FAST FACTS
» After a loss on Saturday at Youngstown State, Milwaukee returns home to take on IUPUI in search of a season series sweep against the Jaguars. Earlier this season, the Panthers knocked off the Jaguars at The Jungle by a 70-59 score on December 3.
» In their game at the Beeghly Center, senior
Grace Crowley led the Panthers with a career-best 21-point effort while becoming the first Panther in program history to finish a game with a perfect shooting percentage with a minimum of 10 attempts (finished 10-for-10), as MKE fell to YSU by a 73-66 margin.
» IUPUI is 5-16 on the year with a 3-9 mark in Horizon League contests entering play on Thursday having lost four of their last five games including a three-point loss to Purdue Fort Wayne on Saturday, 68-65. Katie Davidson led the Jaguars with 17 points, while Abby Wolterman had a team-best nine rebounds.
» All Panther games will feature live stats and live audio with
Matt Menzl on the Black & Gold Network, while fans can also tune into ESPN+ for a majority of this season's contests, including all home contests. Game coverage and gameday programs for home games can all be found on MKEPanthers.com.
SCOUTING THE JAGUARS
IUPUI has been statistically the weakest defensive team in the Horizon League after allowing an average of 76.6 points per game, while tallying a season-long scoring margin of -11.7, both last among teams in the 11-team Horizon League. IUPUI also enters the week ranked 337th of 348 teams in Division I in team defense, as turnovers have been costly with the Jaguars at a pace of -4.38 turnover margin, which ranks 326th among all Division I programs.
Offensively, IUPUI has been in the middle of the pack with an average of 64.9 points per game, good enough for eighth in the Horizon League. Katie Davidson has been a valuable addition to the Jaguar offense, since joining the team from Miami (Ohio), as she is second in the league in scoring with 18.1 points per game and is also seventh in the league in field goal percentage at 43.8 percent from the field.
Abby Wolterman is also in the top-25 in scoring and is 24th at 9.9 points per game and is also the team's leading rebounder at 5.4 boards per contest. Jaela Johnson leads the team with 24 three-point makes, while she is also tops on the team with 43 assists. Johnson opened the season in the starting lineup and started 11 games but has been a spark off the bench over the most recent 10 games.
IUPUI is 1-4 over their last five and are 3-9 in their last dozen contests dating back to December 15. After the visit to Milwaukee, the Jaguars will head to Green Bay and Northern Kentucky before returning home for their next three against Robert Morris, Cleveland State, and Purdue Fort Wayne.
SERIES HISTORY / LAST MEETING
In 14 all-time meetings, the Panthers have wins in four of the matchups including their most recent meeting in Indianapolis in early December. The win for Milwaukee earlier this season snapped a five-game losing streak against the Jaguars for the Panthers.
Milwaukee has not been able to defend home court advantage as IUPUI owns a 5-0 record at the Klotsche Center, since the program's inaugural meeting on January 26, 2018. During the five games in Milwaukee, the Jaguars have won by an average of 9.6 points per game with their largest margin of victory coming in a 23-point win on January 19, 2020 (75-52), while the closest game at the 'K' between Milwaukee and IUPUI was a one-point Jaguar victory on January 24, 2019 (67-66).
During their meeting in early December, Milwaukee built up a 13-point advantage through three quarters before IUPUI won the fourth quarter by a bucket.
Kendall Nead led MKE with 16 points on 7-of-12 shooting with a team-best seven rebounds.
Anna Lutz had 12 points with six rebounds, while
Angie Cera was also in double figures with 11 points.
Kamy Peppler led the Panthers with six assists, while fellow guard
Jada Donaldson had a pair of steals.
ONE-HUNDRED PERCENT
For the first time in program history a Panther finished a game with a 100.0 percent shooting percent, with a minimum of 10 shots taken as
Grace Crowley went 10-for-10 during the team's game at Youngstown State on February 3.
The previous record for field goal percentage in a game came back on March 3, 2016, when Steph Kostowicz finished 13-for-14 from the floor for a 92.9 percent. Earlier this season,
Anna Lutz made a push for the record as well and finished 11-for-12 at Oakland on January 18. Lutz finished the game with a 91.7 percent from the floor, which now places her third behind Crowley and Kostowicz.
CROWLEY ON A ROLL
Dating back to the 2:16 mark of overtime during the team's win over Wright State on January 26,
Grace Crowley has not missed a field goal. She went 1-for-1 down the stretch vs. the Raiders, followed by a 2-for-2 effort at Robert Morris, and capped off by her 10-for-10 mark versus Youngstown State for a total of 82:15 of game time, and 42:59 of court time for Crowley since her last miss.
UNBLEMISHED AT THE LINE
During the team's game at Youngstown State on February 3, the Panthers went 9-for-9 from the free throw line. It was the first time a Panther team had that many made free throws in a game without a miss since January 15, 2021, against Cleveland State.
DEFENDING THE THREE OF RMU
In its game at Robert Morris on January 31, the Milwaukee defense held Robert Morris without a three-point make through the Colonials' first 18 attempts. RMU made their first three ball with 56 seconds left in the third and finished the game 4-for-26.
For the season, Milwaukee has allowed a total of six three-point makes on 45 attempts for a total of 13.3 percent. Earlier this season, the Panthers held RMU to a season-best 2-of-19 effort as the Colonials shot just 10.5 percent from three at the Klotsche Center on January 11.
The last time Milwaukee held a team scoreless from beyond the arc was against Marquette on December 8, 2021, as the Golden Eagles went 0-for-3 on the game.
ASSIST LEADER
Entering play at Oakland on January 18,
Kamy Peppler had a season-high of eight assists against Mississippi Valley State, and a career-high of nine assists at Northern Kentucky on January 5 of her freshman season. Peppler blew right past both of those marks at the O'Rena, establishing a new career-best mark of 14. Her 14 assists tied the program record for assists in a game that had stood alone since January 17, 1994, when Pam Bartnik also had 14 assists against Marquette during the team's fourth Division I season.
For the season, Peppler is tied for ninth on the single season assists list with 123, which also leads all Horizon League players and already passes her freshman year mark of 100 set a season ago. With her freshman year total, she became the first player with more than 100 assists in a season since McKaela Schmelzer had 114 in 2018-19. She also became the first player to record at least 100 assists in back-to-back seasons since Angela Rodriguez had 168 in 2013-14, following her 114 assists in 2012-13.
The single season assist record for a Panther is Angela Rodriguez, who had 168 during the 2013-14 season. Peppler is also on pace to set the record for assists by a sophomore as Bartnik had 135 during her sophomore year in 1991-92.
CERA'S SHOT IS GETTING HOT
Over the last five games
Angie Cera has returned to her form and is making more than half of her shot attempts. Since the team's game at Oakland on January 18, Cera has made 52.8 percent from the field, while leading the team with 12 three-pointers on 23 attempts for a 52.2 percent clip.
During her hot stretch, Cera had a 5-for-7 performance (71.4 percent) against Detroit Mercy on January 20, and tied her season-best mark with four three pointers on six attempts at home against Wright State on January 26.
LUTZ TURNING IT UP
Over her last 12 games,
Anna Lutz has been averaging a near double-double with a 11.2 point-per-game total to go along with 7.2 rebounds per game. On January 18 at Oakland, the redshirt-sophomore scored a career-high 24 points while converting on 11-of-12 from the floor. Her 91.7 shooting percentage on the blacktop in Rochester was the second-best mark for a Panther in a single game, trailing just Steph Kostowicz, who finished a game 13-for-14 in a game at Oakland on March 3, 2016.
During the same stretch, Lutz has connected on 52.5 percent from the floor, on 53-of-101 shooting, while connecting on 10-of-29 of her three-point attempts. At the line she has also made 18-of-22 attempts, and has 18 assists, five blocks, and 11 steals over her strong stretch.
JOREY JOINING IN ON THE FUN
Jorey Buwalda continues to perform at a high level during her freshman season, including back-to-back selections as Horizon League Freshman of the Week on January 8 and 15, as she has been recognized on three occasions during her rookie campaign.
In just over 170 minutes over the last nine games, Buwalda has been among the team leaders with 31 makes from the field including four from long range. She has shot 56.4 percent from the floor and has gotten to the line 41 times and converted 32 attempts from the stripe (78.0 percent). Buwalda also leads the team in rebounding over the last eight contests with 6.6 per game. She is second on the team with 98 points for an average of 10.9 points per game.
DE-FENSE, DE-FENSE
In their best defensive showing of the season statistically, Milwaukee held Robert Morris to a season-best 27.6 percent from the field on January 31, which was the first time the Panthers held an opponent to under 30.0 percent from the floor since last season's home win against Purdue Fort Wayne on February 23, 2023, when the Mastodons connected on just 24.1 percent.
The Colonials made just 16 of their 48 attempts overall, which is one more make than Viterbo had on December 20. Meanwhile, RMU also struggled from beyond the arc early having missed their first 18 attempts from three before finishing the game 4-for-8 from beyond the arc.
FINDING WINS IN THE PAINT
In the team's win over Robert Morris on January 11, the Panthers got a lot of production from its forwards as
Jorey Buwalda,
Anna Lutz,
Grace Crowley, and
Jada Williams combined for 31 of Milwaukee's 73 points. As a team, the Panthers scored 44 points in the paint against RMU, their second-highest total this season with 64 against Viterbo being its highest mark.
When Milwaukee scores more than 25 points in the paint, the Panthers have a 10-4 record, while the team is 3-7 when scoring fewer than 25 points in the paint. Milwaukee's three wins when scoring fewer than 25 points in the paint came against Eastern Illinois on December 15, Youngstown State on January 13, and Robert Morris on January 31, the team's season low came back in the season opener against Wisconsin with just 16 points in the paint.
AT THE LINE FOR MILWAUKEE
Milwaukee is fourth in the Horizon League and 39th in NCAA Division I this season in free throw percentage, connecting on 76.9 percent from the charity stripe.
The Panthers are led by
Angie Cera, who is 45-for-47 (95.7 percent) on the season, while
Jada Donaldson is 22-for-25,
Grace Crowley is 22-for-25, and
Anna Lutz is 22-for-27.Â
Jorey Buwalda has connected on a team-best 61 free throws on 75 attempts on the year and is also above the team average.
DONALDSON'S ATR
Without eight assists and one turnover against Robert Morris,
Jada Donaldson now has a 2.52 assist/turnover ratio this season and is second in the Horizon League. That number is well above her career average of 2.04 assists to turnovers, with 173 assists and 85 turnovers in 95 career games.
Donaldson is 27th in all of Division I with her 2.52 assist/turnover ratio, as the national leader is Rose Nkumu at Marquette with a 3.58 (111 assists/31 turnovers).
Milwaukee as a team has a 0.98 assist/turnover ratio (399 assists/407 turnovers), which is third-best in the Horizon League and 89th in the nation. Green Bay leads the conference with a 1.66 assist/turnover ratio.
TOPS IN MINUTES
Milwaukee has been able to rely heavily on its veteran leaders to help lead the way with four players averaging 29-plus minutes per game.
Jada Donaldson leads the team at 32.9 minutes per game, followed by
Kamy Peppler at 32.5 minutes per contest.
Kendall Nead is third on the team at 31.0 minutes per contest, while
Angie Cera averages 29.0 minutes per game. All four Panthers are in the top-19 in the Horizon League in minutes per game.
PEPPLER FOR THREE
Through team's first 24 games,
Kamy Peppler is second in the Horizon League with an average of 2.1 three-point field goals per game. Peppler has had two performances with six three-pointers including the team's home opener against UIC, where she also set a new career high in points with 25, while she also had six three-point baskets against McNeese for 22 points. Peppler is 16th in the Horizon League in scoring as she is averaging 11.5 points per game this year.
LAST THREE GAMES VS. SEASON TRENDS
• Points per Game (Trending Up): Last Three: 73.3; Season: 67.8
• Field Goal Percent (Up): Last Three: 47.1; Season: 43.4
• Three-Point FG Defense (Up): Last Three: 25.8; Season: 28.9
• Free Throw Percent (Up): Last Three: 82.2; Season: 76.9
• Rebounds per Game (Up): Last Three: 40.0; Season: 36.7
• Assists per Game (Up): Last Three: 20.3; Season: 16.6
•
Jada Donaldson Points per Game (Up): Last Three: 11.0; Season: 6.3
•
Angie Cera FG Percent (Up): Last Three: 52.4; Season: 40.9
•
Grace Crowley FG Percent (Up): Last Three: 82.6; Season: 71.2
•
Kamy Peppler Assists per Game (Up): Last Three: 5.7 Season: 5.1
• Points Allowed per Game (Down): Last Three: 67.7; Last Three: 62.2
• Turnover Margin (Down): Last Three: -7.3; Season: -1.7
• Steals per Game (Down): Last Three: 4.7; Season: 6.5
OFFENSIVE BOARDS TURNING INTO POINTS
The Panthers recorded double-digit offensive rebounds in nine of their last 18 contests in 2022-23 and made the most of their chances. In that span during 2022-23 Milwaukee totaled 161 second-chance points.
The Panthers got off to a start just as well this season, with double-digit offensive boards in 14 of their first 24 games including a season-best 20 against Viterbo on December 20. Milwaukee has scored 261 second chance points this year, including a season-high 22 second-chance points against Viterbo, the Panthers also had 21 second-chance points at Youngstown State on February 3.
This season Milwaukee has earned more second-chance points than their opponents in 14 of their 24 matchups during the 2023-24 season.
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 eight seasons, Milwaukee is 105-36 (.745) when hitting at least 40 percent from the field. Bump that field goal percentage to 43 percent and the Panthers are 90-19 (.826).
When shooting under 40 percent since 2016-17, Milwaukee is just 26-74 (.260). The Panthers are 1-6 in contests this season, when shooting under 40 percent.
KEEPING THE FOULS DOWN
Over the past two seasons, when Milwaukee has committed 11 fouls or fewer, the Panthers are 10-1. On the contrary, the Panthers are 5-15 when they have committed 18 or more fouls in a contest.
CRASHING THE GLASS
In the January 26 overtime matchup at home against Wright State, the Panthers had a season-best 49 rebounds, eclipsing its previous mark of 48 rebounds on the road against the Raiders earlier in the month at the Nutter Center on January 5.
The last time Milwaukee had at least 49 rebounds in a single game came last season when MKE ripped down 56 boards in overtime win against Boise State. The last time the Panthers had at least 48 rebounds in a regulation game was on December 2, 2021, in a loss at Youngstown State at the Beeghly Center, while the last time Milwaukee won a regulation game with at least 48 rebounds was on March 19, 2021, with 51 rebounds against Drake in the WNIT.
A HELPING HAND
With 27 assists during the team's win over McNeese, Milwaukee had the most assists in a single game since the team recorded its program record of 31 set back in December 2012 against Bradley in double overtime. The Panthers nearly tied their mark on January 26, with a 26-assist effort in overtime against Wright State at the Klotsche Center.
The last time Milwaukee had at least 27 assists in a regulation game came back in 2000, when the Panthers had 28 against Central Michigan in December of that year. The team also had 28 assists against Chicago State in January of 2000, while the only other time Milwaukee had 27 assists in a game came back in January of 1991, during its inaugural Division I season against Northeastern Illinois.
GRACE'S TIME IN OVERTIME
During the team's overtime victory over the Wright State Raiders on January 26,
Grace Crowley scored seven of Milwaukee's 14 points in the extra session while pulling down four rebounds. Her totals in overtime gave Crowley her first-career double-double finishing the game with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
A PAIR OF 20s
For the second time this season, Milwaukee had two players record 20 points in the same game as
Jada Donaldson had a career-best 20 points, while
Anna Lutz had 20 of her own in the team's win over Wright State on January 26.
Milwaukee also had a pair of 20-point games back in November, when
Kendall Nead had 38 and
Kamy Peppler added 22 in the team's win over McNeese.
OVERTIME HISTORY
Milwaukee picked up the win in overtime on January 26 by a 93-87 margin over Wright State at the Klotsche Center, marking the first Panther appearance in overtime since November 27, 2023, against Boise State. The Panthers are 21-23 in all-time overtime contests and are 9-6 in their last 15 games that have gone to over-time.
The Panthers have only gone to double overtime on 10 occasions in program history, most recently in January of 2021 at IUPUI in an 85-83 win.
KAMY IN KENTUCKY
Kamy Peppler helped Milwaukee snap its five-game losing skid at Northern Kentucky on Sunday afternoon, with a 24-point effort to help the Panthers to a 75-67 victory at Truist Arena.
In two career games when playing at Northern Kentucky, Peppler has shot 14-of-30 (46.7 percent) from the floor, while also connecting on half of her attempts from three (6-of-12). She has scored 40 total points on the road against NKU, while also securing a career-best seven rebounds at NKU in early January 2023.
DOUBLE-FIGURE STREAK
Reaching double figures in scoring for the first 14 games of the season,
Kendall Nead put together the longest run of double-digit scoring performances since former teammate
Megan Walstad had a stretch of 14 games during the 2021-22 season from January 8 to February 24.
Nead scored at least 10 points through the team's first 14 games, which had not been done to open a season since 2017-18 when Steph Kostowicz also opened the year with 14 consecutive games in double-figure scoring. Nead had her streak snapped against Cleveland State on January 1.
HISTORIC NIGHT VERSUS THE V-HAWKS
Milwaukee blitzed the Viterbo V-Hawks on December 20, recording a 100-37 victory in its non-conference finale at the Klotsche Center. The 63-point scoring margin was the largest margin of victory for the team in Division I program history, with the previous mark coming on February 2, 2002, against Youngstown State, when the Panthers won by a 100-46 score.
The 100-point mark for Milwaukee was the first time the Panthers had reached the century mark in a regulation contest since the dual with Youngstown State at home in 2002. In the showing against the Penguins, Milwaukee connected on a then program record of 14 three-pointers, while this time around against the V-Hawks the Panthers only had six three-pointers, while making 39-of-69 from the field overall.
The 39 field goals tied the program record of makes in a regulation contest, set back in the team's inaugural Division I season, when the team also made 39 against Northeastern Illinois on January 22, 1991. The overall program record is 46, during a double-overtime matchup against Bradley on December 4, 2012.
The defense stood up against the Viterbo offense, yielding just 37 points the fewest since the February 23, 2023, matchup at home against Purdue Fort Wayne that saw Milwaukee win by a 64-34 score. In that game, Milwaukee held the Mastodons to just 11 points in the first half to set a new program record, the Panthers nearly tied that mark as MKE allowed just 12 first-half points to Viterbo on December 20.
SWEET 17
For the first time in a regulation game, the Milwaukee Panthers connected on 17 three-pointers in a single game during the team's win over Central Michigan on November 25. It was the first time the Panthers had 17 in a single contest since December 4, 2012, when the team also had 17 in a double-overtime matchup against Bradley.
Milwaukee's previous mark for three-pointers in a regulation game was 16 on November 18, 2014, at North Dakota, while it was Milwaukee's most three-pointers in a home game in regulation since December 31, 2010, against Wright State with 15. Under
Kyle Rechlicz, the team's most three-pointers in a home regulation game was 14 against Cleveland State on February 11, 2017.
20/20 VISION
Milwaukee had its leading scorer score at least 20 points during the team's six-game stretch from November 12-25, including
Kamy Peppler against UIC (25),
Kendall Nead against Louisiana Monroe (21), and McNeese (38),
Jorey Buwalda against Mississippi Valley (20), Nead again against Edgewood (20), and
Anna Lutz versus Central Michigan (23).
It's the first time Milwaukee has had a leading scorer reach at least 20 points over a six-game stretch since the 2015-16 season, when Milwaukee had it happen in eight consecutive games. From mid-February to early March, Jenny Lindner had 23 points for Milwaukee versus Youngstown State, followed by Steph Kostowicz against Valparaiso (27), and UIC (24), Sierra Ford-Washington led Milwaukee against Northern Kentucky (24), and Wright State (26), followed by Lindner and Kostowicz with 32 each against Oakland, Lindner against Detroit Mercy (20), in postseason play against Wright State (31).
NEAD'S NIGHT IN LOUISIANA
During the team's win against host McNeese at the Multi-Team Event in Lake Charles, Louisiana, junior
Kendall Nead scored 38 points for a career-best, while also becoming just the third difference Panther to score at least 38 points in a game. All-Time leading scorer Traci Edwards reached 38 twice in her career, including the program record of 45 in February 2008, Edwards also scored 42 points in January 2007. Andrea Filipek in January 1999 was the only other Panther to reach 38+ points in a game.
Nead connected on 17 field goals against McNeese as she tied the single-game record for field goals made in a game. She finished the game 17-for-23 from the field with three of those coming from three-point range including her final two makes with 7:32 and 7:03 left in the fourth quarter. Traci Edwards held the top spot alone since January of 2007 as the only player to score 17 field goals in a game prior to Nead.
Nead's 23 attempts were also the third-most in a game, while her shooting percentage was also third-best among the now five players all time to score at least 14 field goals in a game. Avyanna Young shot 15-for-19 (78.9%), while Maria Viall was 14-for-18 (77.7%), Nead slots into third at 73.9%, followed by Jenny Lindner at 14-for-24 (58.3%), and Traci Edwards at 17-for-33 (53.5%). No player in Milwaukee history has ever ended a game with 16 field goals made.
SPANNING THE REGION…AND THE GLOBE
This season Milwaukee has eight student-athletes from the state of Wisconsin, while the team has two players from both Illinois and Iowa, with one student-athlete hailing from Ohio.
In addition to the 13 Panthers from the United States, Milwaukee will be represented by three international students as returner
Lior Halevi (Israel) is joined by
Vanessa Jurewicz (Sweden), and
Izzy Pugh (New Zealand).
This will be the first time in Milwaukee Division I history, that the Panthers have more than one international student-athletes on its roster for any season.
PRESEASON POLL
Milwaukee was selected to finish sixth in the 2023-24 preseason poll as announced by the Horizon League in mid-October. The Panthers received 59 points and were just four points out of the top-five.
WHAT'S ON TAP?
After Thursday's game at home against IUPUI, the Panthers welcome in the Northern Kentucky Norse on Saturday afternoon at 2:00 p.m., the Panthers will welcome all generations of women's basketball players for Alumni Day, while also celebrating National Girls and Women in Sports Day. After the pair at the Klotsche Center, Milwaukee will head back on the road for its final two-game road trip beginning at Purdue Fort Wayne on February 15
CATCH ALL THE ACTION
Matt Menzl returns for his eighth year as the play-by-play voice of the Panthers on the Black and Gold Network. Links for audio along with any TV coverage can be found on MKEPanthers.com. The Milwaukee women's basketball X account (@MKE_WBB) will also have live updates throughout the game.
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 $9.99 a month (or $99.99 per year) and cancel at any time.
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