It was a close call, but the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women’s basketball team narrowly defeated the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks 73-70 Friday, Dec. 2, at the Klotsche Center.

With only 3.8 seconds left in regulation and Milwaukee up by one, freshman Emily Markert deflected a Redhawks pass and senior Molly O’Brien nabbed the loose ball for the steal. O’Brien was immediately fouled and sent to the free throw line, where she converted both her shots to seal the win for the Panthers.

The Panthers claimed both victories over Southeast Missouri State (SEMO) this season in a “home and home series” against the Redhawks. The Panthers needed two overtimes but topped the Redhawks 90-87 Nov. 25 in Cape Girardeau, Mo.

“It was like a mirror image of last Friday,” head coach Sandy Botham said. “I'm proud of our team for hanging in there and getting the win in regulation. Especially against one of the top teams in the Ohio Valley Conference and one that won 22 games last season.”

The Panthers had four players in double figures, with freshman Traci Edwards leading the way with 18 points. Senior Nichole Drummond poured in 15 points while junior Megan Rogers chipped in 13 and sophomore Meredith Onson had 10. The Redhawks’ Tatiana Conceicao led all players with 28 points.

The Panthers won despite shooting only 37.7 percent from the field. The team made up for its poor shooting by dominating the glass, collecting 36 rebounds to the Redhawks’ 25. Also, Milwaukee committed only 15 turnovers, a season-low.

“I thought we were really aggressive on the offensive end and did a great job controlling the boards,” Botham said.

Milwaukee’s six-point lead with five minutes to go was slowly diminished to one when the Redhawks’ Wanika Owsley came up with a steal and fed Simone Jackson for the easy layup to make it 71-70.

The Panthers attempted to counter but failed to score on their next possession. After the miss, SEMO grabbed the rebound with 24 seconds left but failed to get off a shot, resulting in O’Brien’s steal.

O’Brien sank her free throws and the Redhawks’ in-bounded to Tiffane Ryan, who launched a three at the buzzer but came up short.

The Panthers took a 39-38 lead going into halftime after Onson scored from behind the arc with only 36 seconds left. Both teams combined for an impressive 66.7 percent shooting in the first half, converting 14 of 21 shots.

The Panthers were able to keep up with the Redhawks' consistent scoring even after their shooting percentage plummeted by being aggressive on the boards and drawing fouls.

“We were aggressive going to the basket and it paid off for us in trips to the free throw line,” Botham said.

The win improves the Panthers’ record to 3-3. The Panthers’ next game is against Northern Michigan on Sunday, Dec. 11, at 2 p.m.

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