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CHARLESTON, ILL -- Eastern Illinois women's basketball dropped their second straight in a 61-72 home loss to the Bradley Braves on Tuesday, December 6.  With the loss, the Panthers drop to 6-2 overall on the season.

"We let one loss turn into two tonight,"  said head coach Matt Bollant.  "[We] didn't come out with passion or energy, and we wanted to play for four quarters, and we just didn't do that at all tonight."

It was another slow start for the Panthers, as the Braves scored the first eight points of the game and ultimately took an early 11-2 lead.  EIU didn't make their first field goal of the game until the 4:55 mark of the 1st quarter when a Macy McGlone layup cut the early deficit to seven.  But for every point the Panthers would score in the first period, Bradley would respond with points of their own, establishing a 19-8 lead with 1:30 to play in the quarter.  EIU pulled back to within six with a 5-0 spurt, but a Braves three-pointer made it 22-13 at the end of the first stanza.  Bradley continued to keep the Panthers at arms' length throughout the second quarter, establishing a 34-24 lead with 1:35 to go until halftime.  EIU used a 6-0 run to close the gap to four, but a buzzer-beater layup from Bradley's Ruba Abo Hashesh widened the deficit back to six.

EIU continued to fight, closing the gap to 38-34 early in the third quarter, but an 8-0 Bradley run put the Panthers in a 12-point hole midway through the period.  A McGlone converted and-one opportunity was followed by a Morgan Litwiller layup to cut it to seven, but Bradley again responded, using a 7-3 run to take a 53-42 lead.  A floater in the paint by Lariah Washington made it 53-44 going into the fourth quarter, and Washington would begin the scoring in the final period with a three-pointer to once again bring the Panthers back to within six.  The Panthers were once again ultimately unable to get over the hump, as a 9-0 Bradley run made it 62-47 with just under six minutes to go.  EIU turned up their full-court pressure in an attempt to make a comeback, but Bradley continued to match every bucket the Panthers made with at least one of their own to secure the game.

"We have a scouting report, and this is two games in a row now that we have not followed the assignment,"  said Litwiller.  "We let the same people beat us the same way.  It's in our scout, so we need to, as players, be better prepared."

Washington led EIU offensively with 19 points on 8-of-15 shooting and had four assists.  She is now tied with Chris Aldridge for 13th on EIU's all-time scorers list.  Litwiller scored 11 points on 4-of-8 shooting and grabbed six rebounds, while McGlone scored 13.  Hannah Purcell and Emily Meidel each had five points, and Purcell grabbed five rebounds.

Up next, the Panthers will now head back on the road as they take on the Milwaukee Panthers on Saturday, December 10.  Tipoff is scheduled for 2 PM CT.