MILWAUKEE, Wis. - The Panthers return to the Klotsche Center where they will host three of the next four games beginning with Purdue Fort Wayne on Friday, January 14. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00 pm. The game can be found on ESPN+ and will also feature live stats and live audio with Matt Menzl on the call on MKEPanthers.com.
 
The Milwaukee Athletic Department recently announced that fans will be allowed at all home events this year. In accordance with current Milwaukee Public Health and CDC recommendations, fans will be required to wear a face covering indoors, regardless of vaccination status.
 
SCOUTING THE MASTODONS
After winning just one game in 2020-21, first-year head coach Maria Marchesano has led her squad to five victories so far this season including a 4-4 record in Horizon League play.  The Mastodons were credited with forfeit wins over IUPUI and Wright State. Most recently, Purdue Fort Wayne ended a seven-game skid with a 62-57 victory over Detroit Mercy. 
 
The Mastodons are led by Sylare Starks, who transferred to the program after two years with Detroit Mercy. Starks is averaging 12.1 points per game and shooting 40.0 percent from the floor.
 
Sisters Riley Ott and Ryin Ott provide a solid punch, averaging 10.6 and 9.1 points per game while junior Shayla Sellers also averages 9.1 points per contest to go with a team-best 2.1 assists per game.
 
Purdue Fort Wayne ranks in the top third of the Horizon League in three-point shooting, checking in fourth with at 33.2 percent from long range. Starks has knocked down 28 triples while Riley ott is 19-for-43 (44.2) from downtown.
 
LAST TIME THEY MET
Behind double-doubles from Brandi Bisping and Megan Walstad, Milwaukee dominated Purdue Fort Wayne on January 9, 2021. The two combined for 27 points and 22 rebounds in the win. The defense was suffocating, holding the Mastodons to just 33 points, second fewest allowed in program history.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Since 2015, Milwaukee has won five straight matchups against Purdue Fort Wayne, holding the opposition to just 46.2 points per game. The Mastodons last earned a win over MKE on December 28, 2014 but have never won in the Klotsche Center.
 
WHATS ON TAP?
Milwaukee next hosts Cleveland State on Sunday, January 16 at 2:00 pm.
 
LAST TIME OUT
Milwaukee led for a majority of the game on Saturday at IUPUI but a late run by the Jaguars handed the Panthers a 63-60 defeat in The Jungle.
 
WALSTAD WORKIN'
Megan Walstad dominated the first half of Saturday's game at IUPUI, going 7-for-10 from the floor with 15 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. The redshirt sophomore finished with her fourth double-double of the season, totaling 20 points and 13 rebounds against the Jaguars.
 
Walstad now has nine 20-point games in her career. When she reaches that plateau, the Panthers are 6-3 overall.
 
Walstad has reached double figures in 10 contests this year, being held to under 10 points on just four occasions. In those four contests, she has finished with seven or fewer field goal attempts in three games.
 
The redshirt sophomore currently ranks eighth in the Horizon League in scoring (13.7 ppg), second in rebounding (9.0 rpg) and third in blocks (1.4).
 
DISHING IT OUT
On Saturday, the Panthers matched a season-high with 17 assists, the third time Milwaukee has reached that mark.
 
MKE is averaging 12.79 assists per game this season which ranks fourth in the Horizon League.
 
The Panthers assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.31 against the Jaguars is the third highest this year. MKE had an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.7 against Wisconsin (17 assists, 10 turnovers) and 1.45 against UIC (16 assists, 11 turnovers).
 
RACKING UP THE REBOUNDS
With six boards on December 30 against Oakland, Megan Walstad eclipsed 500 for her career, becoming the 28th player in program history to reach that milestone.
 
It marks the third straight season a Panthers' player reached 500 with Brandi Bisping accomplishing the feat in 2020-21 and Lizzie Odegard hitting the mark in 2019-20. Bisping finished with 597 for her career while Odegard totaled 578 rebounds.
 
Walstad reached 500 in her 70th game and is averaging 7.2 per contest for her career, which would rank fourth all-time in MKE history.
 
MILESTONE WATCH
In addition to reaching 500 career rebounds, Megan Walstad is just 152 points away from becoming the 22nd player in program history to reach 1,000 career points. Walstad is averaging 11.8 points per game in her three seasons so far.
 
McKaela Schmelzer and Sydney Staver are within reach of the games played record, which is held by Alyssa Fischer from 2015-20 (134). Schmelzer has played in 132 career games while Staver has 121 under her belt.
 
Schemlzer is also four games started away from the program record as well as 56 assists away from first place on the all-time list. The Loves Park, Ill. native has reached at least 95 assists in three of the past four seasons and is averaging 3.1 per game in her career.
 
MAGIC NUMBER
In college basketball, there is no perfect recipe for a win but for Milwaukee, field goal percentage has been a pretty good baseline. In the last five years, when the Panthers hit at least 40 percent of their shots from the floor, MKE is 74-20 (.785). Bump that field goal percentage to 43 percent and MKE is 55-9 (.859) over the last five seasons.
 
When shooting under 40 percent, the Panthers are just 18-45 (.286) in the last five seasons.
 
ARE YOU CERA-IOUS
It was a solid weekend for Angie Cera, who came off the bench and averaged 11.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist, and 1.5 steals per game.
 
On Thursday, Cera set a new career-high with 14 points, going 5-for-12 from the floor. She added a pair of three-pointers and two free throws in the win.
 
Against IUPUI, Cera finished 3-for-5 from the field including 2-for-2 from three-point range for eight points off the bench.
 
CLEANING UP THE OFFENSIVE GLASS
The Panthers added 34 offensive rebounds in two games this past weekend including a season-high 22 against UIC. That marked the most offensive rebounds for Milwaukee since recording 25 at Northern Illinois on November 16, 2016.
 
MKE has reached at least 10 offensive rebounds in 12 of 14 games, averaging 12.5 per game which ranks third in the league. The Panthers' 175 offensive boards are the most among Horizon League opponents.
 
Milwaukee has turned those offensive rebounds into 140 second chance points.
 
SCHMELZER TAKEOVER
Trailing by 14 at the half on December 30 against Oakland, McKaela Schmelzer turned it on after the break.
 
The graduate dominated the third quarter, pouring in 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting on her way to a 16-point second half. Schmelzer finished the game 7-for-14 from the floor and 2-for-6 from three-point range for a team-high 18 points. She added a team-best seven rebounds, three assists, and three steals against the Golden Grizzlies.
 
Schmelzer is averaging career-bests in points per game (8.3) and rebounds per game (4.9) this season while leading the team with 2.5 assists per game. Against league opponents, Schmelzer is putting up 9.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game.
 
CONTINUING THE TREND
Despite struggling at the line over the weekend shooting just 50 percent (7-for-11), Milwaukee is still on pace to shoot at least 80 percent from the stripe for just the second time in program history.
 
MKE is 145-for-180 from the free throw line this season, leading the league and ranking third in the nation with a 80.6 percentage. The Panthers trail only Iowa (85.5 percent) and Iowa State (81.5 percent).
 
Last year, Milwaukee was phenomenal from the line and set a new NCAA Division I record in free throw percentage with a mark of 83.8 percent. That number knocked off Idaho State's 83.2 percent clip in 2008 and also topped the men's record of 82.2 percent which was set by Harvard in 1984.
 
BALANCED SCORING
In the win over Wisconsin, Milwaukee had four players reach double figures for the fourth time this season with Megan Walstad (21 points), Miquela Santoro (19), Emma Wittmershaus (15), and McKaela Schmelzer (13) all scoring at least 10 points.
 
The four games with four in double digits already surpass last season's output.
 
CAREER-NIGHT FOR SCHMELZER
McKaela Schmelzer got out to a hot start against Wright State, totaling eight points and seven rebounds in the first quarter of the Panthers' win over Northern Kentucky. The graduate finished with a career-high 13 rebounds and added 10 points, recording her first career double-double. She also added a team-best five assists.
 
Schmelzer's previous career-best was nine rebounds on two different occasions.
 
The double-double also marked the first of the season for the Panthers.
 
DISPLAYING DISCIPLINE
In the win over Wright State, the Panthers committed just five fouls after averaging nearly 20 per game in the first three contests.
 
It marked the first time the Panthers had less than 10 fouls in a game since November 24, 2018 against UC Riverside. In fact, the Panthers had only eight fouls in two games that season.
 
The five fouls against Wright State are the fewest committed by the Panthers in the last 17 seasons.
 
The two free throws allowed are the fewest since December 21, 2014 when Chicago State finished 1-for-1 from the charity stripe in a 69-47 Panthers' victory.
 
HIGH EXPECTATIONS
Following a 20-win season which led to a trip to the postseason WNIT, the Milwaukee women's basketball team was selected to finish second in the Horizon League Preseason Poll, announced by the league office. MKE totaled 125 poll points, trailing only IUPUI, who was tabbed as the preseason favorite with 11 of 12 first place votes and 139 total poll points.
 
PRESEASON HONORS FOR WALSTAD
Megan Walstad was named to the Preseason All-Horizon League First Team following an impressive campaign in 2020-21. After being sidelined the year prior, Walstad returned to the floor and dominated down low as she collected a First Team All-League award last season. The redshirt sophomore led the team in scoring (12.0 points per game) field goal percentage (50.0) and blocks (50) while ranking second in rebounds (8.7 per game).
 
Additionally, Walstad was one of 25 players to be named to the 2022 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Watch List.
 
CATCH ALL THE ACTION
Thanks to ESPN+, Milwaukee basketball fans will have the opportunity to watch the Panthers all season long. All of Milwaukee's home games will be carried live online at ESPN+. The Horizon League and ESPN have an agreement that includes ESPN hosting the league's digital network on the ESPN+ platform.
 
ESPN+ offers fans thousands of live events, on-demand content, and original programming not available on ESPN's linear TV or digital networks. Fans can subscribe to ESPN+ for just $6.99 a month (or $69.99 per year) and cancel at any time.
 
For road games, visit MKEPanthers.com for live coverage links.
 
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.