MILWAUKEE, Wis. – The Milwaukee women's basketball team is moving on in the Horizon League Tournament after taking care of business on Tuesday with a 73-65 victory over No. 8 Oakland. The Panthers now hit the road to face No. 4 Northern Kentucky with a chance to reach the semifinals for the first time since the 2016-17 season.
 
SCOUTING THE NORSE
Northern Kentucky has been one of the hottest teams in the Horizon League, winning six of the last seven and 10 of the last 12 dating back to January 23.
 
In the Horizon League Tournament First Round, the Norse dismantled No. 9 Detroit Mercy 94-47 with all 11 Northern Kentucky players who appeared score at least one point. 
 
Ally Niece, All-Horizon League Second Team honoree, has been a leader all year for the Norse and leads the team in scoring (12.3 ppg) and total assists (98). Molly Glick joined Niece as a Second Team member after starting all 30 games this season and registering 18 double digit scoring efforts.
 
NKU boasts one of the stiffest defenses in the Horizon League, holding opponents to just 60.3 points which ranks second to just IUPUI.
 
LAST TIME THEY MET
The Panthers had a hard time finding a rhythm offensively, scoring just 37 points in a 61-37 setback at Northern Kentucky on January 30. MKE shot just 16 percent in the second half. Jamie Reit led the way with 11 points for the Panthers.
 
SERIES HISTORY
In 10 all-time contests between NKU and MKE, the teams have split 5-5. The Norse won both games this season and four of the last five between the two. Two of the Panthers five wins have come at BB&T Arena.
 
WHATS ON TAP?
The winner of Thursday's quarterfinals game will advance to the Horizon League Tournament Semifinals on Monday, March 9. The lowest remaining seed will face No. 1 IUPUI while the other will face No. 2 Green Bay. The final four teams will play at Indiana Farmers Coliseum for the right to be crowned Horizon League Tournament Champions.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Down seven heading into the final 10 minutes, the Panthers outscored Oakland 27-12 in the fourth quarter to earn a 73-65 victory in the First Round of the Horizon League Tournament. With the win, the Panthers advance to the quarterfinals to face No. 4 Northern Kentucky on Thursday, March 5 at 6:00 pm CT.
 
STAVER SHINES
Sydney Staver played a major factor in the Panthers First Round victory on Tuesday, scoring a team-high 16 points in just 16 minutes. The junior scored 14 of those points in the second half on 5-for-6 shooting from the floor. In the last four games, Staver is shooting 50 percent from the field and averaging 10.5 points per game.
 
PREVIEWING THE POSTSEASON
The Panthers victory on Tuesday was the team's first Horizon League Tournament win since the 2016-17 season. Milwaukee and Northern Kentucky have never met in the postseason. In Rechlicz's tenure, Milwaukee is 4-7 in the Horizon League Tournament. The Panthers have two Horizon League Tournament Championships in their history with the latest coming in 2005-06.  
 
FOURTH QUARTER FLURRIES
Opposite of an earlier trend this season, the Panthers have shined in the fourth quarter as of late, scoring at least 20 points in five of the last seven final frames. During that seven-game stretch, MKE is averaging 22.4 points in the fourth quarter, shooting 51 percent from the floor, 44.4 percent from three-point range, and 85.5 percent from the charity stripe. The Panthers are outscoring the opposition 157-101 in the last seven games.
           
SENIOR SURGE
Lizzie Odegard has been on another level recently, especially during the Panthers four-game winning streak. Over the last four games, the senior is averaging 14.0 points and 6.5 rebounds per game. A dominant presence in the post (50 FG%) and also a solid outside shooter (41.2 3PT FG%), Odegard is averaging 32.6 minutes played during the streak. When Odegard plays at least 30 minutes this season, Milwaukee is 9-3.
 
ACQUIRING ACCOLADES
Alyssa Fischer and Brandi Bisping each collected a Horizon League honor thanks to their performances this year. Fischer was named to the five-person All-Academic team while Bisping was named to the All-Horizon League Third Team.
 
FLEXIN' IN FEBRUARY
Milwaukee finished 7-1 in February, it's best record since going 8-0 in February of 2006. The Panthers have been especially solid on the offensive end with three players averaging double digits. As a team, Milwaukee put up some solid numbers:

• 44.6 FG%
• 35.5 3PT%
• 81.8 FT%
• 66.4 PPG
• 37.3 RPG (+7.4 margin)
• 14.3 APG
• 7.6 3PT/game

Since the beginning of February, Milwaukee has shot at least 40 percent in seven of nine games.
 
DOUBLE TROUBLE
With 11 points and 10 rebounds against Cleveland State, Jamie Reit became the latest Milwaukee player to record a double-double. Reit's performance marked the second consecutive 11-point, 10-rebound double-double after Brandi Bisping recorded the same numbers in the win over Youngstown State. The Panthers have eight double-doubles this season between Reit, Bisping, and Lizzie Odegard.
 
BISPING BRINGIN' IT
For the season, Brandi Bisping leads the team with 9.6 points per game and ranks second with 6.0 rebounds per contest. Bisping earned her first-career Horizon League Player of the Week award on February 17 after averaging 20.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 2.0 steals in a pair of victories that week. She was also named Horizon League Player of the Week by the College Sports Madness website.
 
REIT ON!
Senior Jamie Reit has been hot at the right time for Milwaukee. In the last nine games, Reit is averaging 10.8 points per game, shooting 48.1 percent from the floor and 43.8 percent from three-point range. The Stanley, Wis. native is also averaging 6.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game during that stretch. When Reit hits at least two three-pointers, the Panthers are 7-2 this season.
 
CONVERTING FROM THE CHARITY STRIPE
The Panthers knocked down 22 free throws in Tuesday's victory, the second most this season. Milwaukee has found success from the free throw line this year and currently ranks third with a 74.6 percentage. The Panthers rank 46th in the nation and are on pace to finish over 70 points better than last year's mark of 66.8 percent.
 
LOCKDOWN D
In the win over Youngstown State, Milwaukee held the Penguins to just six points in the fourth quarter. That marks the stingiest quarter since February 28, 2019 when the Panthers held UIC to just five points in the fourth quarter. On Thursday, Milwaukee held YSU to 2-for-14 shooting including 0-for-4 from three-point range.
 
REDSHIRT RECORD
After logging minutes in every game this season, redshirt senior Alyssa Fischer set a new Milwaukee record for most games played by a Panther in NCAA Division I with 132. Fischer topped Jenny Lindner (2014-18) for all-time games played.
 
POUR ON THE POINTS
The Panthers dominated in their victory over Detroit Mercy, earning a 76-51 win. The 25-point victory is the largest margin since Milwaukee topped Oakland 83-53 on February 23, 2019, a span of 29 games.
 
MAGIC NUMBERS
60: When holding an opponent to less than 60 points, the Panthers are 7-1. When Milwaukee scores at least 60 points, the team holds a 14-3 record this year. When MKE scores less than 60, the Panthers are 1-12.
 
40: When shooting at least 40 percent this season, Milwaukee is 12-2.
 
34: When the Panthers hit at least 34 percent of their three-point attempts, Milwaukee is 9-3.
 
15: When Milwaukee dishes out at least 15 assists, the Panthers are 7-3.
 
10: When the Panthers outrebound their opponents by at least 10, Milwaukee is 6-0 this year.
 
500 CLUB
With over 150 rebounds this year, Lizzie Odegard joined the 500-rebound club for Milwaukee. The redshirt senior became the 26th Panthers player to reach the milestone. Odegard currently leads the Panthers this season with an average of 6.3 rebounds per game.
 
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 nine players averaging at least 10 minutes per game and six players averaging between 6.0 and 9.6 points per game. As a group, the Panthers' bench scored has combined to score 698 points, an average of 24.1 per game.            
 
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.