This Week in Upper Iowa Men’s Basketball... The Peacocks will play their last two NSIC-North opponents of the regular season in Minnesota this weekend. On Friday night, Upper Iowa will face the Bulldogs of the University of Minnesota Duluth (5-15, 3-13 NSIC) inside Romano Gym at 8 p.m. Then, the Peacocks will take on the Huskies of St. Cloud State (16-4, 12-4 NSIC) on Saturday inside SCSU's Halenbeck Hall at 6 p.m.

The Series… The Peacocks and Bulldogs have met seven times since the 2008-09 season. UMD holds a slight edge in the series, winning four out of those seven contests. The Bulldogs have also won three out of the last four matchups between these two teams, but two of the Peacocks' three wins in the series have come on the road.
UIU has faced SCSU much more often over the past nine seasons. Unfortunately, the Peacocks are 0-10 against the Huskies in that time span, including a 0-5 record in Saint Cloud, Minn.

Leading the Bulldogs… Jake Hottenstine (15.3 ppg, 47% FG, 32% 3FG, 4.1 rpg, 2.2 apg, 1.2 spg, 0.6 bpg) || Brett Ervin (15.0 ppg, 49% FG, 48% 3FG, 4.8 rpg, 2,2 apg) || Reece Zoelle (10.2 ppg, 40% FG, 34% 3FG, 3.9 rpg, 2.1 apg) || Jordan Reetz (6.8 ppg, 38% FG, 31% 3FG, 3.2 rpg, 1.4 spg)

Leading the Huskies… Theo Rothstein (16.8 ppg, 51% FG, 36% 3FG, 5.2 rpg, 1.1 bpg) || Shaun Jensen (14.0 ppg, 46% FG, 3.2 rpg, 4.95 apg) || Damarius Cruz (10.3 ppg, 46% FG, 43% 3FG) || Kevin Levandoski (7.2 ppg, 48% FG, 1.7 apg) || Connor Niehaus (5.9 ppg, 44%FG, 44% 3FG, 5.5 rpg, 1.8 apg, 1.35 spg)

Playoff-Bound... With just six games remaining in the season, securing a home playoff game remains a tough test for the Peacocks. Right now, UIU sits in fourth place in the NSIC-South behind Minnesota State, Winona State and Augustana. The Peacocks will see both the Vikings of Augustana and the Mavericks of Minnesota State one more time before the regular season is over. With the rule-change in the offseason, every NSIC team will make the playoffs, but only the top four teams in each division will earn a home game in the opening round. After facing the Bulldogs and Huskies, the Peacocks will have one more home weekend. UIU will face the Minnesota State Mavericks on the 15th of February, before taking on the Golden Bears of Concordia, St. Paul on Saturday the 16th.  Click here to view the Peacocks remaining schedule.

"Tuck" Dynasty…Senior Tucker Wentzien has been red-hot to start 2013. The 6-foot-8 post is averaging 19.5 points per game over the last two weekends and he has led UIU in scoring in seven of the first eleven games of the new year. Wentzien's 40 combined points against MSU Moorhead and Northern State last weekend moved him up a spot on the all-time scoring list at UIU. The Solon, Iowa native now sits in 17th with his 1,107 career-point mark. Click here to view the full list of all-time leading scorers at UIU.

Halfway Home… The Peacocks are 13-0 this season when leading after the first half of play. Compare that with a 2-7 mark when they are trailing at the break and you can see why a fast start is the key to a Peacock victory.

'Tis The Season… The UIU seniors are doing their best to make the most of their final season in the Peacock uniform. Guard Jake Hughes sits atop the NSIC thanks to his 59.3 shooting-percentage. Over the last two months, Wentzien has made a good case for team MVP. His team-high 13.7 points per game is good for 13th-best in the conference, while his 5.4 rebounds per game is also a top-20 mark in the NSIC (17th). Wentzien, who surpassed the 1,000-point plateau in his career in January, passed Ron Jarms on the all-time scoring list and now sits in 17th place all-time with his 1,107 career points. The Solon, Iowa product also ranks 12th in the NSIC with his 52.8 shooting percentage. Senior wing Sam Elgin has also shined this season. The Center Point native is tied for 21st in the NSIC in scoring with 12.0 ppg and his 87.8 free-throw percentage is good for 6th in the conference. Joey Woods is the only non-senior to be ranked in the NSIC this year. His 2.82 assists per game is good for a 15th-place tie in the conference.

Disturbingly Dominant Defense... Last friday night's contest with MSU Moorhead shows how strong of a defense UIU really has. The Peacocks held the MSUM Dragons, who entered the weekend as the third-best scoring offense (76.1 ppg) - to just 62 total points - MSUM's lowest point total this season. At 63.2 points per game allowed, UIU has been carried by its defense at times this year and it's propelled the Peacocks their best start in Division II play (15-7, 11-5 NSIC). Furthermore, UIU has allowed only five teams all season to reach 71 points or more and only two teams have shot 50% or better against UIU this season.

NSIC Rankings... As mentioned above, the dominant defense UIU has played has become a mainstay for the Peacocks this year. In turn, their aggressive play has helped them climb the ranks in the NSIC, and not just on defense. Not only is UIU's defense ranked third in scoring (63.2 ppg), but the team, as a whole, is ninth in scoring offense (69.1), seventh in scoring margin (+6.0), fifth in free-throw percentage (74%), seventh in field-goal percentage (45%), sixth in field-goal percentage defense (42%), third in three-point field goal defense (32%) and the Peacocks have the fourth best assist-to-turnover ratio (1.13). UIU is also listed in the top-10 in rebounding margin (+1.1), rebounding defense (31.8), assists per game (12.6), steals per game (6.2) and turnover margin (+1.32).

Tune In... Don't forget to click on the live option links above to follow all of the Peacock action as it happens live! Follow along with the live stats links, or listen to the UIU broadcasters by clicking on the listen live or watch live links. The Peacock Athletic Fund Pregame Show will begin roughly 15 minutes before the scheduled tip-off. Click here to listen to all the action live.