UNI, Milwaukee Set to Open WNIT at McLeod

GAME NOTES | BRACKET

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – The University of Northern Iowa women's basketball team (19-13) will host Milwaukee (20-11) at the McLeod Center, marking the beginning of the Women's National Invitational Tournament for both Panther squads on Thursday.

UNI and Milwaukee will tip off at 7 p.m. CT from the McLeod Center, with the winner moving on to face Indiana/UT-Martin in the second round of the WNIT. The postseason appearance for UNI marks its eighth in the last nine seasons.

HOW TO TUNE IN
Thursday's game will be televised on ESPN3. Fans can also listen at www.UNIPanthers.com as Chris Kleinhans-Schulz calls the action.

LIVE STATS
Live stats will be made available via the UNI athletics website (www.UNIPanthers.com). Fans and media can visit @UNIWBB on Twitter for links to the feed.

TICKETS
Fans can purchase tickets through UNITIX. Call 319-273-4849 or visit www.UNITIX.uni.edu.

NEED TO KNOW

UNI (19-13) opens the WNIT against Milwaukee (20-11) Thursday at 7 p.m. CT from the McLeod Center, marking the eighth postseason appearance for the Panthers in the past nine seasons.
Under head coach Tanya Warren, the Panthers are 3-3 in WNIT games, with UNI reaching the third round in its last appearance in 2016.
UNI and Milwaukee have met eight times on the court, with the Panthers from Cedar Falls owning a 6-2 ledger over the Panthers of Milwaukee. The two squads have not played since 2010, with UNI taking that contest, 72-58, in Milwaukee.
Last time out, the Panthers fell to Drake in the MVC Tournament title game. The appearance in the championship game marked the third-straight season for UNI.
UNI's Ellie Howell and Megan Maahs earned MVC All-Tournament Team honors after averaging 10.3 and 9.0 points during the tourney.
Megan Maahs enters the contest with 12 double-doubles, the most since Alex Cook's 13 in 2003-2004.

SERIES WITH MILWAUKEE

UNI and Milwaukee have met eight times on the court, but never in postseason play.
The Panthers from Cedar Falls lead the all-time series against the Panthers from Milwaukee, 6-2. The last meeting came in 2010, with UNI taking a 72-58 decision in Milwaukee.

SCOUTING THE PANTHERS

Thursday's postseason berth is Milwaukee's third-straight for the basketball program, with the Panthers owning a 20-11 record overall and an 11-7 mark in the Horizon League.
The Panthers have a trio of seniors averaging in double-figures this season, with guard Jenny Lindner (14.3), forward Steph Kostowicz (13.9) and guard Bailey Farley (11.6) leading the scoring attack for Milwaukee.

WHERE ARE THEY NOW: 2017-2018 OPPONENTS

Nine teams on the 2017-18 schedule earned postseason bids, with Creighton, Drake, Iowa, and South Dakota State going to the NCAA Tournament and IUPUI, Kansas State, Missouri State, UCF and Wyoming joining the Panthers in the WNIT.

50-POINT CLUB GROWS

Under head coach Tanya Warren, the Panthers are undefeated when holding an opponent to 50 points or less.
Over her 11-year career at the helm, Tanya Warren has earned a 75-0 record against foes when holding them to 50 points or less.
Warren's highest total for a season was in 2015-16, when the Panthers held 12 foes to 50 points or less.
This season, the Panthers are 10-0 when holding an opponent to 50 points or less.

PANTHER SHARP SHOOTERS

UNI has knocked down 243-of-763 (31.8%) from 3-point land this season.
The 243 made 3-pointers this season rank as the fifth-most in a season at UNI.
The Panthers are averaging 7.6 made 3-pointers a game.
Last season, the Panthers shot 250-848 (29.5%) from beyond the arc to average 7.6 made 3-pointers a game.
Senior Kennedy Kirkpatrick leads UNI with 45 made 3-pointers this season.

UNI CONTROLS THE GLASS

This season, the Panthers have outrebounded 25 foes, with the highest margin of 18 coming against Wyoming earlier in November.
When outrebounding teams this season, UNI is 18-7 on the season.
The Panthers are averaging 39.8 rebounds per contest, which ranked first in the MVC.

MAAHS CLIMBS UP ALL-TIME LEADERBOARD

Sophomore Megan Maahs has had a sensational season rebounding the ball in 2017-18.
Maahs currently sits second all-time at UNI for most rebounds in a season (318) and is tied for the second-most defensive rebounds in a season (228).
Maahs sits behind Alex Cook for all-time rebounds (360), while also ranking behind Cooks (260) for most defensive rebounds in a single season at UNI.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE QUEEN

Sophomore Megan Maahs leads the MVC with 12 double-doubles this season.
That total is the most in a season for UNI since Alex Cook earned 13 in 2003-04, if Maahs passes Cook's 2003-04 mark the next bar will be Cook's 17 from 2002-03.
Maahs topped the MVC in rebounds per game (9.9), defensive rebounds per game (7.2) and most double-doubles (12).

SEEING DOUBLE

Three Panthers have collected double-doubles this season, with Megan Maahs (12 ), Rose Simon-Ressler (2) and Ellie Howell (1) all earning the feat via the points/rebounds path.
Howell's came against Indiana State (1/14) after scoring 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Simon-Ressler's came in back-to-back games against Evansville (2/11) and Drake (2/16)
The double-doubles for Maahs and Howell against INS (1/14) marked the first time UNI had two players record a double-double in the same game since Feb. 2, 2014 versus Drake (Stephanie Davison, Jen Keitel, Hannah Schonhardt).

ALL-MVC HONOREES

UNI claimed three All-MVC honors on Wednesday, with Megan Maahs earning All-MVC First Team and All-Defensive Team laurels and Ellie Howell collecting All-MVC Honorable Mention.
On Tuesday, the Panthers earned two selections to the MVC Scholar-Athlete Second Team, with Kennedy Kirkpatrick and Ellie Howell claiming spots after stellar seasons.

ALL WE DO IS WIN

UNI has won at least 17 or more games in nine-straight seasons.
The win total also marked the 16th season since the women's basketball program joined NCAA Division I basketball in 1982 that the Panthers have achieved at least 17 wins.
Tanya Warren now owns nine seasons with at least 17-plus wins or more in a season, which is more than all other coaches at UNI combined.

200 WINS AND COUNTING FOR WARREN

On Feb. 23 against Illinois State, head coach Tanya Warren became the fifth women's basketball coach in the MVC to surpass the 200-win total.
Warren is the only active coach in the Valley to own at least 200 career-victories
Only four coaches in Valley history have crossed the 200-win mark, with SIU's Cindy Scott (353), MSU's Cheryl Burnett (319), Illinois State's Jill Hutchison (277) and Eastern Illinois' Barbara Hilke (231) being the only coaches in league history to do so.

HOOPS IN THE HEARTLAND

UNI earned its third-straight appearance in the MVC Tournament title game, with the Panthers falling in a tough contest to top-seeded Drake.
Overall, the Panthers have earned five trips to the MVC Tournament championship game, with the match up against Drake being the second-straight season with an All-Iowa final.
Redshirt junior Ellie Howell and sophomore Megan Maahs earned MVC All-Tournament Team honors after averaging 10.3 and 9.0 points over the weekend.

SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on the UNI women's basketball program, follow the Panthers on Twitter at "@UNIWBB" and on Facebook at "UNI Women's Basketball."

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