Sources have confirmed to PantherU that the Horizon League is unlikely to renew the facility waiver for the Milwaukee Panthers to play men's basketball in the Klotsche Center following this year.

Speaking under the condition of anonymity, one source told PantherU that the conference granted the waiver on the condition that plans move forward to secure a new on-campus arena for men's basketball. With recent comments made by athletic director that the new arena has been moved to the back-burner, the Horizon League brass' stance has changed and they would prefer one of their flagship programs to be playing in a better facility than the Klotsche Center, which is "an adequate D-III arena but does not fit Division I by any stretch of the imagination."

The Horizon League has a bylaw in place that does not allow any conference member to play in a facility under 5,000. The bylaw was put in place after Milwaukee left the Klotsche Center for the U.S. Cellular Arena in 2003. Milwaukee's move back to the Klotsche Center was billed as a cost-cutting measure that would help the program as it prepared to build a brand new facility or renovate the Klotsche Center into an adequate home for its program.

The Panthers were granted the waiver in June, shortly after Geiger's arrival on campus. Geiger himself reported to the university that he would be stepping down from the athletic director's chair earlier than the planned summer 2013 end date, so he could focus on fundraising and assisting the new athletic director search and hire as well as supporting the new AD.

Milwaukee reportedly lost between 800 and 1,000 season-ticket holders this season, although how many of those lost due to the move to Klotsche Center may never be known. Heading into the 2011-12 season, Milwaukee had home games with Butler and Wisconsin on the schedule, as well as the fact that the team was coming off a Horizon League Championship.