Markita Barnes
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Panthers Return To Chicago To Play UIC Saturday
Milwaukee faces final regular season road trip outside Wisconsin
Game #26
Milwaukee @ UIC
Saturday, Feb. 23 • 5 p.m.
Chicago, Ill. (UIC Pavilion/8,000)
Radio: WOKY - 920 AM (Scott Warras)
TV: None
uwmpanthers.com: Live Stats, Video, Audio
• Complete Release in PDF Format 
MILWAUKEE, Wis. (Feb. 20, 2007) - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's basketball team leaves the state of Wisconsin for the final time in the regular season Saturday when it returns to Chicago to take on UIC. The Panthers and Flames will tip off at 5 p.m. at the UIC Pavilion.
Panther Bites
Traci Edwards school records with 45 points and 20 free throws made in Milwaukee's last outing ... the Panthers have won their last two games after an 83-78 win at Loyola Thursday ... UWM is averaging 81.5 points per game over its last four games ... UIC has lost four-straight games after a 78-60 loss to Green Bay Thursday ... the Panthers are in second place in the Horizon League standings at 9-5, one half game ahead of Wright State and Cleveland State (8-5).
Next Up
UWM faces just one game next week, hitting the road to face Green Bay. The Phoenix has clinched at least a share of the league's regular season championship.
The File On The Flames
UIC welcomes the Panthers to the UIC Pavilion looking to end a four-game losing streak. The Flames are 4-9 in league play and look to climb out of an eighth-place tie in the league standings. Jessie Miller paces the squad with 13.0 points and 3.1 assists per game. Briana Hinkle has averaged a team-best 13.4 points in league play to push her season figure to 12.0 ppg.
Series History
UIC defeated Milwaukee at the Klotsche Center Jan. 23 to end a six-game winning streak by the Panthers in the series. UWM still leads the all-time series with the Flames, 24-11, including a 10-6 record in Chicago.
First Meeting This Season: UIC 62, UWM 59
The Panthers nearly overcame an 18-point deficit late in the second half, but fell short in losing to the UIC, 62-59, Jan. 23 at the Klotsche Center. Junior Traci Edwards led Milwaukee with 16 points and a season-high 18 rebounds, but it was not enough to overcome a career-high 27 points from UIC's Jessie Miller.
Last Time Out: Milwaukee 83, Loyola 78
Junior Traci Edwards scored a school-record 45 points and both the Panthers and Loyola shot 59.6 percent as UWM scored an 83-78 win over the Ramblers Thursday evening at the Gentile Center. Edwards led Milwaukee on 12-of-14 shooting from the field and a school-record 20 free throws on 22 tries. She also pulled down eight rebounds, including a key board with eight seconds remaining off a missed LUC three-pointer with eight seconds remaining.
Notes From The Loyola Game
The Panthers defeated Loyola for the ninth-straight time and lead the all-time series 28-8 ... UWM is averaging 81.5 points per game over its last four games ... Milwaukee's 12 turnovers were a season-low, trumping the previous low of 14 ... the last time UWM and its opponent each shot at least 50 percent in a game was Jan. 18, 2006 at Northwestern (UWM 55.6%, Northwestern 55.8%) ... Aubri Rote moved to ninth in school history with her 73rd career three.
Injury Update
Senior Meredith Onson is the lone Panther out of the lineup due to injury. She has missed the last nine games with mononucleosis and could return to action as early as next week at Green Bay.
Lordy, Lordy, Look Who Scored Forty (Five)
Traci Edwards went off for 45 points at Loyola Thursday, breaking her own school record of 42 points she set last season. Her point total tied the highest point total in NCAA Division I this season, also held by Andrea Riley of Oklahoma State, and was the third-highest in league history. She did it in an efficient manner, as well, making 12-of-14 shots for the second-best field goal percentage in school history. Edwards also went 20-for-22 from the free throw line, setting a school record for free throws made in a game. Corrin Von Wald had held that mark with 18 made Jan. 19, 2000.
Hot Shots
Milwaukee shot a season-best 59.6 percent from the field at Loyola, including another season best of 64.3 percent in the first half. Loyola found it easier to make than miss, as well, also finishing at 59.6 percent. UWM's field goal percentage was its highest since shooting 60 percent against Central Connecticut State Nov. 19, 2006. Meanwhile, the game marked the first time both the Panthers and their opponent shot at least 50 percent in the same game since Jan. 18, 2006, at Northwestern. Milwaukee shot 55.6 percent from the field in that game and the Wildcats' 55.8 percent.
Well, It's Becoming A Trend
The Panthers have been shooting lights out recently, especially over their last five halves. In fact, over the last 100 minutes of basketball, UWM is shooting 56.9 percent from the field, 48.6 percent from three-point range and 80 percent from the free throw line. The last time Milwaukee put to back back-to-back 50-percent shooting games was March 3-7 of last season. The hot stretch has pushed the team's field goal percentage from 41.2 percent, which it was entering the Feb. 14 game vs. Butler, to 42.5 percent. Also, UWM is averaging 81.5 points per game over the last four to raise its season scoring average to 68.0 points per game, which is second in the league.
Tracking The League Leaders
Traci Edwards is making a push for her second-straight league scoring title and third-straight rebounding crown. While she holds a commanding lead of 2.5 rebounds per game, she has been vying with Cleveland State's Kailey Klein for the scoring lead and currently holds the top spot at 20.1 points per game. Edwards' 45-point ouburst pushed her season average up a full point and extended her advantage over Klein, who is sitting at 19.1 ppg. With one more game played, Edwards maintains a 503-to-455 advantage.
What That Means...
There has been just one player to lead the Horizon League in scoring in back-to-back seasons and that was Loyola's Sheryl Porter back in the 1988-89 and 1989-90 seasons. Meanwhile, there have been two more players to lead the league twice in their careers. Edwards also could be just the third player to lead the circuit in rebounding three-straight times. No player has ever done it four times. Lastly, Edwards' 2006-07 season was just the third in league history that a player finished atop both the scoring and rebounding charts, while she could become the first to do so in back-to-back seasons.
Well, If They're `Free'...
Traci Edwards has been a force in the paint for the Panthers, so much so that opponents are fouling her at a feverish pace. Thanks to her 20-for-22 outburst at Loyola, she is averaging 6.7 free throws made and 8.5 attempts per game. According to Yahoo! Sports, both are second in the nation behind Western Kentucky's Crystal Kelly (8.0-for-9.7). With 168 free throws made, she is well on her way to break her own school record of 175 free throws made in a season she set last year. Also within her sights is the league mark of 179. The trend has been there throughout her career as she has passed Maria Viall's school records for both free throws made (390) and attempted (550) this season. Edwards has now gone 478-for-648 from the free throw line in her career, putting her fourth in league history in free throws made, 64 back of the league mark set by Green Bay's Chari Nordgaard (1996-99).
Then There Was That One Time
Thursday's game was not the only memorable free throw display by Edwards this season. Jan. 19 at Butler, She was a perfect 11-for-11 from the charity stripe, tying a school record for free throw percentage. She also had the second-most free throws made in a game without a miss, tying Corrin Von Wald's effort from the 1999-00 season. Later that season, Von Wald posted the best free throw shooting game, going 18-for-18. Eighteen made free throws is the minimum for inclusion in the NCAA Record Book.
Comfortable Away From Home
The Panthers have shined on the road this season, posting an 8-4 road record with two regular season away contests remaining. Milwaukee has the second-best road record in the league behind Green Bay's 10-3 mark. For some reason, UWM has found comfort with opposing rims, shooting better from the field, three-point range and the free throw line. Most notably, the Panthers are shooting 43.2 percent as a team from the field on the road and 73.3 percent from the free throw line.
Botham's Figures
UWM's Feb. 16 win over Valparaiso was career league victory No. 126 for head coach Sandy Botham. She broke the league record for league wins, which she had held with Kevin Borseth, who coached at Green Bay through last season. She has now led UWM to a 127-55 record in league play in her career. Botham is also looking to get closer to her 200th win as coach of the Panthers. Milwaukee needs to reach 20 wins this season for her to get to the milestone. Botham has a 194-146 career record on the UWM sidelines.
Double Or Nothing
Jan. 10 against Youngstown State, Traci Edwards broke the school record for career double-doubles. Edwards has wasted little time in racking up the double-doubles in her career, tallying 42 in 86 career games thanks to a school-record 15 as a freshman. She is threatening that record this season with a league-best 14 double-doubles in 25 games. As for double-digit rebounding games, she also holds that career mark with 44 and has 15 this season, one back of her own school record of 16 from that freshman campaign.
Team Treys
With an inside-outside game like the one the Panthers feature, there are bound to be three-pointers aplenty. Milwaukee is no exception to that, as it has averaged 7.12 three-pointers per game, good for 15th in the nation. UWM is also knocking down 37.6 percent of its chances, which is 19th in the nation. The Panthers are on pace for 213 threes through one league tournament game, which would better the school-record 202 the team hit last season, and are hovering just below the school record of 37.8 percent set during the 1996-97 season. Seven times the Panthers have hit on 10-or-more three-pointers this season, including in three of the last six games. They have also built up a modest streak of 170-straight games with a three-pointer. While that is far less than halfway to any NCAA records, it is just four off the school record of 173-straight games. Milwaukee could break that figure in the regular season finale March 8.
League Success
The Panthers are looking to continue a strong tradition of success in the Horizon League in 2007-08. Milwaukee has finished second-or-better in the league standings in seven of the last eight seasons and is 101-35 in league games since 1999-2000. UWM has won league titles in 2001 and 2006.
Rookie Starters
For the first time in almost three years, three freshmen were in the starting lineup for Milwaukee at Cleveland State Feb. 7. Maurika Hickman, Lindsay Laur and Jineen Williams started together for the first time this season and were the first trio of freshmen in the same starting five since Feb. 12, 2005, also at CSU. In that game, Elisha Hudson, Meghan Klein and Emily Huss got the start. Hickman, Laur and Williams have now started the last five games, marking the first time in UWM's Division I history that three freshmen have cracked the starting lineup together for multiple games.
Sometimes It's How You Start...
The Panthers have excelled when they have given themselves the early advantage, as evidenced by a 12-4 record when they win the tip off. UWM is also 9-0 when it scores first.
Sometimes... Not So Much
Milwaukee has five wins this season when its opponent gets on the board first (5-11). But, the first possession for the team doesn't seem too crucial. The Panthers are 7-4 when their first possession yields points, while boasting a respectable 7-7 record when not scoring on that possession.
What It Takes To Win
Every team needs things to go right in order to win, but the keys for the Panthers this season have been rebounding and three-point shooting. All 14 of Milwaukee's wins have come in games it has outrebounded its opponent. Overall, the rebounding comparison is staggering, as UWM is outrebounding opponents by 11.4 per game in its 14 wins but concede a 1.2 rebounding edge in 11 losses. From three-point range, Milwaukee is shooting 41.7 percent in wins compared to just 32.4 in losses.
Twenty Times Two
When Maurika Hickman and Lindsay Laur each scored 20 points off the bench Feb. 2, it was historic for a number of reasons. First, it was the first game in UWM's Division I history that two freshmen scored 20 points in the same game. It was also the first where both scorers came off the bench. The last time any two players topped 20 points in the same game for Milwaukee was its 2007-08 season-opener when Traci Edwards tallied 30 points and Aubri Rote added 20. That was the first 30/20 game for the Panthers since Jan. 15, 1998, when Trina Rathke scored 30 and Daryl Schaffeld 20. Lastly, the last time Milwaukee had one 20-point scorer off the bench was Megan Rogers (21) Feb. 17, 2005. The last freshman, before Hickman and Laur, to drop 20 for UWM was Edwards in the 2006 Horizon League title game (24 points).
Big Half When They Needed It Most
In attempting the largest comeback in school history vs. Butler Feb. 14, Milwaukee put together one of its best halves of basketball this season. The Panthers cut a 22-point halftime deficit to one late by shooting 61.3 percent from the field in the second half and making 7-of-11 three-point attempts. UWM used efficient shooting to put 51 points on the board, its second 50-point half of the season. Milwaukee also scored 51 points in a half at Central Connecticut State Dec. 1, when the Panthers shot 60.7 percent from the field and made 8-of-12 second-half three-point attempts in after halftime.
The Comeback Kids Have Come Back
Milwaukee's near comeback against Butler was just the latest surge by the Panthers, who don't seem to know when to quit. UWM has overcome double-digit deficits against Cleveland State twice this season to mixed results. Milwaukee overcame a 13-point first-half deficit, and an eight-point hole at halftime, to defeat the Vikings Jan. 12. Then, Feb. 7 on the road, UWM trailed by 14 in the first half and fought back to take a two-point lead late before falling. The Panthers last overcame a halftime deficit to win in the league quarterfinals against Wright State last season (down five at half). Two games prior to that, the Panthers trailed by 13 at the break, but stormed back to win at UIC. Against the Raiders, Milwaukee trailed 23-4, while the Flames built a lead as high as 18 before the Panthers stormed back to win. The comebacks last season were the second (tied) and fourth-largest comebacks in the team's Division I history. History almost repeated itself Jan. 23, when Milwaukee whittled an 18-point UIC lead to three and had the ball with 10 seconds remaining. The Panthers had six wins last season in games they had trailed at halftime.
Keeping It Going
Traci Edwards was limited to just 18 minutes against Green Bay Feb. 2, scoring five points and pulling down just one rebound. The game ended her streak of 41-straight games scoring in double-figures and set a career-low for rebounds in a game (which had been two in her collegiate debut). She had started the season with a 22-game streak that had already established a school record and scored 30 points in the season opener. The 30-point outing was a school record for points in a season opener and the fourth 30-point outing of her career, another record (she now has six). It was also Edwards' fifth-straight 20-point game dating back to last season, tying a school record she had already shared. While the single-digit scoring game was one of six in 86 career games for Edwards, she followed that up with just eight points at Cleveland State Feb. 7. It was the first time that she failed to reach 10 points in back-to-back games. Overall, she has scored in double figures 79 times in her career, including 20-or-more points 38 times and 30-plus points seven times.
Pacing The Panthers
It's no surprise that Traci Edwards is the focal point of the UWM offense. But, this season, she has stepped up that team-leading production. In 86 career games, Edwards has led the team in scoring 68 times and rebounding 73 times. She has led the team in scoring in 21-of-25 games this season and had a streak of 27-straight games she played in where she led the team in scoring come to an end. She also had a smaller streak of 11-straight games leading in rebounding snapped. The scoring streak was a school record and three times longer than any such streak in the team's Division I history. After that streak ended, Edwards then led the team in scoring in 10-straight games, the second-longest streak in school history. Feb. 2 vs. Green Bay was just the sixth time in her career that she did not lead the team in scoring or rebounding.
500 And Counting
Milwaukee's win at Valparaiso Jan. 17 was the 500th in its program history. The Panthers followed that up with a win at Butler Jan. 19, their 250th win at the Division I level. The program is now 505-429 all-time, including 254-247 since moving to Division I in 1990.
Moving On Up
As just a junior, Traci Edwards is poised to hold a number of school records when her career comes to an end. The parade of records has already started with her previously-mentioned double-double and free throw marks. But, before you can get to No. 1, you have to get to No. 2. Edwards has done that on the school's Division I scoring list. With 22 points Jan. 26 against Loyola, she passed Jessica Wilhite for second behind Maria Viall (1,867) and now has 1,618 points. Previously this season, she surpassed Erica Young (751) for second in Division I rebounding with 841. Edwards trails only Viall in scoring, rebounding (971), double-digit scoring games with 79 (Viall has 98) and 20-point games with 38 (41).
Player Of The Week
Traci Edwards was named the Horizon League Player of the Week Jan. 14. She led UWM to a 2-0 record the previous week by averaging 24.5 points, 9.0 rebounds, 2.5 steals and 2.0 blocks per game. The award was the sixth of her career, one back of Maria Viall's school record of seven honors and three behind Nicole Soulis' (Green Bay) league record of nine.
Home Sweet Home
The Klotsche Center remains a difficult place for visiting teams to succeed. In 11-plus years under Sandy Botham, the Panthers are 103-48 at home. The Panthers went 8-5 at home last season after a school-record 13-3 home campaign in 2005-06. In league play, those numbers are even better as Milwaukee boasts a 72-18 home league mark. The Panthers have won 57 of their last 68 home league games over the last eight seasons and posted three perfect home league years--going 8-0 in 2003-04 and 7-0 in both 1999-00 and 2000-01.
Building For The Future
Milwaukee signed a player to a National Letter of Intent during the early signing period when Amanda Viehauser of Minneapolis, Minn., committed to the Panthers. A varsity player since her eighth-grade year, Viehauser is coming off all-state honorable mention honors in her first year at Armstrong High School. She averaged 12.4 points per game and was named to the all-conference team. Prior to that, she played three years at Minneapolis Washburn High School.
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