Panthers set to begin league play tonight
Having passed through the "Be-careful-what-you-wish-for" portion of their schedule, the UW-Milwaukee Panthers will now move on to the next phase of their season.That is, the important part, the part that actually counts . . . the conference schedule. The Panthers commute to Chicago twice this week, first to the near-west side to play Illinois-Chicago tonight, then returning to Chicago's north side for a game with Loyola on Saturday night.
The Panthers, who have lost three straight, including an ugly, 100-65 beatdown at the hands of Marquette Friday at the Bradley Center, will show up. But whether they make the trip with a dash of swagger remains to be seen.
Coming back with two conference rivalry games after a humiliating intra-city rivalry loss is not exactly a delight. While the season is still young, the Panthers realize the importance of the Chicago games and understand two more flat performances could set the tone for the rest of the season.
"I would say it's business as usual for us," said Panthers coach Rob Jeter. "I don't see any residual effect from (the Marquette) game at all. We aren't down on ourselves at all.
"We understand that we have to get better and we knew that going in. There may have been a time in our past where something like that would carry over, but for our older players it's business as usual and they impart that on the younger guys."
The Marquette loss was the third straight for the Panthers, who preceded that with losses to Drake (80-59) and Sam Houston State (81-77). Scoring points hasn't been the worst of the Panthers' problems, but stopping the other team has been.
Since beating Division II Upper Iowa, 78-53, in their first non-exhibition game of the season, the Panthers have allowed their opponents an alarming 81.3 points per game, including 85.3 points per game in their last four outings.
Jeter thinks the defensive problems stem from the fact that team's halfcourt perimeter defense hasn't been what it should be.
"Defense is a real concern, especially since we spent all our time in the pre-season focusing on our defense," Jeter said. "We really wanted to pressure the ball in the halfcourt, but now I think we need to do a better job of just keeping the ball in front of us.
"We're at a point now where we can't overextend ourselves because we've been giving up too many good shots close to the basket. It starts with the perimeter play and that's what has hurt us lately, but early in the season that wasn't the case."
What makes this week's games so important for the Panthers is that Illinois-Chicago and Loyola are very beatable opponents. Butler, which already has three victories over teams from high-major conferences (Ohio State, Virginia Tech and Michigan) has clearly separated itself as the top team in the conference.
Newcomer Valparaiso at 6-1 and UW-Green Bay at 5-2 have beaten the teams they should beat but have played nowhere near the caliber of schedule that Butler has.
Walker out for season: McFarland senior Riley Walker, who recently signed a letter of intent to play at UWM next season, has suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Walker, who is a 6-6 forward, suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament injury to his left knee. He averaged 17.7 points and 7.6 rebounds last season while earning All-Badger South Conference first-team honors last season.
He still is expected to enroll at UWM and play basketball.
Having passed through the "Be-careful-what-you-wish-for" portion of their schedule, the UW-Milwaukee Panthers will now move on to the next phase of their season.That is, the important part, the part that actually counts . . . the conference schedule. The Panthers commute to Chicago twice this week, first to the near-west side to play Illinois-Chicago tonight, then returning to Chicago's north side for a game with Loyola on Saturday night.
The Panthers, who have lost three straight, including an ugly, 100-65 beatdown at the hands of Marquette Friday at the Bradley Center, will show up. But whether they make the trip with a dash of swagger remains to be seen.
Coming back with two conference rivalry games after a humiliating intra-city rivalry loss is not exactly a delight. While the season is still young, the Panthers realize the importance of the Chicago games and understand two more flat performances could set the tone for the rest of the season.
"I would say it's business as usual for us," said Panthers coach Rob Jeter. "I don't see any residual effect from (the Marquette) game at all. We aren't down on ourselves at all.
"We understand that we have to get better and we knew that going in. There may have been a time in our past where something like that would carry over, but for our older players it's business as usual and they impart that on the younger guys."
The Marquette loss was the third straight for the Panthers, who preceded that with losses to Drake (80-59) and Sam Houston State (81-77). Scoring points hasn't been the worst of the Panthers' problems, but stopping the other team has been.
Since beating Division II Upper Iowa, 78-53, in their first non-exhibition game of the season, the Panthers have allowed their opponents an alarming 81.3 points per game, including 85.3 points per game in their last four outings.
Jeter thinks the defensive problems stem from the fact that team's halfcourt perimeter defense hasn't been what it should be.
"Defense is a real concern, especially since we spent all our time in the pre-season focusing on our defense," Jeter said. "We really wanted to pressure the ball in the halfcourt, but now I think we need to do a better job of just keeping the ball in front of us.
"We're at a point now where we can't overextend ourselves because we've been giving up too many good shots close to the basket. It starts with the perimeter play and that's what has hurt us lately, but early in the season that wasn't the case."
What makes this week's games so important for the Panthers is that Illinois-Chicago and Loyola are very beatable opponents. Butler, which already has three victories over teams from high-major conferences (Ohio State, Virginia Tech and Michigan) has clearly separated itself as the top team in the conference.
Newcomer Valparaiso at 6-1 and UW-Green Bay at 5-2 have beaten the teams they should beat but have played nowhere near the caliber of schedule that Butler has.
Walker out for season: McFarland senior Riley Walker, who recently signed a letter of intent to play at UWM next season, has suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Walker, who is a 6-6 forward, suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament injury to his left knee. He averaged 17.7 points and 7.6 rebounds last season while earning All-Badger South Conference first-team honors last season.
He still is expected to enroll at UWM and play basketball.
