INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Unable to find rhythm offensively, the Milwaukee women's basketball team fell to IUPUI 56-46 in the Horizon League Tournament Semifinals on Monday.
 
"I'm proud of our team. I couldn't be more proud, actually," head coach Kyle Rechlicz commented. "I know we came up short but everything we did, the tenacity they played with, the energy, from top to bottom, everybody gave everything they had."
 
The shooting struggles started early for Milwaukee (19-7), who finished the first quarter 3-for-13 (25 percent) from the floor including 1-for-8 from three-point range as the Jaguars took an early advantage.
 
IUPUI (15-4) extended its lead to 11 on its first possession of the second quarter but the Panthers were not ready to bow out just yet as Bre Cera and Emma Wittmershaus each hit a jumper and Brandi Bisping followed with a triple to cut the MKE deficit to 19-14.
 
The Panthers' defense was solid in the second, holding the Jaguars to just 23.1 percent shooting from the field but IUPUI hit two of those shots late and increased its lead to 24-14 at the half.
 
Milwaukee saw its first trip to the free throw line with 7:07 to play in the third quarter, but IUPUI had an answer for everything, keeping their distance.
 
To open the fourth, Milwaukee began to get some shots to fall on the offensive end as Wittmershaus, Miquela Santoro, and McKaela Schmelzer scored on consecutive possessions.
 
That run trimmed the lead to nine but IUPUI's Macee Williams responded, scoring six straight Jaguars' points to power their offense.
 
Milwaukee again had the lead down to single digits, but with under a minute to play, the Panthers ran out of time as IUPUI took care of the ball and hit its free throws down the stretch.
 
Bisping recorded her 10th career double-double, totaling a team-high 12 points and 11 rebounds. Wittmershaus also reached double figures, finishing with 10 points.
 
Schmelzer stuffed the stat sheet, recording six point, five rebounds, four assists, and three steals for the Panthers.
 
As a team, Milwaukee reached the foul line only seven times, which matched a season-low.
 
The Panthers 19 wins are the most since totaling 21 in 2017-18. Milwaukee also claimed its first regular Horizon League title since 2005-06.