UWM Men’s Basketball Team Defeats Luther College at Homecoming Game

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s Men’s basketball took home a win against Luther College at their homecoming game at the Panther arena this season on Friday, Nov. 17. The Panthers kept the lead for the whole game, finishing with a 29-point lead over the Luther College Norse.  

“I think first of all you got to give Luther a lot of credit, they have nine seniors that have all been [with the team] all four years,” said Head Coach Bart Lundy. “We are trying to find ourselves as a team and how we’re going to play and who we’re going to be, and I thought we made some strides in that direction tonight.”  

Lead scorer BJ Freeman dropped the first three points for the team within the first 30 seconds of play. Within the first three minutes of play, Freeman scored six points and finished the game with a total of 23 points overall. Just behind Freeman was Elijah Jamison and Langston Wilson with 15 and 14 points, respectively. This game will top Wilson’s previous NCAA record of 11 points, according to the UWM Men’s Basketball News.   

“The Panthers were brilliant down the stretch, limiting the opposition to just six points on 1-of-14 shooting from the floor while also forcing six turnovers over the final 10-plus minutes,” wrote Chris Zills, Assistant Director of Athletics for UW-Milwaukee. “At one point, they even went on a 16-0 scoring run.”  

The Panthers also lead over Norse in total assists (18-11). Kentrell Pullian and Markeith Browning II had the most assists between both teams, something Wilson was grateful for.  

“To have a teammate like [Markeith Browning] is amazing,” said Wilson. “You get a baseline drive and you’re under the basket and I’ll admit this, Markeith is more athletic than I am, but to make that play for me knowing I was a little frustrated from missing two previous dunks, that was just so huge.”  

Wilson landed a timely dunk after a few failed attempts by him and his teammates late in the second half. Around the same time, the team went about their routine of full court press in the last quarter of the game.  

“When we change to full court press, we always full court press,” said Coach Lundy. “Welcome to Milwaukee.”  

At the doors, attendees were gifted a t-shirt that bore the same logo as the team’s new jerseys. Cream-colored jerseys represented Cream City with a cursive “Milwaukee” splayed across the chest. The team debuted this jersey at the Homecoming game this evening, according to an article by Chris Zills.  

Student attendance was up as students almost entirely filled the student section in the stands. At half-time, two students were picked to race down the court putting on a jersey, a pair of shorts, and a hat laid at various points on the court. The first to score a lay-up won a prize. Other opportunities for prizes involved plays in the game and offered free food in a partnership with local restaurants.   

The team is currently three and six has plenty of season left. They play at UC Davis on Dec. 9 at 4:00 p.m. but are back at home at the Panther Arena on Dec. 13 at 7:00 p.m. to play the Longwood Lancers.