Done in by 27 turnovers - most since '97 -UWM falls at Iowa State
Iowa State, the site of UW-Milwaukee's biggest upset in recent memory, wasn't so kind to the Panthers on their return trip.
The Cyclones, coached by Milwaukee native T.J. Otzelberger, used their superior size and depth to great effect on the defensive end as well as on the boards and also placed four players in double figures in beating the Panthers, 68-53, on Sunday evening.
BJ Freeman scored 11 points to lead UWM (2-2), which has yet to register a victory this season against a Division I opponent.
The last time the Panthers faced the Cyclones at Hilton Coliseum – Nov. 13, 2017 – they registered a stunning 74-56 victory in coach Pat Baldwin's second game as coach.
BOX SCORE: Iowa State 68, UWM 53
New coach Bart Lundy's squad fared much better than it did at Purdue on Nov. 8 (a 31-point loss) but an inability to take care of the basketball and spotty shooting (39.5% overall, 66.7% from the free-throw line) were big deciding factors.
Here are three takeaways from the loss.
Too many turnovers
The theme for this game was set in the opening minutes by the Panthers.
They gave the ball up on each of their first five possessions and had nine by the second media timeout compared to eight points as the Cyclones (3-0) opened a 10-point lead.
UWM tightened up its ball security for a spell from there, and after a pair of Jaylen Johnson free throws had pulled the Panthers to within 24-19 with 7 minutes 11 seconds remaining.
But Iowa State responded with a 10-2 run to open its lead back up and four more turnovers the rest of the way left the Panthers with 15, leading to 16 points for the Cyclones in a 37-26 game at the break.
"They took us out of everything we wanted to run," Lundy said. "We turned it over on the first two possessions and I thought it snowballed on us after that. We really panicked and tried to be too careful on every pass, and they ended up taking us out of everything.
"That's part of what they do. We knew that going in, that they're really physical in the passing lanes and on handoffs – they were a little more physical than I thought they should have gotten away with – but that's the way the game was being called."
By the time the final buzzer sounded UWM had given the ball up an astounding 27 times – third-most in program history – leading to 27 Iowa State points.
Freeman finished with six while Elijah Jamison and Markeith Browning II each had four. The Panthers assisted on eight of 17 baskets for the game.
For comparison's sake, the Panthers committed 21 turnovers in their 84-53 loss at Purdue.
The program record for turnovers is 31, set against Western Michigan on Nov. 29, 1997. The Panthers committed 28 against Sacramento State on Jan. 9, 1992.
"We're playing good defense," said Lundy. "We've just got to find some way to run some semblance of a coherent offense. If we do that, we can win some games. But we're not going to win too many games turning the ball over 27 times."
Pounded on the offensive glass
While turnovers were the first-half story for the Panthers, an inability to keep the bigger, more athletic Cyclones off the boards defined the second half.
UWM went into halftime leading in that department, 18-13, with seven coming on the offensive end.
It was a complete reversal in the final 20 minutes as Iowa State grabbed 12 of its 25 rebounds on the offensive end, an effort that led to 14 points.
The crusher came with the Panthers on an 11-0 run that pulled them to within 62-51.
After giving the ball up on the other end, they couldn't corral a Cyclones missed three. That gave Iowa State a second chance that it quickly cashed in on a Jaren Holmes putback with 2:31 remaining.
UWM managed only a pair of Zach Howell free throws the rest of the way.
"The one stretch, we were down and we went small and they went big," Lundy said. "They got a bunch in a row. But at that point, rebounding versus trying to score some points -- that's how you're playing it.
"I thought our guys fought. I knew we would be messy offensively for a while, just trying to figure things out. But we've got to be better than that, obviously."
Iowa State barely won the overall rebounding battle, 38-35, but 17 of those were of the offensive variety with the Cyclones scoring 19 second-chance points.
"I thought we got into their legs," Lundy said. "They were really tired at the end. We were just in too big a hole to come back."
Rand perfect no longer
Senior forward Ahmad Rand came into the game a perfect 14 for 14 from the field – an effort that was the byproduct of the big man's hustle and springiness around the rim.
So it was strange to see his first miss come on a three-pointer early in the game and then to see him miss another long jumper early in the second half, with not much playing time coming for Rand the rest of the way.
He finished with one point after missing all five of his shots while grabbing four rebounds and blocking a shot in 11 minutes, tied for a season low for him (Purdue).
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: UWM Panthers turn ball over 27 times in loss to Iowa State
