MILWAUKEE, Wis. - The Milwaukee women's basketball team looks to snap their road game skid with another trip this weekend, taking on Detroit Mercy and Oakland in Michigan. The Panthers swept both season series a year ago and hope to build off that success. A live video stream of Thursday's game will be on ESPN+ while Saturday's contest will be carried on ESPN3. Live stats can be found on MKEPanthers.com.
 
SCOUTING THE TITANS
After opening the season 0-12, Detroit Mercy picked up its first win last weekend, a 70-62 triumph over Horizon League opponent UIC.
 
Fifth-year head coach Bernard Scott has a young roster with just three upperclassmen. Detroit Mercy has eight newcomers for the 2019-20 season including five freshmen and three transfers.
 
Defense has been an issue for the Titans as they rank last in the Horizon League allowing opponents to shoot 45.6 percent from the floor and score 79.4 points per game. Offensively, Detroit Mercy is led by Sylare Starks (9.4ppg) and Markyia McCormick (8.6ppg), both whom have earned Horizon League Freshman of the Week honors.
 
LAST TIME THEY MET
The Panthers opened the game on an 18-0 run and broke a pair of school records in a dominant 59-34 victory on February 21. Milwaukee held the Titans to 20.4 percent shooting for the game and recorded its 125th block of the season, setting a new school record. Megan Walstad scored 12 points while McKaela Schmelzer dished out seven assists.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Milwaukee holds a slight 29-28 all-time series advantage over Detroit Mercy and has won four straight over the Titans. Detroit Mercy dominated the series from 2009-2013, winning eight of 10 games, but Milwaukee has had the edge recently and has won the last four by an average score of 24.3 points.
 
WHATS ON TAP?
Milwaukee closes the road trip at Oakland before returning home for a pair of contests at 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 cut a double-digit deficit down to four points in the final period but a late 10-0 run from Green Bay put the game out of reach. The Phoenix knocked down 57.1 percent of their shots in the final quarter to hold off the Panthers 61-48 on Saturday afternoon.
 
BATTLING ON THE BOARDS
On Saturday, Brandi Bisping pulled in a career-high 16 rebounds. The junior grabbed seven on the offensive end as she reached a double-digit rebounding total for the second time this year. Bisping currently ranks second on the team and 15th in the Horizon League with 5.5 boards per game. Lizzie Odegard added 11 rebounds and leads the team with 6.9 rebounds. Saturday marked the first time in 64 games (December 30, 2017) that Milwaukee had two players reach double digit rebounds.
 
RACK 'EM UP
Lizzie Odegard recorded the third double-double of her career on Saturday, totaling 10 points and 11 rebounds. The senior added three assists and a block against Green Bay. Over the last five games, Odegard has contributed all over the court, averaging 7.0 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.6 assists.
 
LIGHT FROM THE LINE
On Saturday, the two teams combined for just 22 fouls and 12 free throw attempts, both season lows and the least since November 20, 2018 when the Panthers faced off against Fresno State. That game also featured just 12 free throw attempts.
 
A HELPING HAND
Despite missing the first three games of the regular season due to helping the women's soccer team reach the NCAA Tournament, McKaela Schmelzer leads the team with 29 assists this season. Since the beginning of December, Schmelzer is averaging 3.0 assists per game. Against Green Bay, the junior dished out a season-high five assists and added nine points on 3-for-3 shooting from three-point range.
 
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 5.0and 8.5 points per game. As a group, the Panthers' bench scored has combined to score 352 points, an average of 25.1 per game.
 
BACK IN THE MIX
Jamie Reit had played less than 20 minutes in three straight games but is starting to find her groove once again. The senior knocked down three triples against Green Bay and scored 11 points, the most since netting 12 against Northern Illinois on December 5. When Reit scores at least 10 points this year, the Panthers are 2-1.
 
FOURTH QUARTER STRUGGLES
The Panthers have been right in it the last five games, but the shots haven't been falling the fourth quarter. Over the last five games, MKE is shooting just 30.2 percent (23-for-76) from the field and 14.6 percent (6-for-41) from three-point range in the final period. Milwaukee is 1-4 during that stretch with a win over Wright State.
 
HITTING FROM DEEP
The Panthers knocked down 10 three-pointers on Saturday, the third time reaching double digit triples this year. Five different players hit from long range against Green Bay led by McKaela Schmelzer and Jamie Reit, who hit three apiece.
 
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 7, the non-conference teams that Milwaukee faced have an 94-55 overall record and that includes a 2-9 Arkansas Pine Bluff team. Nine of the 11 opponents have a winning record and eight of those schools have won at least nine 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.