# 2023–24 Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball team

The 2023–24 Milwaukee Panthers men's basketball team represented the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee during the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Panthers, led by second-year head coach Bart Lundy, played their home games at the UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and select games at the on-campus Klotsche Center as members of the Horizon League.

## Previous season

The Panthers finished the 2022–23 season in second place in the Horizon League with a record of 22–12, including 14–6 in conference play. They received a first-round bye in the Horizon League tournament, defeating seventh-seeded Wright State in the quarterfinals at the Klotsche Center before losing to third-seeded Cleveland State in Indianapolis in the semifinals. The Panthers were invited to the 2023 College Basketball Invitational as the eleventh-seeded team. They upset sixth-seeded Stetson in overtime in the first round before losing to eventual champions Charlotte in the quarterfinals.

## Offseason
### Departures

Milwaukee departures :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Keon Edwards | 35 | G | 6'8" | 210 | Sophomore | Houston, TX | Transferred to Northeastern State |
| Jalen Johnson | 24 | F | 6'7" | 230 | RS Junior | Indianapolis, IN | Transferred to Grambling State |
| Vincent Miszkiewicz | 20 | F | 6'7" | 220 | Sophomore | Elgin, IL | Transferred to Keiser |
| Justin Thomas | 25 | G | 6'7" | 179 | Sophomore | Baton Rouge, LA | Dismissed from team Transferred to UTSA |
| Brian Taylor II | 0 | G | 6'4" | 184 | Freshman | St. Louis, MO | Transferred to SIU Edwardsville |
| Jordan Ratliffe | 4 | G | 5'10" | 189 | RS Sr | Gibson, NC | Graduated |
| Vin Baker Jr. | 11 | G/F | 6'9" | 190 | RS Sr | Old Saybrook, CT | Graduated Played for the Milwaukee Bucks' 2023 NBA Summer League team |
| Ahmad Rand | 23 | F | 6'8" | 195 | RS Sr | Lincolnton, GA | Graduated |
| Moses Bol | 33 | C | 7'1" | 225 | RS Sr | Wau, South Sudan | Graduated |

### Incoming transfers

Milwaukee incoming transfers :
| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| Learic Davis | 11 | G | 6'7" | 190 | RS Freshman | Milwaukee, WI | Tennessee State |
| Darius Duffy | 34 | F | 6'8" | 225 | Junior | Murray, KY | Ranger College |
| Faizon Fields | 22 | F | 6'10" | 220 | Junior | Memphis, TN | Old Dominion |
| Aaron Franklin | 25 | G | 6'5" | 210 | RS Sophomore | Raytown, MO | Hutchinson CC |
| Erik Pratt | 8 | G | 6'5" | 185 | RS Junior | Lake Worth, FL | Texas A&M |
| Pierce Spencer | 0 | G | 6'3" | 175 | RS Junior | Montgomery, TX | Nicholls |
| Langston Wilson | 13 | F | 6'9" | 215 | Graduate | Upper Darby, PA | Washington |

### 2023 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for 2023 recruits :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Maurice Thomas G | Chicago, IL | DePaul College Prep | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Jun 12, 2023 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A |||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: |||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved May 8, 2023. |||||||

## Preseason

The Panthers were picked to finish in second place in the Horizon League preseason coaches poll, only behind Northern Kentucky, receiving a total of 397 points and 10 first-place votes. Guard BJ Freeman was selected to the Preseason First-Team All-Horizon League.

## Roster
### Mid-season changes

On December 18, 2023, the team dismissed junior guard Markeith Browning II, who appeared in 54 games for the Panthers, including all 11 this season.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 6, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | UW-Stout | W 91–73 | 1–0 | 18 – Stuart | 12 – Pullian | 7 – Browning | Klotsche Center (1,297) Milwaukee, WI |
| November 11, 2023* 5:00 p.m., FS2 | | at Providence | L 69–79 | 1–1 | 31 – Freeman | 10 – Freeman | 3 – Pullian | Amica Mutual Pavilion (12,090) Providence, RI |
| November 14, 2023* 8:00 p.m., P12N | | at No. 25 Colorado Sunshine Slam campus-site game | L 79–106 | 1–2 | 15 – Howell | 6 – Pullian | 5 – Freeman | CU Events Center (6,181) Boulder, CO |
| November 17, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Luther | W 85–56 | 2–2 | 23 – Freeman | 6 – tied | 5 – Pullian | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (2,373) Milwaukee, WI |
| November 20, 2023* 12:30 p.m., FloSports | | vs. Stetson Sunshine Slam Ocean Bracket semifinals | L 67–85 | 2–3 | 20 – Freeman | 5 – tied | 3 – Freeman | Ocean Center Daytona Beach, FL |
| November 21, 2023* 7:30 p.m., FloSports | | vs. Siena Sunshine Slam Ocean Bracket consolation game | W 61–59 | 3–3 | 18 – Freeman | 7 – Fields | 4 – Freeman | Ocean Center (1,502) Daytona Beach, FL |
| November 25, 2023* 1:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | Southern Miss | L 86–90 | 3–4 | 21 – Pullian | 9 – Fields | 6 – Browning II | Klotsche Center (1,605) Milwaukee, WI |
| December 2, 2023 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Green Bay | L 58–70 | 3–5 (0–1) | 25 – Browning II | 11 – Franklin | 1 – tied | Resch Center (2,320) Ashwaubenon, WI |
| December 6, 2023* 7:00 p.m., SLN | | at St. Thomas | L 71–75 | 3–6 (0–1) | 17 – Pratt | 6 – Pullian | 6 – Pullian | Schoenecker Arena (1,316) St. Paul, MN |
| December 9, 2023* 4:00 p.m. | | at UC Davis | W 81–79 | 4–6 (0–1) | 18 – Pratt | 6 – Franklin | 4 – Pratt | University Credit Union Center (1,143) Davis, CA |
| December 13, 2023* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Longwood | L 67–80 | 4–7 | 12 – Pratt | 6 – Franklin | 2 – tied | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (1,551) Milwaukee, WI |
| December 22, 2023* 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Chattanooga | W 85–83 $^{OT}$ | 5–7 | 29 – Pratt | 10 – Duffy | 8 – Jamison | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (1,501) Milwaukee, WI |
| December 29, 2023 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Robert Morris | W 78–75 | 6–7 (1–1) | 28 – Pullian | 9 – Duffy | 3 – Pratt | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (1,722) Milwaukee, WI |
| December 31, 2023 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Wright State | W 91–83 | 7–7 (2–1) | 23 – Freeman | 6 – tied | 6 – Freeman | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (1,794) Milwaukee, WI |
| January 4, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Oakland | L 95–100 | 7–8 (2–2) | 21 – Pullian | 12 – Fields | 7 – Jamison | Athletics Center O'rena (2,248) Rochester, MI |
| January 6, 2024 12:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Detroit Mercy | W 84–61 | 8–8 (3–2) | 20 – Pratt | 9 – Freeman | 4 – Freeman | Calihan Hall (889) Detroit, MI |
| January 12, 2024 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Cleveland State | W 88–80 | 9–8 (4–2) | 21 – Pratt | 14 – Wilson | 5 – Freeman | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (1,431) Milwaukee, WI |
| January 18, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Northern Kentucky | L 72–90 | 9–9 (4–3) | 22 – Jamison | 7 – Pullian | 7 – Freeman | Truist Arena (3,405) Highland Heights, KY |
| January 20, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Wright State | L 81–95 | 9–10 (4–4) | 17 – Freeman | 9 – Pratt | 3 – tied | Nutter Center (5,398) Dayton, OH |
| January 25, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Detroit Mercy | W 87–71 | 10–10 (5–4) | 22 – Freeman | 11 – Freeman | 5 – Freeman | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (2,341) Milwaukee, WI |
| January 27, 2024 3:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Oakland | L 87–91 $^{2OT}$ | 10–11 (5–5) | 27 – Pullian | 16 – Fields | 9 – Freeman | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (2,729) Milwaukee, WI |
| February 1, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Purdue Fort Wayne | W 68–65 | 11–11 (6–5) | 26 – Freeman | 12 – Fields | 4 – Freeman | Hilliard Gates Sports Center (903) Fort Wayne, IN |
| February 4, 2024 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | IUPUI | W 87–67 | 12–11 (7–5) | 16 – tied | 12 – Fields | 6 – Freeman | Klotsche Center (1,616) Milwaukee, WI |
| February 8, 2024 5:30 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Youngstown State | L 85–97 $^{OT}$ | 12–12 (7–6) | 24 – Freeman | 16 – Fields | 5 – tied | Beeghly Center (3,046) Youngstown, OH |
| February 10, 2024 1:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Robert Morris | L 60–71 | 12–13 (7–7) | 23 – Freeman | 7 – tied | 2 – tied | UPMC Events Center (1,084) Moon Township, PA |
| February 14, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at Cleveland State | W 71–68 | 13–13 (8–7) | 17 – Fields | 12 – Pullian | 3 – tied | Wolstein Center (1,281) Cleveland, OH |
| February 17, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Northern Kentucky | W 73–72 | 14–13 (9–7) | 26 – Freeman | 11 – tied | 5 – Freeman | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (2,509) Milwaukee, WI |
| February 23, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Youngstown State | L 80–84 $^{OT}$ | 14–14 (9–8) | 22 – Freeman | 10 – Fields | 8 – Freeman | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (2,296) Milwaukee, WI |
| February 25, 2024 2:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | Purdue Fort Wayne | W 96–88 | 15–14 (10–8) | 38 – Freeman | 6 – tied | 4 – tied | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (2,194) Milwaukee, WI |
| February 28, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at IUPUI | W 75–70 | 16–14 (11–8) | 22 – Freeman | 10 – Freeman | 2 – tied | Indiana Farmers Coliseum (1,180) Indianapolis, IN |
| March 2, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPNU | | Green Bay | W 90–69 | 17–14 (12–8) | 22 – Freeman | 11 – Freeman | 6 – Freeman | UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena (4,037) Milwaukee, WI |
| Horizon League tournament |||||||||
| March 5, 2024 7:00 p.m., ESPN+ | (6) | (11) Detroit Mercy First round | W 83–79 | 18–14 | 30 – Freeman | 10 – Freeman | 5 – tied | Klotsche Center (1,558) Milwaukee, WI |
| March 7, 2024 9:00 p.m., ESPN+ | (6) | at (3) Green Bay Quarterfinals | W 95–84 | 19–14 | 32 – Freeman | 10 – Freeman | 5 – Freeman | Kress Events Center (2,394) Green Bay, WI |
| March 11, 2024 8:30 p.m., ESPN2 | (6) | vs. (5) Northern Kentucky Semifinals | W 82–75 | 20–14 | 27 – Freeman | 16 – Fields | 4 – Jamison | Indiana Farmers Coliseum Indianapolis, IN |
| March 12, 2024 6:00 p.m., ESPN | (6) | vs. (1) Oakland Championship | L 76–83 | 20–15 | 16 – Pratt | 9 – Franklin | 6 – Jamison | Indiana Farmers Coliseum Indianapolis, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central. |||||||||
Source: