UW-Milwaukee women’s basketball took care of business with a big second half, leading to a 74-49 defeat over Carroll in their home opener at the Klotsche Center on Wednesday.
Milwaukee finished with an even 16-16 record last season, and a 10-10 ledger in the Horizon League. After placing fifth in the Horizon League standings last season, the preseason poll projected them to finish in fourth place.
Carroll University is a Division III program in the CCIW, or College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin. They ended last season with a 23-5 record and came into the game ranked as the 21st D-III team nationally, according to D3hoops.com.
Carroll Started Strong
Carroll set the tempo to start, taking an early 7-2 lead.
Carroll forward Natalie Gricius scored 10 points in the first quarter while shooting a perfect 4-4 from the field. The Pioneers’ hot start behind the arc (4-8 from three-point range) helped them come within two points of the Panthers after the first quarter, 18-16.
In the second quarter, forward Anna Lutz began to find her way feasting in the paint. She was the leading Panthers scorer at halftime, with eight.
The Pioneers kept pace despite the inside attack opening up for the Panthers.
Carroll outscored Milwaukee 15-14 in the second quarter to go into halftime with a 32-31 Panther lead.
The Panthers were the more efficient team in the first half, shooting 41.9% to Carroll’s 37.5%. The Pioneers made six three-pointers in the first half, shooting 50% from that range. They would not make another shot behind the arc the rest of the game.
Baumhower was unable to transfer her scoring success from the St. Thomas game into the first half of this one. She shot 1-8 from the field, scoring only two points entering halftime.
A Whole New Intensity
The Panthers came out of the gate with a new intensity that especially showed on the defensive end.
“The main thing we talked about in the locker room was our defensive effort,” said Kamy Peppler. “We came out and we did a great job of executing that in the second half.”
Milwaukee scored six points off turnovers in the third quarter.
Peppler found her long-range shot when she made three shots behind the arc in quick succession. Those nine points were a part of a 13-0 Panthers scoring run.
Milwaukee entered the 4th quarter with momentum and a 51-39 advantage.
Baumhower found her rhythm, scoring eight of her 14 points in the final frame. She ended the evening shooting 5-13 from the field.
“She adds a lot to our team,” said Peppler on Baumhower’s addition. “She’s able to drive, draw defenders… so she’s a great aspect to add to our team.”
The Panthers’ defensive activity paid dividends, causing eight of Carroll’s 15 turnovers in the final quarter.
Milwaukee shot 48.4% from the field and 47.6% from three for the game. They held Carroll to just 32.8% on field goals and 35.3% from three-point range.
The Panthers made it tough on Pioneers’ preseason All-American Olivia Rangel. Rangel shot at a 4-16 clip and had six turnovers.
The Panthers feasted in the paint, outscoring the Pioneers 36-22 and winning the second chance point margin 16-3.
Wednesday Win a Bounce Back from Monday Loss
The victory was their first of the season – they dropped their opener on Monday 84-81 at St. Thomas in overtime.
On Monday, Kacee Baumhower led Milwaukee with a career-high 26 points in her team debut. She transferred from in-conference opponent Wright-State, a rarity.
Freshman Izzy Pugh had a big impact off the bench in just under 15 minutes. After making her collegiate debut against St. Thomas, Pugh scored her first collegiate points against the Pioneers. She finished with 14 points, tying Baumhower for the team high.
Another strong performer was Peppler, who earned a double-double after scoring 11 and dishing out 10 assists. Peppler was selected as a guard to the preseason All-League team for this season.
Guard Jada Donaldson followed Peppler up with seven assists and eight rebounds.
The Panthers’ next matchup is against the Big East’s Butler Bulldogs at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday at the Klotsche Center.
“Just come in with the same mindset every game, just work hard,” said Peppler on the contest. “We got a few days to prepare, we’re really looking forward to it.”