MILWAUKEE, Wisc. – Northern Kentucky Women's Basketball achieved the weekend sweep at Milwaukee, defeating the Panthers, 68-61, on Saturday. NKU is now 6-5 on the year and a perfect 6-0 in league play, while Milwaukee falls to 15-3 and 12-2 in Horizon League action.
 
STATS LEADERS 

• Carissa Garcia put on a three-pointer clinic, going 5-for-8 (63 percent) from deep en route to 22 points.
• Ivy Turner had 11 points (4-for-9, 44 percent), five rebounds and a trio of assists.
• Lindsey Duvall had 13 points and three rebounds.
• Coffey was big for the Norse late in the game and finished the night with five points and a team-high 10 rebounds.

 
TURNING POINT

• A 12-0 Milwaukee run nearly put the Norse win in jeopardy with 1:57 left to play. NKU responded with stingy defense before Turner put a halt to the run with a layup with 44 seconds remaining.

 
FIRST HALF SUMMARY

• The Norse set the tone early with a layup by Duvall and a three-pointer by Garcia in their first two possessions.
• Milwaukee took the lead by following with three-unanswered baskets, but Turner broke up the mini-run at the 7:05 mark of the first with a three-pointer.
• Before both offenses stalled near the end of the first quarter, each side traded baskets until a Garcia and-one with 2:33 to go.
• A last-second layup by Milwaukee made it a one-point, 19-18, game in favor of the Norse after the first 10-minutes.
• Milwaukee's first possession of the second yielded a basket, but Turner added a layup and Duvall poured on a deep shot to make it 24-20, NKU.
• NKU followed the Panthers' layups with three-pointers in the middle of the second; Igo hit her second triple of the game 5:26 mark and Turner hit another with 4:08 left in the half.
• Rose went to the line with 1:01 to go and pinned on the final two points from either side for the half.
• NKU led, 32-28, at halftime thanks to a 7-for-14 (50 percent) drubbing from the three-point line.

 
SECOND HALF SUMMARY

• Garcia and Duvall kept their early success with them, hauling in a mid-range jumper and a layup, respectively, to begin the new half.
• With the game being within two possessions for the entire first half, NKU opened a little breathing room in the third quarter with a free throw by Turner, a jump shot down low from Irvin and another three-ball from Garcia. With 5:05 left in the third, NKU was up by eight, 42-34.
• Although Milwaukee followed with a layup, the Norse kept trucking and extended the run to 15-2 with a pair of shots from Rose, another long-range shot from Garcia and a layup from Irvin.
• The Norse began the fourth quarter with a 53-39 edge. A basket each in the early stages from Garcia and Coffey held off the Panthers to keep the Norse lead at 14.
• After Garcia hit her fifth three, the Panthers weren't going quiet into the night as they piled on a 12-0 run to make it a three-point, 61-58 game with 1:57 left.
• The Norse defense held strong for over a minute before Turner stormed down low for a layup with 44 seconds remaining.
• Igo and Coffey followed with one and two free throw shots, respectively, to increase the lead further.
• A final three-pointer dropped in for Milwaukee, but Duvall made it to the line for another two with 23 seconds left, sealing the win for good.  

 
GAME NOTES

• The Norse have won their last five games against the Panthers by an average margin of 16.0 points.
• With 22 points on the night, Garcia has a new career high, beating her previous best of 20 from yesterday's contest and a Feb. 13, 2020 matchup against UIC.
• Garcia's five three-pointers made are also a new career-high. She had four in the same Feb. 13 matchup at UIC a year ago. The last time a Norse scored five three-pointers was Molly Glick on Feb. 27, 2020 against Detroit Mercy.
• NKU's showing from beyond the arc was its best this season in terms of three-point percentage (45.5). The Norse were just one three away from tying its single-game high in threes on the year, which was 11 at Purdue Fort Wayne on Dec. 12.

 
UP NEXT
The Norse return home to the confines of BB&T Arena next weekend for a pair of matchups against Green Bay. Game one will begin at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, followed by a 2 p.m. Saturday contest. Both will be streamed to ESPN+.