaukee heads to Michigan for a pair of Horizon League contests on January 9 and 11 before returning home to the Klotsche Center. The Panthers will host UIC on January 17 at 11:00 am for the annual School Day game, sponsored by Prairie Farms.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Milwaukee pushed late but couldn't get the shots to fall in the fourth quarter, dropping a 61-49 decision to Northern Kentucky at the Klotsche Center. The Panthers finished just 3-for-15 from the floor and were outscored 17-9 in the final 10 minutes in the loss.
 
STUFFING THE STAT SHEET
Redshirt junior Bre Cera contributed all over the court on Monday in her 29 minutes of action. Cera led the team with 13 points, her third game in double digits this year, and added three rebounds, an assist, and a season-high three steals. 
 
A BALANCED ATTACK
Milwaukee has had a few individual performances that stood out among the rest but for the most part, the Panthers bring a balanced attack.
 
Head Coach Kyle Rechlicz has 10 players averaging at least 10 minutes per game and seven players averaging between 5.5 and 8.5 points per game. As a group, the Panthers' bench scored has combined to score 334 points, an average of 25.7 per game.
 
CUTTING DOWN ON MISCUES
Over the first six games of the season, Milwaukee was nearly last in the NCAA with an average of 25.2 turnovers per game.  The Panthers have better at taking care of the rock over the last seven games, averaging about 16 turnovers per game, which would place them sixth in the Horizon League. Milwaukee has had less than 20 turnovers in four straight games.
 
LONG RANGE LEVY
Sydney Levy has been the top deep threat for Milwaukee this year, hitting a team-best 30 three-pointers. The sophomore poured eight three pointers against Northern Illinois and six against Wright State, the two top numbers in the Horizon League. Levy has at least one three-pointer in 12 of 13 games this season. Nearly 80 percent of her field goal attempts are from beyond the arc.
 
FOURTH QUARTER STRUGGLES
The Panthers have been right in it the last four games, but the shots haven't been falling the fourth quarter. Over the last four games, MKE is shooting just 28.5 percent (18-for-63) from the field and 9.0 percent (3-for-33) from three-point range in the final period. Milwaukee is 1-3 during that stretch with a win over Wright State.
 
NON-CONFERENCE RECAP
The Panthers closed their non-conference schedule on December 21 and what their record doesn't show is the strength of that schedule. As of January 2, the non-conference teams that Milwaukee faced have an 85-50 overall record and that includes a 1-9 Arkansas Pine Bluff team. Eight of the 11 opponents have a winning record and eight of those schools have won at least seven games so far this year.
 
FLUCTUATING FREE THROWS
The Panthers have been up and down at the line this year with four performances of 60 percent or lower and seven games hitting at least 75 percent of its attempts. As a team, Milwaukee is 70.6 percent from the charity stripe, which is fifth in the Horizon League.
 
Individually, Brandi Bisping leads Milwaukee with a free throw percentage of 85.1, which ranks second in the league.  The junior is 40-for-47 from the charity stripe this season.
 
CATCH ALL THE ACTION
Fans will have the opportunity to watch the Panthers all season long. All 15 of Milwaukee's home games will be carried live online at ESPN3/ESPN+. The three road Big Ten games can be found on the BIG10 Network while other road games will also stream live through ESPN.
 
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 29 regular season contests, as well as all postseason action. The Black & Gold Network is streaming live online and can be accessed at MKEPanthers.com.
 
BLACK & GOLD ON DEMAND
Panther fans can also re-live all of the action by listening to archived games on the Black & Gold Radio Network. All games are chronicled at mixlr.com/milwaukee-panthers/showreel where fans can re-live Matt Menzl's broadcast in its entirety.