Panthers Embracing ‘Villain’ Role as Milwaukee Clinches Home Advantage

After back-to-back blowout losses and struggling through a half against an experienced team, the Milwaukee Panthers finally had enough.  

“At one point we said, ‘Hey, if we’re gonna be the villains, let’s embrace it.’” 

Those were the words spoken by Coach Bart Lundy in response to the adversity his team faced after the Milwaukee Panthers men’s basketball team completed a come-from-behind victory to take down the Purdue Fort Wayne Mastodons, 96-94.  

The victory ensured Milwaukee will have home-court advantage for the quarterfinals of the Horizon League tournament. The Panthers had already clinched a first-round bye.  

Following a two-game conference losing streak where Milwaukee lost by more than 20 points in each contest, it was crucial for the team to get back on track and start building momentum before the tournament. The Mastodons have historically given the Panthers trouble; Milwaukee had lost four of their last five against them.  

Purdue Fort Wayne starts five super-seniors, each with more than 1,000 career points. The young Panthers squad has embraced the challenge of their conference. 

“If you go through the league, we’re the only young team,” said Lundy in the post-game press conference. “We call ourselves the villains because we are a bunch of new guys and these guys that we’re playing against, they’ve been in this league and playing together for a long time.”  

Milwaukee started off slowly in the first half, especially defensively, allowing Purdue Fort Wayne multiple fast break opportunities and open corner threes. Milwaukee came out in the second half with an intensity that infected the crowd and intimidated the Mastodon offense.  

“We went into this game as a staff thinking that we could [full-court press] because their guards are smaller,” said Lundy. “They really didn’t like our pressure the first game.”  

Already a young, inexperienced roster, players have had to step up on offense to fill the void left by Markeith Browning, who suffered a “pretty severe” ankle injury earlier in the month.  

Sophomore guard/forward BJ Freeman has stepped up in a huge way for the Panthers all year and he added to his stellar season by posting the fifth triple-double in school history vs. Purdue Fort Wayne.  

“Tonight, I thought was possibly BJ’s best game of the year,” said Lundy. “We just kept going back to it and he kept making different plays. I’m really proud of him.”  

The Panthers have also found an offensive weapon in sophomore guard Kentrell Pullian. He’s second on the team this season in points per game and is posting a 40% clip from three. He shot 5-7 (71%) from downtown against the Mastodons and led the team with 25 points.  

“I listened to what Coach Lundy and Coach Jake (Panthers’ assistant coach) were saying about what the scouting report was going to be on me,” said Freeman in the post-game conference. “They’re going to draw two, so kick out to our shooters.” 

Despite the youngest roster in the conference, Milwaukee boasts the second-best overall record in the Horizon League (20-10) and intra-conference record (14-6). Still, the team currently only has the fifth-best betting odds to win the Horizon League tournament.  

“We were picked ninth, that team we just played was picked first,” said Lundy. “We’re not in first right now, but they’re in ninth.” 

The Panthers’ young roster has adopted an underdog mentality. The best competitors make a chip on their shoulder, even when they’re a top dog. It has carried Milwaukee this far, and they hope it will carry them deep into the tournament.  

“Let’s be the villains,” Lundy said.