Continuity is a rare thing in college basketball these days, so finding it can be a difference-maker, especially for a mid-major program.
Bart Lundy’s entire full-time coaching staff returned for their third year in Milwaukee, and four of their six players most frequently on the court came back for another year in black and gold – BJ Freeman and Elijah Jamison left in the transfer portal.
Flash back two years and the Panthers entered the season slated for a ninth-place finish (out of 11) under Lundy. They retained just four players from the Pat Baldwin Sr. (and Jr.) era that ended rather unceremoniously the year prior.
Milwaukee returns from a summer that they say was far more productive than the previous summer, which Lundy admitted during the season was not great.
“This year it seemed like everyone’s focus was the same,” said forward Faizon Fields. “We all want to win.”
Lundy said it was the players who made the difference over the summer, not a change in coaching.
“I approached it the same way,” said Lundy. “The culture here has been fantastic over the summer and through the fall season. These guys deserve credit for that – they’re a very focused group. They compete like crazy… They had a great offseason.”
The all-league guard Freeman transferred to Arizona State while Jamison returned to his home state to attend UNC-Wilmington. Freeman paced the Horizon League with 21.1 points per game and featured top-10 finishes in per-game averages in rebounds, three-pointers and assists. Jamison averaged 8.9 points across 35 games.
Seniors Langston Wilson, Dominic Ham and Angelo Stuart all graduated. The three combined to start 23 games across the 2023-24 season.
Milwaukee Boasts Impressive Transfer Class
The Panthers are joined by six transfers, arguably the strongest transfer class in the league. Guards John Lovelace Jr. (Youngstown State), Themus Fulks (Louisiana), AJ McKee (Queens, NC) and forward Danilo Jovanovich (Louisville) are all upperclassmen joining from other four-year institutions. Forward Jamichael Stillwell and guard Esyah Pippa-White both arrive via junior colleges.
McKee, alongside returning guard Erik Pratt, was named to the preseason all-league second team after ranking third with 18.8 points per game in the Atlantic Sun Conference a year ago. McKee played under Lundy at Queens before the coach headed for Milwaukee for the 2022-23 season.
“AJ is a winner,” said Lundy. “If I was in the foxhole somewhere, I’d want this guy with me… He scored [at Queens], but he’s also a great defender.”
The familiarity with Lundy helped seal the deal for the sixth-year senior’s final year of college basketball.
“I’ve done a lot of winning with Coach Lundy,” said McKee. “I really wanted to keep that going… Lundy was always there – he took a chance on me from high school.”
Joining McKee in the backcourt is Fulks, who will assume much of the ball-handling responsibility. It’s a role that the Panthers lacked last year after transfer Pierce Spencer suffered a career-ending knee injury before the season.
“Themus is a high-level communicator,” said Lundy. “Not only with me but with teammates… When we set it up and call a play, it’ll probably be Themus.”
Fulks was the starting point guard on the Ragin’ Cajuns’ 2023 NCAA Tournament team, averaging 9.2 points and 6.0 assists per game. He shared the court in 2021-22 with Freeman at Dodge City under current Milwaukee assistant coach Jake Williams.
“He’s also a winner,” said Lundy. “He can control the game and his experience is invaluable.”
Lovelace, a graduate of Brown Deer High School, made the rare in-league jump to his hometown. He scored 6.6 points per game and shot 37% from three-point range.
“John terrorized us for two years,” said Lundy, later noting that Lovelace played for assistant coach Jose Winston when he was at Brown Deer. “He’s a great kid, super athlete, versatile inside and outside. We’re really happy to have him.”
Jovanovich spent just 167 minutes on the court in his first two seasons of college basketball split between Miami and Louisville. He played his prep ball at Whitnall where he was runner-up for Mr. Basketball in Wisconsin in 2022.
“I really need to define his role for him,” said Lundy. “I think he’s an excellent player… He needs our program to put our arms around him. He’ll play whatever role – just wants to be part of something and get that confidence back. I can see that growing from where he was in the summer to where he is today. It’s a huge difference.”
Jovanovich relished the opportunity to return to his hometown, revealing that the first person to call him in the transfer portal was Winston. Perhaps the familiarity with the coaching staff and his hometown could be the difference for Jovanovich in year three.
Two seasons ago Stillwell was named one of JUCOrecruiting.com’s Fab 50 Juco Freshmen and earned a spot on the All-Southern Conference First Team at Miami-Dade CC before posting 12.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game for Butler County CC in Kansas.
Lundy said his production dropped after a bout with mono in February, but that he’s more than recovered physically.
Pippa-White joined from Odessa College where he helped lead his Wrangler squad to the NJCAA Division I quarterfinals, earning Western Junior College Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year in the process.
Big Steps Forward Expected for Returning Seniors
Erik Pratt’s preseason accolades come on the heels of a 12.5-point-per-game season in his first in the black and gold including 36% from three-point range. A big-time scorer, Pratt will spend more time at the two-guard position with Fulks and McKee able to take more reps at point guard.
Fellow guard Kentrell Pullian returns for his team-high third season with Milwaukee, averaging 10.5 points per game across two seasons after transferring from Eastern New Mexico in 2022. ‘KP’ was one of three players to appear in all 35 games last season.
Another Panther to play all 35 games was forward Faizon Fields, who earned a spot on the Horizon League all-tournament team with 13.5 points per game and 8.8 rebounds per game across four postseason contests.
“When he got here from Old Dominion he didn’t have his swag, his confidence,” said Lundy. “He looked at me one day and he goes, ‘You know, I think I’m going to really give this basketball thing a chance.’ And he has – he’s becoming a worker… I’m really proud of Faizon.”
Milwaukee native Learic Davis is widely considered one of the most athletic players on the roster.
“[Fans] are going to be pleasantly surprised with his development, his jump shot, his body,” said Lundy on Davis, who averaged 2.7 points per game last season.
Forward Darius Duffy also returns after averaging 3.6 points and 3.5 rebounds per game, also playing a major role as a defensive anchor. Aaron Franklin battled injury but appeared in 20 games and shot 56.5% from the field.
Milwaukee-area natives Simeon Murchison and Vinko Polovic also return to Milwaukee after appearing sparingly last year.
Non-Conference Schedule Includes UCF, Two Milwaukee-Hosted Events
Their non-conference schedule features two Milwaukee-hosted events – the Cream City Challenge from Nov. 22-24 featuring Portland State, Wofford and St. Thomas and the MKE Tip-Off on Dec. 15. where the Panthers will face Akron.
After opening their season on Monday, Nov. 4 against Lakeland at the Klotsche Center, UWM will make a three-game road swing to face Northern Iowa, Longwood and Duquesne preceding the Cream City Challenge.
Following the event, they head south to play Central Florida and Southern Mississippi, their final two contests before Horizon League play opens on Dec. 5 vs. Cleveland State.
Their rivalry with Green Bay renews on Dec. 11 on the road and Jan. 11 at home, their first matchups since a controversial postseason win that included reports of broken cameras and snubbed practice time. The Phoenix are now coached by radio host Doug Gottlieb.
“If we get a banner,” said Fields, “they can’t take that away from us. And I would say the program is due for that to happen – as players, and all the coaches – we all believe in it.”