Feb. 2, 2001

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MILWAUKEE-UWM freshman center Maria Viall's 16 points helped take the Panthers to their 10th consecutive conference win at home, defeating Wright State (3-16, 0-6) 72-59 Thursday night at the Klotsche Center. With an MCC home-winning streak that dates back to last season, Milwaukee moves to .500 overall (9-9) and 5-1 in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference.

UWM took a 16-point lead with about four minutes to go in the game following three consecutive Panther baskets. After freshman Charlene Smith, who finished with a career-high 11 points, put in a jumper, guards Teri Stoltenberg and Holly Tamm scored lay-ups off of back-to-back fast breaks. Milwaukee kept up the momentum to finish the game over the Raiders with the 13-point lead.

Both teams finished on 52 percent shooting from the field, but UWM took the advantage at the line, making 25 trips compared to the Raiders' seven. Milwaukee also showed strong on the boards, outrebounding Wright State, 34-18.

"We had to grind it out in the second half," said UWM associate head coach Sara Liebscher. "In the first half, we thought that one pass would lead to a basket, but Wright State kept it close. It forced us to execute offensively and defensively in the second half. Every game in this conference is going to be tough where you just have to grind it out in the end."

Wright State kept the game close in the beginning of the second half, staying within two baskets of UWM for the first seven minutes. Milwaukee pulled away when Viall sank a pair of free throws to jump-start a 12-2 run. The run ended on Jess Wilhite's three pointer to take the 48-36 lead at the 10:19 mark. Wilhite's tre marked her 59th on the season, giving her a share of second place in the school records for most three-pointers in a season.

With 7:44 remaining in the first half, Wright State's Chanda Hollingsworth hit a three-pointer to take the lead, 22-19. The Panthers regained the lead with a little over a minute left on a jumper by sophomore Liz Fletcher. UWM continued the 5-0 run with made free-throws by junior Allison Klaas and Fletcher to led, 30-26, at halftime.

"We had a very balanced attack. It's great to have lots of people stepping up at this time of the year," said Liebscher. "It's definitely going to pay off as we are now entering the second half of the conference season."

Wilhite also ended in double figures for the Panthers, adding 11 points in 19 minutes of action. Tamm and Stoltenberg both contributed eight points, while Liz Fletcher posted a game-high seven rebounds with seven points.