MILWAUKEE – Homecoming Saturday concludes with the Milwaukee women's basketball team hosting the Wright State Raiders on Saturday afternoon at the Klotsche Center. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m., with fans in attendance receiving a "Black & Gold In the Cold" themed Homecoming T-Shirt presented by Gruber Law Offices, LLC.
 
Saturday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with Matt Menzl on the air to call all the action, links for the broadcast as well as live stats of the game are available at MKEPanthers.com.
 
THE MATCHUP & GAME LINKS
Saturday, Jan. 31 | Wright State at Milwaukee | Klotsche Center | Milwaukee, Wis. | 2:00 p.m. | ESPN+ / Live Stats | Tickets | Follow Along (on X)

PROMOTIONS & GIVEAWAYS
"Black & Gold In the Cold" Homecoming
Homecoming T-Shirt Giveaway presented by Gruber Law Offices, LLC.
 
QUICK NOTES
» Milwaukee lost its last game on Wednesday evening on the road at Cleveland State by a 66-46 score, and settling for a season series split with the Vikings.
» Jorey Buwalda secured her eighth double-double of the season against CSU on Wednesday, leading Milwaukee in both scoring with 13 points, and rebounding with 12 boards. It's also the eighth time that Buwalda led the team in both categories in a game this season.
» Grace Lomen scored 10 points in the loss, her 10th time scoring in double figures in 2025-26.
» The Panthers welcome Wright State to the Klotsche Center, celebrating their 'Black & Gold in the Cold' Homecoming game against the Raiders.
» Wright State enters the game on a six-game losing streak overall, while also trying to snap a 10-game losing streak in games played away from the Nutter Center in Dayton, Ohio.
» The Raiders lost their most recent game to Green Bay on Thursday at the Kress Center, falling to the Phoenix by a 66-52 score. WSU was led by Grace Okih with 12 points, including eight made free throws, while Ellie Magestro-Kennedy had 10 points in defeat.
» Wright State shot just 28.1 percent on Thursday, a new season low.
» In 71 all-time meetings, Milwaukee trails 37-34. The home team has won each of the last five matchups including a postseason loss by Milwaukee to close the 2023-24 campaign.
» Milwaukee is 18-13 in games played at the Klotsche Center and are 30-32 when games count in the league standings. The teams are 8-8 over their last 16 matchups.
» Excluding the COVID season of 2020-21, this is the second latest a Horizon League season series has ever started between MKE and WSU. The teams met later than Jan. 31 in both the 1999-2000 season and in 1994-95, when members of the Midwestern Collegiate Conference.

QUICK LOOK AT WRIGHT STATE
Wright State, like Milwaukee, enters Saturday's game with nine losses as the Panthers sit a half-game ahead of the Raiders in the Horizon League standings in what will prove to be a pivotal matchup in the Horizon League standings. Wright State has the sixth-best offense in the league at 65.6 points per game, while defensively they're ninth as they allow 71.2 points per contest, the eight-ranked scoring margin in the league at –5.6.

Breezie Williams has led the Raiders this season averaging 11.9 points per game, placing her just outside the top-10 in the league in scoring. Claire Henson is fifth in the league in rebounding at 6.5 boards per game, while the team is ranked ninth in the league at 34.1 rebounds per contest, just ahead of Purdue Fort Wayne. The Raiders are at the bottom of the league in rebounding margin at -7.2 per game.

WSU lives and dies by the three-point shot, ranking third in the league and in the top 75 nationally in three-point attempts this season, while they are also third in the league and in the top 85 in three-point makes per game at 7.3 per contest. The Raiders have had the third easiest schedule in the league, ranking 328th in Division I, but have only gone 6-16 this season, including a 1-11 mark in games not played in the Nutter Center this year.

WRIGHT STATE – PLAYERS TO WATCH
Breezie Williams – 22 GP / 22 GS, 30.2 MPG, 11.9 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 65 AST, 49 STL
Claire Henson – 20 GP / 19 GS, 26.8 MPG, 9.5 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 39 AST, 8 BLK
Lauren Scott – 22 GP / 22 GS, 26.3 MPG, 8.5 PPG, 1.5 RPG, 25 AST, 13 STL
Rylee Sagester – 22 GP / 17 GS, 26.2 MPG, 7.6 PPG, 1.4 RPG, 23 AST, 10 STL

UP NEXT
After Saturday's home game against Wright State, the Panthers play four of their next five games on the road beginning with a road trip to Youngstown State and Robert Morris. Milwaukee will see the Penguins on Feb. 5 at 5:30 p.m. (CT), and the Colonials at 1:00 p.m. (CT) on Feb. 7.

LAST MEETING
It's been over a year since Milwaukee has seen Wright State, with the teams last meeting at the Nutter Center on Jan. 25, 2025, while the Raiders' last visit to Milwaukee came on Jan. 2, 2025. The home team won each of last year's meetings with Milwaukee winning 75-50, before Wright State evened the season series with a 69-61 win later in the season.

In their last meeting, Wright State did just enough in the first, second, and fourth quarters to win by eight. The Raiders shot 39.3 percent in the win, while Milwaukee was held below 33 percent shooting. Milwaukee had six different players connect on a three-pointer including Kacee Baumhower, who led the Panthers with 13 points in her return to Dayton. Payton Rechlicz leads Milwaukee's returners with 11 points, while Jorey Buwalda had nine points and nine rebounds in the loss.

Meanwhile, Wright State got 13 points from Amaya Staton, who also had 12 rebounds for a double-double, with Makiya Miller adding 11 points including six from the free throw line. Among the returners to this year's team, Claire Henson and Lauren Scott each had nine points, while Abbie Riddle scored seven points with six rebounds.

ON THIS DATE
Milwaukee loves to play on the last day of January, boasting an 8-2 record over its Division I history, including wins in its first seven games on Jan. 31 from the inaugural 1990-91 season through the 2008-09 campaign. After a loss to Loyola Chicago in 2012-13, and to Youngstown State in 2014-15, Milwaukee rebounded with a win in 2023-24 at Robert Morris with a 61-43 win at the UPMC Events Center.

Milwaukee has never played Wright State on Jan. 31, and is 1-1 against teams from the State of Ohio, both Youngstown State.

UNLUCKY 13
During the first half of Milwaukee's game at Cleveland State on Jan. 28, the Panthers were only able to muster 13 points. It was tied for the fourth-lowest scoring total in a half in Milwaukee history. The lowest point total for Milwaukee in one half occurred twice with 11 points against Illinois State on Dec. 15, 2009, and Kansas City on Feb. 22, 1992. Milwaukee also scored 12 points in one half against UIC on Feb. 28, 2019.

SEVEN THREES FOR LOMEN
Against Oakland on Jan. 24, Grace Lomen connected on seven three-pointers, and in doing so became just the ninth player in Milwaukee's Division I history to accomplish the feat in an individual game. The last player to do so was Sydney Levy during the 2019-20 season, when she had eight in a home game against Northern Illinois.

Lomen also finished the game 7-of-8 from beyond the arc, which is tied for the fifth-best mark in a single-game, and best for a player with at least seven makes, ending the game with an .875 shooting percentage from range.

LOMEN & GOMES IN THE FOURTH
Grace Lomen had four three-pointers in Milwaukee's fourth quarter against Oakland on Jan. 24, joining Rita Gomes as players to record at least three three-pointers in the fourth this season. Gomes knocked hers down against Northern Kentucky on Jan. 14, UC Davis on Nov. 29, and Butler on Nov. 23.

The last Panther with at least three threes in a single quarter was Jada Donaldson, who hit three in the first quarter at Detroit Mercy on Feb. 13, 2025. The last to do so in the fourth quarter was Angie Cera during Milwaukee's 93–87 overtime win against Wright State on Jan. 26, 2024.

NORTH OF 500
Milwaukee had a season-best .520 field goal percentage in its win over Detroit Mercy on Jan. 22. It was the second time the team has made more than half of their attempts, with the other coming against the Titans in Detroit on Jan. 8.

The Panthers have won their last nine games when shooting above 50 percent, dating back to the 2022-23 season. Their last loss came at the hands of Northern Kentucky on Feb. 12, 2023, when the Panthers ended the game 28-of-54 (.518). The game against the Norse was the third time that month (Feb. 2023) that Milwaukee had a loss when shooting at an above-average percentage.

NORTH OF 550
The Panthers had an efficient showing from beyond the arc on Jan. 22 against Detroit Mercy, finishing the game at 12-of-21 (57.1 percent) from three-point land.

It was the first time that Milwaukee had a three-point percentage better than 55 percent since Feb. 8, 2024, against IUPUI (8-of-14, 57.1 percent), while it was the first time Milwaukee had more than 10 threes with as good of a percentage since a 14-of-24 (58.3 percent) effort at Youngstown State on Feb. 17, 2023.

Milwaukee is 4-0 in their last four games when shooting above 55 percent from three, with its last loss coming at Minnesota on Nov. 14, 2019, when the team went 11-of-20 from deep.

FOUR WINS TO GO
With the Milwaukee win over Detroit Mercy on Jan. 22, head coach Kyle Rechlicz won her 196th game since taking over the program prior to the 2012-13 season.

She is looking to become just the third head coach in program history to reach the 200-win mark, M.A. Kelling has 284 wins as head coach from 1978-95, and Sandy Botham had 245 wins when leading the team from 1996-12.

DOUBLE-DOUBLES FOR BUWALDA
Jorey Buwalda entered her junior season with two career double-doubles and has added eight more in 2025–26, recording them against Loyola Chicago, Valparaiso, Purdue Fort Wayne, Ripon, IU Indy, Cleveland State,and Detroit Mercy twice. Her 17 rebounds against Valparaiso and Ripon marked new career highs.

With double-doubles in three consecutive games from Dec. 10 through Dec. 29, Buwalda became just the 18th player in program history to record double-doubles in three straight contests. The program record is six, set by Avyanna Young from Feb. 21 through Mar. 12, 2014.

TEN FOR THREE
After posting just three games with 10 or more three-pointers in 2023–24, Milwaukee rebounded with eight such performances in 2024–25 and has recorded six more so far in 2025–26. Under Kyle Rechlicz, the Panthers have made at least 10 three-pointers in a game 77 times.

A DOZEN THREES IN CONSECUTIVE GAMES
Milwaukee made 13 three-pointers on Dec. 10 at Purdue Fort Wayne and followed it with 12 more on Dec. 14 against Ripon. It marked the first time the Panthers have made at least a dozen three-pointers in consecutive games since late February 2013, when Milwaukee hit 12 at Valparaiso (Feb. 21) and 12 at Wright State (Feb. 23).

The 25 three-pointers over the two-game span are the most for the Panthers since earlier in the 2012–13 season, when Milwaukee combined for 25 on 11 threes at Toledo (Dec. 8) and 14 more at DePaul (Dec. 11).

QUICK STARTS FROM DISTANCE
In Milwaukee's win over Detroit Mercy on Jan. 8, the Panthers knocked down six three-pointers in the opening quarter, including three by Grace Lomen. It tied the most three-pointers in a quarter this season, a mark first set in the opening quarter at home against Ripon on Dec. 14.

Milwaukee has connected on at least five three-pointers four times this season, all in the first quarter. The Panthers made five triples in the opening frame at Northern Illinois (Nov. 7) and at Purdue Fort Wayne (Dec. 10), while knocking down six in the first quarter against both Ripon (Dec. 14) and Detroit Mercy (Jan. 8).

FOUR STEALS, ONE GAME
Three different Panthers have recorded four-steal performances this season:
• Sophia Rampulla vs. Marquette (Nov. 19)
• Valerie Cassidy-De Falco vs. Pacific (Nov. 28)
• Tierney Madigan vs. UC Davis (Nov. 29)

No Panther has recorded more than four steals in a game since Feb. 19, 2021, when Miquela Santoro tallied six against UIC.

BIG REBOUNDING EFFORTS
In Milwaukee's win over Valparaiso on Nov. 16, Jorey Buwalda grabbed a career-best 17 rebounds, becoming the first Panther with at least 15 boards since Megan Walstad pulled down 16 against Robert Morris on Jan. 20, 2023. Buwalda matched the effort with 17 rebounds again against Ripon on Dec. 14.

On the other side, UC Davis' Megan Norris became the first opposing player to record 15 or more rebounds against Milwaukee since Marquette's Chloe Marotta grabbed 16 on Nov. 13, 2022.

COMEBACK WINS
In Milwaukee's Jan. 4 win over Cleveland State, the Panthers erased a 16-point second-half deficit to earn a 66–58 victory. The 16-point comeback was tied for the fifth-largest deficit overcome in program history, with the record standing at 22 points after Milwaukee rallied from a first-half deficit against Navy on Nov. 30, 1997.

In addition to erasing the 16-point deficit, the Panthers also trailed by 12 points at halftime before coming back to win—tied for the fifth-largest halftime comeback in program history. The program record is 16, set when Milwaukee trailed Kansas City 36–20 on Jan. 30, 1992, before winning 70–64.

Erasing the 12-point halftime deficit and winning by eight represented a 20-point turnaround, again tied for the fifth-largest in program history. The program record is +28, achieved after trailing SIU Edwardsville 39–34 on Nov. 26, 2008, before winning 88–65.

Earlier this season on Nov. 17, Milwaukee erased a 31–29 halftime deficit to defeat Valparaiso, 72–67. It marked the first comeback win of the season and extended a streak of at least one comeback victory every year since 1995–96. The program record for comeback wins in a season is seven (2016–17 and 2019–20).

MIXING & MATCHING
Milwaukee has used 10 different starting lineups through the first 16 games of the season, while 12 of the 13 active players on the roster have made at least one start. Kendall Barnes became the most recent Panther to make her first career start on Dec. 29, 2025, at IU Indy.

TRUE FRESHMAN STARTER IN SEASON OPENER
Against Loyola Chicago, Madison Fitzgibbon became just the 18th true freshman to start a season opener for Milwaukee since joining Division I in 1990–91—and the first since the 2022–23 season.

MAGIC NUMBER
Since 2016–17, Milwaukee is 122–46 (.726) when shooting at least 40 percent from the field. When shooting 43 percent or better, the Panthers improve to 105–26 (.802). When shooting below 40 percent, Milwaukee is 27–107 (.201).

BALANCING THE FIRST AND SECOND HALVES
Last season, Milwaukee shot 39.6 percent (354-of-896) in first halves and 39.3 percent (338-of-862) in second halves. In overtime, the Panthers shot 7-of-30 (23.3 percent).

This season, Milwaukee is shooting 38.8 percent (229-of-590) in first halves, 41.1 percent (258-of-628) in second halves, and 33.3 percent (2-of-6) in overtime.

IN THE PAINT
Since the start of the 2023–24 season, Milwaukee is 26–21 when scoring more than 25 points in the paint and 5–36 when scoring fewer than 25.

KEEPING THE FOULS DOWN
Since 2022–23, Milwaukee is 13–2 when committing 11 or fewer fouls. Conversely, the Panthers are 13–35 when committing 18 or more.

CLOSE GAMES
In 2024–25, Milwaukee went 3–14 in games decided by nine points or fewer. Those three wins came in both home and road victories over IU Indy and a home win over Youngstown State. In 2025–26, the Panthers are 3–5 in games decided by single digits.

ONE-POINT GAMES
With its loss to Western Michigan on Nov. 13, Milwaukee fell to 21–19 all-time in one-point games, including a 12–9 record at home. The Panthers' last one-point win came on Nov. 26, 2022, against Boise State in overtime (55–54). Their last one-point win in regulation—and last at home—was on Jan. 13, 2018, against Youngstown State (62–61).

IN OVERTIME
Last season, Milwaukee set a program record by appearing in four overtime games and now owns a 22–27 all-time record in games extending beyond regulation since joining Division I in 1990–91. The Panthers have played three overtime season openers—defeating Parkside in 2019–20 and falling to Ball State (2021–22) and St. Thomas (2024–25). Milwaukee is 1–0 in overtime so far in 2025–26.