AT DUKE:
Joining UWM and Duke at Durham, N.C., are eighth-seeded Baylor and ninth-seeded Arkansas. Those two teams will play in the first game on Saturday, with tipoff scheduled for 10:07 a.m. Milwaukee time. The winners of the two Saturday games will play Monday night, with the winner advancing to the West Regional semifinals at Spokane, Wash.
Saturday, March 17
NCAA Tournament First Round (@Durham, N.C.)
#8 Baylor (21-8) vs. #9 Arkansas (19-12)
10:07 a.m. CST (ESPN2)
#1 Duke (28-3) vs. #16 UWM (19-10)
30 minutes following the conclusion of the first game (TV-41)
Monday, March 19
NCAA Tournament Second Round (@ Durham, N.C.)
Saturday's winners 6:37 p.m. CST (ESPN2)
UWM'S PATH: The Panthers earned their first-ever NCAA Tournament bid by winning the Midwestern Collegiate Conference Tournament in impressive fashion. UWM beat Wright State 58-34 in the quarterfinals, then demolished Loyola 80-49 in the semifinals. In Saturday's championsbip game, the Panthers jumped out to a 20-point first half advantage in beating defending champion UW-Green Bay, 77-62.
SCOUTING DUKE: The Blue Devils have their eyes on the Final Four after earning the top seed in the West Region. Duke made the Final Four in 1999. All-American Georgia Schweitzer leads the talented Blue Devil squad, but freshman Alena Beard has stolen some of the thunder. Beard leads the Devils in scoring 16.5 ppg. Duke won 21 of its first 22 games, then after losing two of four, the Blue Devils finished the season winning five straight games.
DANCING FOR THE FIRST TIME
After winning the Midwestern Collegiate Conference Tournament championship for the first time, UWM is making its first-ever NCAA Division I Women's Tournamnt appearance. In fact, since moving into Division I for the 1990-91 season and into the MCC for the 1994-95 campaign, UWM had advanced past the first round of the MCC tournament just once, making the semifinals during the 1996-97 season - the first season under Sandy Botham.
WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS
The MCC Tournament title gave UWM its second MCC title of the season, as the Panthers first won a share on the regular season crown. UWM and UW-Green Bay each finished 12-2 in league play, splitting with each other while UWM fell once to Detroit and Green Bay was beaten once by Cleveland State.
WINNING WAYS
UWM enters the NCAA Tournament riding a nine-game winning streak, the longest in the school's Division I history. The all-time school record for consecutive wins is 11, a record that has been set and tied by the teams from the 1980-81, `83-84, and `84-85 seasons. Plus, the 19 wins UWM are the most in the school's Division I history, and the most since the 1988-89 campaign, when UWM also won 19 games.
COACH OF THE YEAR
UWM's Sandy Botham was named MCC Coach of the Year for the second time in her career this season. She led the Panthers to their first-ever share on the MCC title, and now to their first-ever NCAA Tournament berth. Botham also won the award in her first year at the helm - the 1996-97 season. That year, she guided her Panthers to a 16-win season, 12 more than the previous season, marking the fifth-best turnaround in NCAA Division I that year.
MCC HONOR ROLL
Three Panther players were recognized by the MCC. Jessica Wilhite was named to the MCC All-Conference first team, freshman Maria Viall was named to the MCC All-Newcomer team, and senior Nicole Luchsinger was selected to the MCC All-Defensive team for the second year in a row.
An MCC All-Newcomer team selection last year, Wilhite also grabbed 2000-01 MCC Championship Tournament MVP honors after her 62-point tournament performance. Viall was also named to the MCC All-Tournament team.
The only other Panther ever to be named to the conference's all-tournament team was Jen Greger in 1996-97. Currently an assistant coach for the Panthers, Greger was also named the MCC's Player of the Year during the regular season that same year.
MCC TOURNAMENT RECAP
The Panthers had never experienced much success in the MCC Tournament, but that all changed last weekend in Chicago. Entering the tournament as the number two seed, UWM claimed the title with impressive victories over Wright State, Loyola, and UW-Green Bay. Thursday against the Raiders, the Panthers overcame a slow start to pound the seventh seed 58-34. Friday night, UWM scored the first 12 points of the game and never looked back, beating Loyola 80-49. Then Saturday, UWM jumped out to a 20-point first half advantage and beat Green Bay 77-62.
REGULAR SEASON RECAP
UWM lost four of its first five games, and stood at just 4-7 following its two-game trip to California. But, the Panthers won 15 of their final 18 games, including 13 of their last 14. The Panthers strong finish started with an impressive weekend sweep of Cleveland State and Detroit. After falling to Wisconsin and UWGB, the Panthers caught fire, winning four straight before a loss at Detroit Feb. 8. UWM didn't lose again, starting their nine-game winning streak with an 83-75 win at Cleveland State. UWM put itself in position to win the MCC title by beating UW-Green Bay 72-66, then officially claimed a share of the conference title by winning at Wright State, 74-52.
TOUGH COMPETITION
UWM faced four teams that season that are playing in the post-season, including three teams in the NCAA field. UWM is 0-3 against those teams, with losses to Missouri, St. Mary's (Cal.), and Wisconsin. The Panthers best performance in those three games came against the Badgers, as UWM fell 60-59. Meanwhile, UW-Green Bay qualified for the WNIT, playing at Illinois this week. The Panthers were 2-1 against the Phoenix this season.
POST-SEASON HISTORY
UWM is making its first appearance in the NCAA Tournament, but the Panthers have some history in post-season play dating back to their days in the NAIA. UWM's last national tournament appearance came during the 1984-85 season, when the Panthers fell 71-68 to Carson-Newman at the NAIA National Tournament in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
MCC IN THE NCAA
A team from the MCC has never won an NCAA Tournament game, but league representatives have put a major scare into some of the top teams in the nation.
DUKE HISTORY
UWM and Duke have met once before, with the Blue Devils claiming a 104-34 win over the Panthers on Dec. 3, 1994. Duke is also the only ACC team the Panthers have ever faced.
THE WRONG STATE FOR WRIGHT STATE
UWM's first round win over Wright State made its mark in the Panther record book. UWM's stingy defense allowed only 34 points, the fewest points UWM has ever given up since entering Division I. The Panthers also allowed Wright State to shoot just 22.9 percent from the field - and MCC Tournament record.
The 58-34 win also marks the lowest opponent points since Dec. 9, 1986, when UWM defeated the National College of Education, 66-33.
D ... D ... D ... DEFENSE
The Panthers have posted a number of impressive defense numbers this season. As a team, UWM has recorded 264 steals this season, averaging 10.2 per game. UWM has recorded at least 10 steals in 16 games this season, and the Panthers collected 31 steals in their three-game run through the MCC Tournament. UWM forces a total of 20.2 turnovers per game, while turning the ball over just over 17 times. Their turnover marging of +2.9 is second in the MCC, and the Panthers finished third in the MCC in steals.
Plus, UWM allowed just 63 ppg in their 29 games this season, and held three of their last four opponents to 52 points or less.
SOUNDING LIKE A BROKEN RECORD
Jessica Wilhite has saved her best performances of the season for UWM's matchups with UWGB. The sophomore guard from Glen Elynn, Ill. reset her career high against UW-Green Bay in the MCC championship game. She scored a career-high 36 points to break the MCC Tournament record of most points scored in a single game. She also eclipsed a single-game tournament record for three-point field goals made (7)
Against the Phoenix on Jan. 20, Wilhite scored a then-career-high 32 points while sinking a record-breaking 10 three-pointers in the game.
She leads the Midwestern Collegiate Conference in 3-pt FGs made with 89, or 3.07 avg/game.
HOT SHOT
With a 10-of-17 three-point shooting performance from behind the arc against UW-Green Bay on Jan. 20, sophomore guard Jessica Wilhite set MCC and school records, along with a new season-high in the NCAA. She beat the previous MCC record of nine, held by UWGB's Trisha Ebel set last year. Wilhite also broke the school record of seven, recorded by Andrea Filipek in last season's game against Green Bay. Wilhite also set a new season-high in the NCAA with her 10 threes, surpassing the previous high of nine by Rachael Gobble of Tennessee Tech and Michelle St. Clair of Cal-State Sscramento. The all-time NCAA record of three-pointers in a game is 12.
After Wilhite's eighth three-pointer of the evening, she became the fourth Panther to record 100 career three-point field goals. She joins Tracey Freund, teammate Teri Stoltenberg, and assistant coach Jen Greger as the only Panther women to do so. With accomplishing the feat in 43 games, she set a school record for fewest games to do so. The previous record was 49 games by career three-point leader Daryl Schaffeld.
...AND THEY ALL FELL DOWN
Like most of the other school three-point records, the record for most threes in a season was bound to fall. Jessica Wilhite, with help from stellar performances against Green Bay, crushed the school record of 64 three-point field goals in a season. Entering the NCAA Tournament, Wilhite has knocked down 89 threes on the season.
With her school-record season total, Wilhite now has 138 for her career. That figure places her second on the school's career leaderboard.
SHOOT THE THREE
UWM has shown it can knock down the outside shot, making 34 percent of its three-point attempts and 171 total three-point shots this season. Four times this year, the Panthers have hit double-figures in three-point shots, including 10 in their MCC Tournament win over Green Bay and 12 in their regular season loss to the Phoenix. UWM also made a three-point shot in every game this season,
POUND THE BOARDS
The Panthers have held an edge on the boards against many of their opponents, and for the year UWM outrebounds its opponents by nearly two boards per game. The Panthers outrebounded their opponents in five of their last six games.
NO WORKING OVERTIME
UWM has yet to play an overtime game this season, the first time the Panthers have gone through the season with an overtime contest since the 1997-98 campaign. Last year, UWM played five overtimes, including a double overtime game with Valparaiso.
SECOND TIME AROUND
Freshman center Maria Viall re-entered the starting lineup after enjoying success off the bench. Viall, who started the first three games of the season and averaged 6 ppg, had been enjoying coming off the bench to score 12 ppg in 17 contests. But after an injury to sophomore Liz Fletcher against Detroit on Feb. 8, Viall has started eight of the past nine games, averaging 16.1 ppg.
Against Cleveland State on Feb. 10, Viall collected 24 points, just one short of her career-high. Four games later, Viall knocked down 10-of-14 shots en route to tying a career-high with 25 points. She also grabbed 10 rebounds, marking her fourth double-double of the season.
MARIA MARIA
Viall, second on team in scoring with 12.5 ppg on the season, has become a consistent threat inside for the Panthers. She has scored in double-digits in 19 of UWM's 29 games, including eight consecutive.
FRESHMAN TREND
Milwaukee has developed a nitch for first-year talent. Since coach Botham has been at UWM, a freshman has been named to the MCC All-Newcomer team every year. Daryl Schaffeld was named in `96, current Panther Teri Stoltenberg in `97, Corrin Von Wald in "98, current Panther Jessica Wilhite in `99, and now Maria Viall in `00.
TERI START-EN-BERG
Senior guard Teri Stoltenberg will be starting her 99th career game for the Panthers when they take on Duke. Since her freshman years in 1997 when she started all 27 games, Stoltenberg has played in 106 of the team's 111 games and started 98, missing only five games and eight starts due to injury.
While nine different Panthers have found themselves rotated into the starting line-up for coach Botham, Stoltenberg is the only player to start every game for UWM this season.
CHART TOPPERS
With her assist to Holly Tamm on a first-half three-pointer against Detroit on Jan. 13, Stoltenberg became the eighth Panther player in school history to amass 300 career assists. She currently tallies 340 career assists, putting her sixth all-time. She needs just two more assists to move into fifth place in the school record book.
With three-pointers in back-to-back games against Wright State and Butler at the beginning of February, Stoltenberg tied and passed Panther assistant coach Jen Greger for second place on the school's career three-point field goals list. The three-pointers were the 125th and 126th of her career, and her career total now sits at 137. But, thanks to a strong push from Jessica Wilhite, Stoltenberg has fallen back to third place on the school's all-time list, behind Wilhite and Daryl Schaffeld.
Schaffeld, who donned the black and gold from 1996-00, sank 224 three-pointers.
LUCKY AT THE LINE
Senior forward Nicole Luchsinger has been a force driving the ball to the hoop, and her aggressiveness has paid off in trips to the free throw line. Luchsinger leads the Panthers in free throw accuracy at 84 percent. She has connected on 106-of-126 free throws, ranking her second in the Midwestern Collegiate Conference in that statistical catergory.
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
UWM ended its second consecutive regular season with a perfect 7-0 conference record at home. In fact, UWM has won 16 straight MCC home games. The last time UWM lost to an MCC foe at the Klotche Center was on Feb. 20, 1999, when the Panthers dropped a 73-59 decision to UW-Green Bay. Overall, UWM was 11-2 at home this season, losing only to Missouri and Wisconsin.
FAN APPRECIATION
UWM's game against UW-Green Bay on Feb. 17 at the Klotsche Center set a single-game attendance record for the women's team at home. 2,796 fans filed in to watch the battle at the top of the MCC. The game helped UWM surpass its previous attendance record of 2,629. set on Feb. 20, 1999, also against UWGB.
ILLINOIS IMPORTS
Seven of UWM's 13 players have ties to the state of Illinois. Three players have transfered from Illinois schools: Holly Tamm (UIC), Angela Wenzel (UIC), and Allison Klaas (College of DuPage, C.C.). Five other players played their high school basketball in the Chicago area: center Liz Fletcher (Wilmette), forward Stefanie Kaufmann (Ottawa), and guards Klaas (Wheaton), Jessica Wilhite (Glen Ellyn), and Charlene Smith (Bellwood).
EARLY RISERS
The two teams in the early game at Duke this weekend may feel like they are starting their day a little earlier than normal, but the Panthers have grown used to early starts. During the season, UWM practices at 6:15 a.m.. This week was no different, with the Panthers going through their pre-tournament work from 6:15-8:45 Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday before traveling to North Carolina.
A MIND FOR CHARITY
UWM has made a living at the foul line this season. In fact, UWM has made 478 free throws this season, almost as many as their opponents have attempted (512). The Panthers make better than 70 percent of their free throws. UWM has tried at least 20 free throws in their last 14 games, and only once this season UWM shot less than 10 free throws (eight vs. Wisconsin Jan. 16).
RECORD SETTING
Besides being a blockbuster win, the Panthers' game against Central Michigan also set a few records around the nation, league, and at UWM. UWM's performance set MCC season-highs for assists (28) and three-point percentage (.786), beating the previous highs of 25 and .571, respectively. Jessica Wilhite's 83 percent on 5-of-6 three-point shooting also set an individual best in the conference, blowing out the prior high of 63.6 percent. UWM also reset the school record in three-point field goal percentage, beating the old record of 66.7 percent. Most impressive, UWM set a NCAA Divison I single-game high for the season in three-point field goal percentage, shooting 78.6 percent.
