This Week in Upper Iowa Men’s Basketball... 2012 is over and the Peacocks’ 2013 schedule gets underway this weekend against two strong NSIC-South opponents. First, UIU will host the University of Sioux Falls on Friday night in just its third conference home game of the season. Then on Saturday night, the Peacocks will face a hot-shooting Southwest Minnesota State team. Both games are set to begin at 8 PM.
Peacocks Sweep in Hawaii... Playing in the historic Bloch Arena, the Peacocks found their groove early and often. UIU earned its largest margin of victory this season with a dominating 67-26 victory over Menlo College to open the HPU Basketball Classic. The Peacocks followed that up with another big win over the host Sea-Warriors of Hawaii Pacific. UIU scored a season-high 83 points to earn the 20-point victory and head into Christmas break on a two-game win streak.
The Series... USF and UIU have met only twice and both teams have a win in the series. Since the 2007-08 season, the Peacocks and the Mustangs have squared off a total of ten times, but UIU has managed just two wins in that timespan. The Peacocks last defeated SMSU during the 2010-11 season as they earned a 75-74 victory at home in overtime. The Mustangs hit a game-tying three-pointer to send the game to overtime, but senior Dan Bestul gave UIU the victory with his own buzzer-beating bucket from downtown.
Dominant Defense... Last season the Peacocks gave up an average of 71 points per game to opponents. So far this year, that problem seems to be solved. UIU is holding its opponents to just 60.9 ppg - which is good for third in the conference. The Peacocks have allowed only three teams to reach 71 points or more. Only one opponent has shot 50% or better against UIU this season.
Leading the Cougars... A.J. Holland (10.8 ppg, 44% FG, 35% 3FG, 2.3 apg) || James Rader (10.2 ppg, 53% FG, 3.8 rpg) || Derek Brown (9.7 ppg, 50 % FG, 50% 3FG, 2.1 rpg, 2 spg) || David Maxwell (8.8 ppg, 39% FG, 4.7 rpg, 1.5 apg)
Leading the Mustangs... Jordan Miller (15.2 ppg, 41% FG, 36% 3FG, 6.4 rpg, 3 apg) || Nick Smith (12 ppg, 56% FG, 7.3 rpg, 1 bpg) || Lavione West (10 ppg, 50% FG, 3 rpg) || Matt Zager (9.5 ppg, 62% FG, 46% 3FG, 2.9 rpg)
Senior Bigs Ranked in NSIC... Both Sam Elgin and Tucker Wentzien are ranked in the top-30 in the conference for their scoring outputs this season. Elgin holds the 27th spot with 11.6 pgg, while Wentzien is 13th in the conference with 13.7 ppg. Elgin is also ranked in free throw percentage and defensive rebounds.
Sights Set on 1,000... Speaking of Wentzien, the senior is only 44 points shy of the 1,000 point plateau. The Solon, Iowa native reached the 956 mark after scoring 16 points against Hawaii Pacific on Dec. 19th. Wentzien will become the 22nd member of the distinctive 1,000-point club. On Feb. 24, 2010 Matt Lesan became the 21st Peacock in program history to break the 1,000-point barrier for a career in a 66-58 loss at Winona State. Lesan finished his career with 1,383 points over four years at UIU. Jim Bushkofsky is the all-time leading scorer in Upper Iowa men's basketball history as he finished his four-year career with 2,194 points at the end of the 1973-74 season. Bushkofsky also holds the record for most points scored in a season with 855 during his junior campaign.
Up Next... After facing the Cougars and Mustangs, the Peacocks will hit the road. They will play at Minot State on January 11th, before facing the University of Mary the very next day. Click here to view the full scheudle.
Tune In... Don't forget to click on the live option links above to follow all the of the Peacock action live! The Peacock Athletic Fund Pregame show will begin roughly fifteen minutes before tip-off.
