Klotsche, home of the Panthers, saw the end of the University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee’s five-game winning streak, with a 62-59 loss against the University of Illinois- Chicago Wednesday night.

The Flames, who have been 0-7 on the road this season, ended their losing streak. Although, UWM still reign’s 24-11 in overall wins against their Horizon League rival.

Since the girls have been on a five-game winning streak, they have been able to correct themselves and keep their heads in the game.

“We’ve kept our routines the same,” said Head Coach Sandy Botham. “Roles have been more clearly established over the last month, which I think has really helped our players understand what they need to do to help our team be successful.”

Even though their roles as athletes have been established, they were not able to execute against UIC.

During the first half, the Panthers kept the score close, passing the lead back and forth between UIC and UWM.

Traci Edwards led with 16 points and 18 rebounds. Aubri Rote gained 10 points and Jineen Williams had eight. But that was not enough for the Panthers.

UWM never gained the lead after midway through the first half. They allowed UIC to obtain an 18 point lead in the last minutes of the game. With 39.9 seconds left, the Panthers tried to gain more ground against the Flames with a close score of 62-57, but were unsuccessful.

The Panthers rallied and brought the Flames’ 18 point lead down to a three point deficit in the last minute of the second half, ending with a final score of 62-59.

Milwaukee ended the night with 32.7 percent shooting in the field and 31.6 percent shooting in the three-point range. UIC, on the other hand, shot 45.8 percent. They also only had nine turnovers and made five three-pointers out of eight attempts.

Not only was this an important game for UWM to continue on their winning streak, but they were also tied with UW- Green Bay for the leading spot in the Horizon League Conference.

Green Bay is now the Horizon League leader at 6-1 and UWM is now in second place at 5-2. UIC was able to gain their first win on the road and take the number one spot away from the Panthers.

Even though they lost, UWM is not even close to being out of the picture.

“We just focus one day at a time. Our focus on game day is making the right play at the right time, and stress the importance everyone plays, whether they play significant minutes or not, in the success of our program,” said Botham. “We will only win a championship with everyone engaged and focused on performing their role to the best of their ability.”

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