Scoring in the low 70s doesn’t seem to work for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women’s basketball team.

The Panthers lost to the University of Miami 71-78 on Monday, and started the weekend off with a loss at Drake University on Friday night, 75-72.

On Monday night at Miami, the Panthers (0-3) came back from a 16-point deficit to trail by only two, 71-69 with 1:55 to play. But the Hurricanes (3-0) would end up with the victory, hitting all of their free throws down the stretch to win by seven.

Junior Meredith Onson led the team with 17 points, and sophomore Traci Edwards put up a double-double with 16 points at 11 rebounds in the loss.

The second half seems to be the time for the Panthers to shine. Hitting seven of 12 threes, only missing one free throw, and shooting 64 percent, the UWM team closed a huge gap to make the end exciting, but the win would go to Miami.

On Friday night in Des Moines, the Panthers played a tight game against undefeated Drake (3-0).

Traci Edwards put up a personal collegiate high double-double scoring 29 points and adding 12 rebounds in the Panthers loss.

Kiley Johnson and Megan Rogers followed each with 10 points, as the Panthers scored 29 bench points compared to the Bulldogs’ two.

As the first half started the Bulldogs came out shooting, going on a 9-0 run to start the game until Traci Edwards scored the first basket to spark the Panthers. Drake’s largest lead was 11 with 15 minutes left, but UWM cut it to within four when Onson hit a buzzer beater to end the half and cut the Bulldog lead to four.

The Panthers would shut out Drake until 12:18 left in the second half while putting up 17 points to pull ahead by 13, but that was the largest gap the Panthers would lead by.

In three minutes the Bulldogs cut the Panthers’ lead from 13 to one. With 7:57 left Onson hit a big three-pointer to put the Panthers up by four.

For the last eight minutes it was a lay-up battle, as teams swapped one- and two-point leads. With the Panthers down by one point with 25 seconds left, Traci Edwards missed a lay-up to seal UWM’s fate.

The Bulldogs would shoot free throws on their way to a three-point win.

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