MILWAUKEE, Wis. – The Milwaukee women's basketball team travels southeast for the second straight weekend, opening up the second half of the Horizon League schedule with Northern Kentucky on Thursday, January 30 before taking on Wright State on February 1.
 
SCOUTING THE NORSE
Northern Kentucky has won three of its last four games to move to 5-4 in Horizon League play and 11-9 overall.
 
Led by Molly Glick (12.3 points per game) and Ally Niece (11.6 points per game), the Norse average 64.0 points per game. NKU is strong on the boards and ranks second in the Horizon League with 11.6 offensive rebounds per game.
 
In league action, Taylor Clos has been a major factor off the bench for NKU, averaging a team-best 11.1 points per game while shooting 35.7 percent from long range.
 
As a team, the Norse are shooting just 26.5 percent from three-point range in Horizon League play. NKU averages 21 three-point attempts per game in the nine contests.
 
LAST TIME THEY MET
The Panthers struggled in the fourth quarter, shooting just 20 percent (3-for-15) from the floor as they fell to Northern Kentucky 61-49 earlier this year. Bre Cera led the Panthers with 13 points in addition to three rebounds and three steals.
 
SERIES HISTORY
The two teams have met just nine times with Milwaukee earning five victories. The Panthers won the first three matchups but Northern Kentucky has won three of the last four. MKE and NKU have split four games in Highland Heights.
 
WHATS ON TAP?
Following this weekend's road trip, Milwaukee returns home to the Klotsche Center where it hosts five of its final seven games. The Panthers have just one final road weekend remaining, taking on IUPUI and UIC on February 21-23.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Sydney Staver poured in a career-high 19 points to help the Milwaukee women's basketball team ice Youngstown State 74-62 at the Beeghly Center. After the Penguins erased an early deficit to tie it in the third quarter, the Panthers responded and finished 10-for-12 from the free throw line in the final period to close the win.
 
SENSATIONAL STAVER
Sydney Staver was terrific for the Panthers in their win over Youngstown State, setting new career-highs in points (19) and rebounds (6) while adding season-highs in assists (3) and steals (2). The junior has led Milwaukee in scoring in three straight contests. In the last four games, Staver is averaging 11.8 points on 43.2 percent shooting from the floor. When Staver scores at least 10 points, Milwaukee is 4-2 this year.
 
LEVY OFF THE BENCH
Sydney Levy has been huge off the bench for Milwaukee this year. In eight games as a reserve, Levy is averaging 8.8 points per game while hitting 48.6 percent of her three-point attempts. In the win at Youngstown State, Levy finished +24 with five points, four rebounds, and three assists.
 
CLEANING UP THE GLASS
Milwaukee has outrebounded its opponent six of the last seven games, recording a positive margin of 7.3 during that stretch. The Panthers currently rank third in the Horizon League with a rebounding margin of 2.5. Milwaukee has four games with a positive rebounding margin of more than 10, earning victories in each.
 
BANKING ON BISPING
Brandi Bisping is on her way to posting a career-best year, leading the team with 9.1 points per game and ranking second with 5.8 boards per contest. In the win over Youngstown State, Bisping finished 9-for-10 from the free throw line, matching the best output from a Panther this year. Bisping leads the Horizon League and ranks 13th in the nation with a free throw percentage of 88.4 (61-for-69). Additionally, Bisping has already set new season-highs for assists (22) and steals (18).
 
CONVERTING FROM THE CHARITY STRIPE
In Sunday's win at YSU, Milwaukee knocked down 21 free throws in 26 attempts, the second most this year for the Panthers. Over the last seven games, Milwaukee is 78-for-104 (75.0 percent) from the free throw line, which would put them third in the Horizon League. The Panthers are shooting 72.4 percent from the line this season, nearly 60 points better than last year's mark of 66.8 percent.
 
MAGIC NUMBERS
60: When holding an opponent to less than 60 points, the Panthers are 4-1. When Milwaukee scores at least 60 points, the team holds a 7-3 record this year. When MKE scores less than 60, the Panthers are 0-10.
 
41: When Milwaukee pulls in at least 41 rebounds, the Panthers are 5-3. MKE's only wins outside of that was when they recorded 28 rebounds in win over Wright State and 38 rebounds in a win at YSU.
 
40: When shooting at least 40 percent this season, Milwaukee is 5-2. On the other side of the ball, the Panthers are 2-10 when the opponent shoots at least 40 percent.
 
PRODUCING IN THE PAINT
On January 4 at Green Bay, Milwaukee was held to two points in the paint. Since that game, the Panthers have had at least 24 points in the paint in six straight games, averaging 27.3 per game. Over the last six contests, 44.2 percent of the Panthers' points have been in the paint.
 
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 six players averaging between 5.9 and 9.1 points per game. As a group, the Panthers' bench scored has combined to score 486 points, an average of 25.6 per game.           
 
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 28, the non-conference teams that Milwaukee faced have an 120-91 overall record. Seven of the 11 opponents have a winning record and eight of those schools have won at least 10 games so far this year.
 
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.