MILWAUKEE, Wisc. - The IUPUI basketball team will open Horizon League play on Saturday (Dec. 3) when the Jaguars take on Milwaukee (6-3, 1-0 HL) at 7:00 p.m. Central (8 Eastern) on ESPN+. The Jaguars look to stop a three-game skid while Milwaukee comes in having won four straight, including a win at Green Bay in its Horizon League opener on Thursday night. 

While the Jaguars went winless on a three-game trip to New Orleans, the squad received a major lift with the return of junior Bryce Monroe. The California-native averaged 15 points and 4.7 assists per game on the trip, including a 29-point outburst against New Orleans. Graduate transfer Chris Osten continued to assert himself in the middle with a pair of double-doubles on the trip, averaging 10.7 points and 8.3 rebounds over the three contests. Head coach Matt Crenshaw tweaked the starting lineup for the three games, inserting Monroe in place of freshman Armon Jarrard. 

Junior forward John Egbuta continued to settle into a starting role, averaging 8.3 points and 3.0 rebounds per game in three starts, including a season-high 11 points and six boards against New Orleans on Nov. 24. Egbuta also knocked down 50 percent of his three-point attempts during the trip. 

IUPUI comes in looking to break a four-game slide against Milwaukee as well, having not defeated the Panthers since Jan. 29, 2021. The Jaguars haven't won in Milwaukee since Feb. 16, 2018 when they captured a 76-71 overtime victory. 

QUOTABLE
"I think we learned a lot about ourselves during this trip. It's hard to get up for three games in three days and we're disappointed to have not gotten a win down here. But, I think the positive thing is that we played a lot of different guys, we learned a lot about our team and we're going to be better in the long run," Crenshaw said following his team's loss to The Citadel on Nov. 25. 

SCOUTING MILWAUKEE
Milwaukee comes in at 6-3 overall and 1-0 in Horizon League play. The Panthers are 5-1 at home this season with the lone loss having come to St. Thomas on Nov. 23. Sophomore BJ Freeman leads the Panthers in scoring (11.5 ppg), including 13 threes, and Ahmad Rand checks in at 9.7 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. The Panthers boast eight players averaging between 7.0 points and Freeman's 11.5 points per game. 

THE MONROE EFFECT
    After missing the first three games of the season to injury, junior transfer Bryce Monroe has made a major impact in the Jaguars' lineup. Since making his IUPUI debut, Monroe leads the team in scoring (12.0 ppg) and assists (3.8 apg) in his four appearances (three starts). 
    More importantly, the team as a whole has improved its output. Without Monroe in the lineup, the Jags scored just 48.3 points per game, but have increased that number to 65.0 points per game since his return. In addition, the Jags averaged just 5.3 assists per game in the season's first three games, but have averaged 11 assists per game in the four games since. 
    Monroe had a monster game at New Orleans on Nov. 24, pumping in 29 points (13-20 FG, 3-6 3's) and seven assists - both of which are the most by an IUPUI player this season. 

OSTEN POWERS
    Grad transfer Chris Osten had scored in double-digits just one time in his Division I career at both Arizona State and Northern Illinois and never had a double-double prior to this season. However, in just seven games this season, Osten has hit double-figures four times and registered three double-doubles. He had season-highs of 15 points (6-9 FG, 3-4 FT) and 12 boards at Chicago State on Nov. 14 and later had back-to-back 14-point, 10-rebound double-doubles against Denver (Nov. 23) and New Orleans (Nov. 24). The past five games, he's averaging 11.4 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. 
    He's currently fifth in the Horizon League in rebounding (7.43 rpg), second in offensive rebounding (3.43 rpg) and is tied for second in the league in double-doubles (3). 

COUNT 'EM UP    
    Sophomore Jlynn Counter has been IUPUI's most consistent weapon this season, averaging 11.9 points per game and hitting double-digits four times. Counter, a 6-foot-3 guard, is shooting 47.9 percent from the floor. 
    However, that total is even more impressive when you factor in that he's 0-for-10 from three to start the year, leaving him at 34-of-61 (55.7 percent) from inside the arc this season and 78.9 percent from the free throw line. 
    He's currently second on the team in both rebounding (3.4 rpg) and assists (1.9 apg) and leads the squad in free throws made (15). 

A VERY BRADY WEEK
    Freshman guard Vincent Brady II was named the Horizon League's Freshman of the Week for his efforts on Nov. 21 after he averaged 7.0 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game in games at Chicago State (Nov. 14) and Franklin College (Nov. 19). 
    He had a season-high nine points at CSU on 3-of-7 from three and followed with five points, four boards and three assists in the win over Franklin. 

FRESH STARTERS
    IUPUI had three freshmen in the starting lineup in the opener as Vincent Brady II, Amhad Jarrard and Armon Jarrard all got the starting nod. The trio, all of whom are Indianapolis natives, combined on four points, five boards and an assist in the opener at Iowa State. 

FRESHMAN UPDATE
    As IUPUI approaches the quarter point of this season, three true freshmen have been key cogs in the Jaguars' regular rotation. A fourth, DJ Jackson, was earmarked for a major role before suffering an injury. 
    Here's a look at the production of the Jaguars' rookie class:
Vincent Brady II: 26.4 mpg (2nd on the team), 6.0 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 8 3's made (leads team)
Amhad Jarrard: 20.7 mpg (5th on the team), 5.1 ppg, 0.4 rpg, 6 steals
Armon Jarrard: 13.8 mpg, 3.5 ppg, 1.2 rpg, 7 steals (tied for team lead)
DJ Jackson (2 games): 16.5 mpg, 3.0 ppg, 4.0 rpg

UP NEXT
IUPUI will close out the two-game Horizon League trip at Green Bay on Monday (Dec. 5) when the Jaguars face the Phoenix at 11:00 a.m. CT (12 Eastern) on ESPN+.