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Feb. 6, 2004

MILWAUKEE - The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee will look to bounce back from its first Horizon League loss of the season and maintain its hold on first place in the Horizon League when it hosts second-place Wright State at the U.S. Cellular Arena.

The game, which will be televised by Fox Sports North, tips off at 1 p.m. CST Saturday.

The Panthers (15-6, 10-1) fell 86-82 at UIC last night but remain one game of Wright State (12-9, 9-2) in the Horizon League. The Panthers beat the Raiders, 68-53, in Dayton 10 days ago.

Tickets for the game are available at all Ticket Master outlets, by phone at 414-276-4545 or online at ticketmaster.com. Seats in the 300 and 400 levels of the U.S. Cellular Arena are available on a 2-for-1 basis.

* Last Time Out

UWM led by 10 points midway through the second half but UIC responded with a 26-5 run over the next eight minutes en route to an 86-82 win over the Panthers Thursday night at the UIC Pavilion. UWM head coach Bruce Pearl was ejected late in the first half and the Panthers trailed 34-32 at the break, but they exploded out of the gates in the second half and led 60-50 with 10:30 to play. But, UIC took off from there, eventually grabbing a 76-65 edge with 2:30 left. UWM rallied to within three points in the late going, but could never regain the lead. Dylan Page led the Panthers with 31 points.

* Streak Stopper

Thursday's loss at UIC snapped a season-high nine-game winning streak for the Panthers. The streak was the second-longest streak in the school's Division I history and the longest under Bruce Pearl. Last year, UWM posted a pair of eight-game streaks, one of which consisted entirely of league games. The longest winning streak in the school's Division I history is still a 10-game spell in 1992-93. UWM has posted winning streaks of five games or more three other times under Bruce Pearl in his two-plus season as the Panthers' coach. UWM has had league winning streaks of nine, eight and five games under Pearl while, prior to Pearl's arrival at UWM, the Panthers never won more than three-straight league games.

* Starting The League Strong

UWM's 10-0 start in the Horizon League was the best in school history. UWM's best start previously was a 3-0 beginning to last season. The Panthers enter play Saturday with a one-game lead on Wright State and a two-game lead on UW-Green Bay for the top spot in the Horizon League.

* Winning On The Horizon

The Panthers have found plenty of success in league play over the past two-plus seasons, already adding 10 wins this year to the 13 wins last year and the 11 wins in the league the year before. Bruce Pearl has a 34-9 record in regular-season Horizon League contests in his two-plus years as the head coach at UWM - the best mark of any school in that time span and the best mark by a head coach in his first three seasons in the Horizon League.

* The Home Stretch

After spending much of the first three months of the season on the road, UWM will enjoy some home cooking over the final three weeks of the season, playing four of its final six games at home. Saturday's game starts a two-game homestand, the second-longest stretch of home games for the Panthers this season. UWM played three-straight home games to start the season. The Panthers are also home Feb. 12, 21 and 28.

* Bring It On Downtown!

Saturday's contest is the seventh of nine regular season games the Panthers will be playing at the U.S. Cellular Arena in downtown Milwaukee as part of a four-year agreement with the Wisconsin Center District. Plans call for UWM to play its entire schedule at the renovated downtown complex during the following three seasons. UWM has had success at the Arena of late, going 7-1 in its last eight games. Saturday will be just the seventh regular season contest at the Arena for UWM since 1998. The Panthers played most of their home games at the Arena starting with the 1992-93 season through the 1997-98 season, capping that stay with a 75-65 loss to Wright State on Feb. 21, 1998. UWM's first-ever appearance as the home team at the Arena came vs. Texas-El Paso on Dec. 13, 1971. UWM has played 113 games as the home team at the Arena, compiling a 60-53 record.

* But We Haven't Been Here Often

Last Saturday night was UWM's first appearance at home since Jan. 15 and its first appearance at the U.S. Cellular Arena since Jan. 8. But, the Panthers' home stay was short-lived with the road trip to UIC Thursday. In fact, UWM has played just five home games since Nov. 29. UWM is 7-1 at home this season and 21-2 in Horizon League home games under Bruce Pearl.

* Big Night For Dylan

Senior Dylan Page exploded for 31 points Thursday night in the loss to UIC. It was the second-highest point total of the season for the Horizon League's leading scorer and the third 30-plus point performance for Page in his career. Page continues to lead the Horizon League in scoring and stands 23rd nationally.

* Loving The Windy City

Thursday night's outburst marked the second time Dylan Page has put up big offensive numbers in a game in Chicago. Earlier this season, Page dropped 35 on Loyola at the Gentile Center. Entering the season, Page's career-high was a 32-point effort against Loyola.

* Double Trouble

Sophomore Adrian Tigert recorded his second double-double of the season Thursday, collecting 14 rebounds to go with his 13 points. The 14 rebounds were also a career high. Tigert also had a double-double at NC State.

* Solid Shooting Again

After two-straight games of shooting below 50 percent, the Panthers returned to their lofty offensive ground by making 29-of-58 field goals Thursday at UIC. Prior to Thursday, UWM shot 43.9 percent Saturday night against UW-Green Bay after making 42.9 percent of its shots at Wright State Jan. 27. In fact, in the first 20 minutes at Wright State, the Panthers hit on just 28.6 percent of their shots in the first half while scoring just 20 points. The second halves of the last three games have been much better than the first halves, as UWM converted on 61.9 percent of its chances in the second half to score 48 points at Wright State and 50 percent of its chances to score 45 points and beat Green Bay. That trend continued Thursday, as UWM shot 46.2 percent while scoring 32 points in the first half before shooting 53.1 percent and scoring 50 points in the second half.

* National Numbers

UWM has made its mark in the NCAA's statistical rankings. The Panthers still rank eighth nationally in field goal shooting and are 23rd in scoring offense. Individually, Dylan Page ranks 21st in the nation in scoring while Ed McCants is 14th nationally in three-point field goals made and 22nd nationally in three-point field goal percentage.

* A Salute To January

Last Saturday's win over Green Bay wrapped up a 9-1 month of January for UWM. The Panthers have posted a 22-4 overall record in the month under head coach Bruce Pearl.

* Victories On The Road

UWM's time on the road has been well-spent as the Panthers have experienced plenty of success. The Panthers' overall road mark is now 7-5 and UWM is 5-1 league road games, tying a school record. Last year, the Panthers were 8-6 on the road plus 3-2 on neutral floors. The Panthers have now won five league road games for the third year in a row. In two-plus years under Pearl, UWM is 20-19 in true road contests, including 15-7 in league play, and 5-3 in neutral floor contests. In the seven years prior to Pearl's arrival at UWM, the Panthers were just 13-71 on the road.

* A (Road) League Of Their Own

Prior to Bruce Pearl's arrival in Milwaukee, the Panthers were 7-38 in regular season Horizon League road contests. In the last two-plus seasons under Pearl, UWM is 15-7 on the road in the league. Plus, after recording just two double-digit league road wins in seven seasons, the Panthers have posted 11 double-digit road league wins in the last two-plus seasons, including five this year.

* Impressive Numbers

UWM head coach Bruce Pearl has moved to the top of the charts among Horizon League coaches. His 34-9 record in league games computes to an amazing .791 winning percentage, easily the best among active coaches and a number that would put him at the top of all-time league coaches with at least three years in the league when the season ends. Entering this season, Pete Gillen, who coached in the league at Xavier from 1985-1994, held the honor with a .769 winning percentage. Plus, with one more win, Pearl will move into the top-10 all-time in league wins, a list headed by Detroit's Perry Watson, who has 98 league wins in 10-plus seasons.

* Busting The Bracket

UWM learned Monday it will host Manhattan in a nationally-televised contest during ESPN's Bracket Buster Saturday Feb. 21. The two teams will tip-off at 1 p.m. CST at the U.S. Cellular Arena. Manhattan is a member of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference and is 16-4 overall this season. The Jaspers reached the NCAA Tournament last season and qualified for the NIT two seasons ago. For more information on Bracket Buster Saturday, see page nine.

* Also On The Schedule

The Panthers's game immediately preceding the Bracket Buster contest has been moved up by a day. UWM will play at Butler on Wednesday, February 18 instead of Thursday, February 19. The game will still tip off at 6 p.m. CST and is scheduled to be televised on CBS-58 in Milwaukee. The two schools moved the game by mutual agreement to allow for more preparation time for the Bracket Buster contests on Saturday.

* Oh What A Night

Senior Kalombo Kadima earned Horizon League Player of the Week honors after the best night of his collegiate career Saturday. Kadima scored a career-high 22 points to help offset an off-night by the Panthers' top three scorers in helping UWM to a win over UW-Green Bay. Kadima, who had not scored more than 14 points in a collegiate game before Saturday, scored 15 points in the first half alone and made 7-of-10 shots from the field. For the week, Kadima averaged 15.5 ppg, 5.0 rpg and 4.0 apg.

* The Point Is ...

The stellar play of Kalombo Kadima Saturday night added another chapter to the impressive stretch UWM's set of point guards have put together. Kadima took over the starting job from Hill Jan. 8 against Butler and both have thrived since, with Hill adding eight points and four assists Saturday night. Since the lineup shift, the pair is combining for 14.0 ppg, 7.5 apg and 5.0 rpg in nearly 47 minutes of action. The two players have also spent time on the floor together, with Kadima playing the off-guard or small forward position while Hill mans the point.

* Packin' Them In

The crowd of 8,703 Saturday night at the U.S. Cellular Arena was the largest regular season crowd for a UWM home game at the arena and the second-largest UWM home crowd in school history. Only the 10,115 that saw the Panthers beat Butler in the league title game last year was larger. UWM is now averaging over 3,700 fans per game - up over 500 per game from last year's regular season. Despite an unfavorable schedule that included a home game on Thanksgiving weekend, a home game two days before Christmas and last year's three biggest home league draws visiting before mid-January, UWM is still averaging nearly 4,300 fans at the arena.

* A Big Draw On The Road, Too

Including Saturday night's crowd, UWM has now played in front of three of the four largest crowds for a league game this season.

1. UWGB @ UWM (1/31) 8,703 2. Cleve. St. @ Wright St. (1/31) 8,403 3. UWM @ UWGB (1/17) 7,522 4. UWM @ Wright St. (1/27) 7,159

* Dynamic Duo

Dylan Page and Ed McCants continue to rank among the top scoring duos in the nation. The two combine to average 38.6 ppg, making them the eighth-best pair in the nation. The pair of Mike Helms and Rawle Marshall from Oakland lead the nation at 40.5 ppg.

* How About That Trip!

When the schedule was released in the fall, the four-game road trip the Panthers faced in late January seemed daunting. But, UWM went 4-0 on the trip, winning every game by a double-digit margin. On the trip, the Panthers shot nearly 51 percent from the field while limiting opponents to under 39 percent from the field. UWM averaged 78.2 ppg while allowing opponents just 63.2 ppg. And the Panthers posted a balanced attack from their big three on offense, with Dylan Page, Ed McCants and Joah Tucker all averaging between 17.8 and 19.8 ppg.

* More About The `D'

It could easily get lost in the big numbers the Panthers have been posting offensively, but UWM's defense has done a tremendous job of bouncing back after allowing Youngstown State to shoot better than 60 percent from the field Jan. 15. Opponents have shot just 38 percent from the field in the six contests since. Throw out the 61.2 percent shooting by the Penguins three weeks ago and UWM has turned the defense up a notch in league play. In the other 10 games, UWM has allowed opponents to shoot just 41 percent from the field and has held Green Bay, Butler, Cleveland State and Wright State under 40 percent.

* Meanwhile, Back On Offense

You must have lofty shooting numbers as a team to shoot below 44 percent from the field in two-straight games and still be shooting just a shade under 50 percent for the season. After moving above the 50 percent mark after the win at Detroit Jan. 24, UWM is now shooting 49.6 percent from the field as a team - the eighth-best mark in the nation and the top mark in the Horizon League. UWM has shot 50 percent or better 12 times this season and 28 times in the two-plus seasons under Bruce Pearl. The Panthers have also shot 50 percent or better in six of their last nine games. Two of the best outings were a 60.4 percent effort at Loyola Jan. 10 and a 59.2 percent mark Jan. 24 at Detroit. The performance at Loyola marked the first time since Feb. 8, 1996, that UWM shot better than 60 percent from the field. On that date, the Panthers shot 67.8 percent from the field (40-of-59) in a 97-84 win at Cleveland State.

* Playing Well On The Lead

The win on Saturday over UW-Green Bay moved UWM to 14-1 in contests in which it holds a halftime lead. The only time UWM lost was at Santa Clara, seeing a 38-33 halftime edge turn into a heartbreaking 66-64 loss.

* Keeping An Eye On Others

As the Panthers have started to roll through the middle of the season, so have some of their non-league opponents. In fact, the five teams UWM lost to in non-league play have combined for a 69-23 record. Three of the teams are in first place, with Wisconsin leading the Big 10, Air Force leading the Mountain West and Southern Illinois leading the Missouri Valley.

* Ranking Rumbles

UWM has started to climb the ranks in the various mid-major rankings thanks to its recent winning streak. The Panthers check in at fifth in the CBSSportsline.com poll and have broken in to the ESPN.com Mid-Major Top 10, holding down the seventh spot. UWM is also up to ninth in the CollegeInsider.com poll. The Panthers have also seen their power ranking rise, hitting 58th in the RPI and 52nd in the Jeff Sagarin ratings. Plus, UWM is currently rated as a 13-seed in ESPN.com's Bracketology.

* Page Is A Player

Senior Dylan Page has already been named the Horizon League Player of the Week twice this season, most recently Jan. 12 after a career-high 35-point effort against Loyola capped off a stellar week for himself and the Panthers. For the week, Page averaged 27.3 ppg, making 71.1 percent of his field goal attempts, including 61.5 percent of his attempts from three-point range.

* Passing 1,000

Dylan Page's 23 points Jan. 8 against Butler sent him past the 1,000 mark for his career. Thanks to a 21.0 ppg average this season, he is up to 1,185 points in his career. Page is now one of just seven Panthers to have passed the 1,000-point barrier since UWM moved back to the Division I ranks in 1990. Making Page's accomplishment particularly remarkable is that injury and illness limited him to just 176 points in his first two seasons as a Panther.

* More From The Pages Of Dylan

Dylan Page has either held or shared game-high scoring honors 15 times this season and has been in double figures in scoring in all 21 games this season and in 54 of his last 56 contests. He has also scored 20 or more points 13 times this season, including in six of the last seven games. Page is also making a habit of tallying double-doubles. He tallied his third double-double of the season Dec. 7 at NC State, adding 11 rebounds to his team-high 22 points. His earlier double-doubles came in a 24-point, 12-rebound effort against Southern Illinois and an 18-point, 11-rebound outing against Montana. He now has five career double-doubles.

* Newcomer Of The Year?

Junior Ed McCants continues to make an immediate impact on the Panther rotation this season. The Paris JC transfer stands second on the team in scoring at 17.5 ppg, has scored 20 or more points nine times and has been in double figures in all but two games this season.

* 20-20 Vision

When Dylan Page and Ed McCants each scored 20 points Jan. 15 against Youngstown State, it marked the sixth time this season the two each scored at least 20 points in the same game. Meanwhile, Page, McCants and Joah Tucker all eclipsed the 20-point mark in the Dec. 30 win over Idaho State, marking the first time since last February's win at Loyola that three Panthers scored 20 points or more in the same game.

* Tuning In

This Saturday's game with Wright State will be UWM's eighth television appearance this season. In all, the Panthers will appear on television a minimum of 10 times during the 2003-04 season and the Dec. 7 contest at NC State was their fourth national TV appearance since late last season.

* Past POTW

Joah Tucker opened his UWM career by being named the Horizon League Player of the Week. In his debut Nov. 22 against Montana, Tucker scored 22 points and then was honored two days later. In fact, Tucker's career at UWM got off to a bang, as he scored in double figures in his first nine games. Tucker was chasing Michael Hughes for the best double-figure streak to start a UWM career. Hughes reached double figures in the first nine games of the 1993-94 season.

* League Leaders

Some UWM players are at the top of the Horizon League statistical charts. Dylan Page stands first in the league in scoring and fifth in rebounding. In fact, UWM has three players in the top 10 in the league in scoring, with Ed McCants fourth and Joah Tucker ninth. Tucker is second, Page fifth and McCants eighth in field goal percentage while McCants is third in free throw percentage and first in three-pointers made. As a team, UWM is first in scoring offense and field goal percentage.

* Clear Channel On Your Dial

UWM and Clear Channel Broadcasting have signed a three-year agreement to place all Panther games on 920AM, WOKY, with a 15-minute pregame show and 15-minute postgame show. Bill Johnson returns for his fifth season as the voice of the Panthers. "Bruce Pearl On Basketball," the head coach's one-hour radio show, also airs on WOKY from 7-8 p.m. Monday nights.

* Signing On The Dotted Line

Indianapolis prep standout Anthony Passley and junior college transfer Derrick Ford have signed National Letters of Intent to play basketball at UWM. Passley, of North Central High School, averaged 14.5 ppg and 9.0 rpg as a junior at North Central. Ford was a Top 20 player in the state of Ohio as a high school senior and is a Top 70 JUCO prospect. He is from Olney Central Community College in Illinois and is playing his second season there. UWM also has a pair of Division I transfers on its roster that will sitting out this season. Jason McCoy is a 6-foot-9 small forward from Rutgers while Derrick Wimmer is a 6-foot-3 shooting guard from Milwaukee who transferred home after a season at Chicago State.

* Up Next

UWM hosts Loyola Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. at the U.S. Cellular Arena. The game is part of a women's-men's doubleheader, with the women facing IPFW at 5 p.m.