DETROIT – In yet another closely contested Horizon League matchup, the Milwaukee women's basketball team fell to the host Detroit Mercy Titans by the score of 50-46 on Thursday evening.
 
Jada Donaldson led Milwaukee with 13 points including a trio of three-point makes, while Anna Lutz was also in double figures with 10 points and seven rebounds. Jorey Buwalda led the Panthers with nine rebounds and added six points.
 
Kacee Baumhower scored eight points and Kamy Peppler added seven. Baumhower led MKE with three assists, while Peppler and Donaldson each had two steals apiece to lead the way.
 
It was a cold night of shooting for the Panthers, connecting on just 27.8 percent of their attempts from the floor, while the team scored just 22.8 percent from three.
 
"We just didn't knock down our shots tonight," said Panther head coach Kyle Rechlicz. "We have to do a better job of that on the road … but we came in and held them to 50 points, it says a lot about where our defense was at tonight."
 
Rebounding was close at 40-38 in favor of Detroit Mercy, while offensive boards were level at 12 aside. The Panthers made more free throws and more three pointers, but it was six more makes overall for the Titans that proved to be the difference. Detroit Mercy finished the game with 21 makes and a 36.2 percent from the field.
 
"This was one of our better defensive performances," Rechlicz added. "We made some great plays on the defensive end, especially at the end of the game."
 
Milwaukee trailed by nine late with 2:52 and cut the lead down to two with 41 seconds left. However, Detroit Mercy sank a pair of free throws to hang on for the win.
 
Donaldson had a hot start for the Panthers with 11 points in the opening 10 minutes including her three-point makes. Peppler knocked down the fifth three pointer of the quarter for Milwaukee at the buzzer to put the Panthers ahead 17-15 after the first.
 
The Panthers scored the first bucket of the second period on a make by Buwalda, which was followed by 12 unanswered by the Titans to take a 27-19 advantage. MKE finished the half on a four-point burst as Lutz hit a jumper, while Grace Lomen scored a falling away make under the basket after an offensive rebound.
 
Down by just four at the break, the Panthers continued an 11-4 offensive run capped by an off-balance layup by Baumhower off a lead pass by Peppler to put Milwaukee ahead, 30-29.
 
Detroit Mercy wrestled the lead back and led by as many as nine at 47-38 with 2:52 left in regulation. Lutz got Milwaukee within two scores with a pair of free throws before Donaldson scored a jumper and Baumhower knocked down two from the line to get the Panthers within a bucket at 48-46.
 
Milwaukee got a defensive rebound off of a Titan miss and had a chance to tie the game with under 10 seconds but committed a turnover to give the home team the ball. The Titans sank two free throws to escape with the four-point win.
 
Detroit Mercy was balanced throughout with all five starters scoring between eight and 11 points, including a game-best 11 by Makayla Jackson. Aaliyah McQueen had a team-best nine rebounds. The Titans had 14 steals on Milwaukee's 22 turnovers.
 
Milwaukee will continue its trip to Michigan on Saturday afternoon, when the Panthers visit the Oakland Golden Grizzlies at the Athletics Center O'Rena with game time set for 1:00 p.m. (CT).