Box Score Records
Upper Iowa (10-12, 8-8 NSIC) || Northern State (14-8, 9-7 NSIC)
Recap
ABERDEEN, S.D. – The Upper Iowa men's basketball team cemented its first weekend sweep of the season on Saturday as they defeated the Wolves of Northern State, 76-70, in NSIC action. For the second night in a row and the 13th time this season,
Joey Woods led UIU in scoring. The senior cemented his own memorable weekend as he scored 24 points on 8-of-14 shooting, while adding 5 assists, 4 rebounds, a block and a steal.
Woods finished the weekend with 64 combined points, going 21-36 from the floor and 2-5 from deep. Woods wasn't alone though.
Grant Lang finished second in scoring with 19 points as the Ankeny, Iowa native hit 5 of 8 triples in the game. The Peacocks' offense was firing on all cylinders, but mostly in the first half. UIU shot 53-percent before intermission, while holding NSU to 32 points and a 36-percent shooting clip in the first half.
Despite the Wolves hitting their first three shots, UIU took an early 7-6 lead two and a half minutes into the game thanks to a triple from Lang. NSU missed five of their next six shots and turned it over five times, but the Peacocks couldn't take advantage as the Peacocks missed four shots of their own.
Austin Mecca finally broke the cold streak as
Jace Hanna dished him the rock down low for a layup off the glass giving UIU an 11-8 lead eight minutes into the game.
NSU hit a jumper on the other end before Lang extended the Peacocks' lead to seven with back-to-back trifectas. The junior wing started 3 for 3 from beyond the arc adding to a stellar weekend of play. The Wolves sandwiched a Woods' layup to cut the visitors' lead to five, 19-14, just past the midway point in the first half, but NSU found started to find a groove offensively. The home team used the next two minutes to cap off a 9-2 run to tie the game at 21.
Much like Friday night, Woods found an answer for UIU. The redshirt-senior hit back-to-back buckets with the first coming from downtown. His five-point swing gave UIU a 26-21 lead with 5:13 left before halftime. Upper Iowa seemed to have all the momentum, but NSU continued to get to the line. NSU shot 18 free throws in the first half and made 13 of them.
Jordan Hay ensured UIU kept its five-point advantage at the 3:20 mark as he tipped in a missed three before hitting the deck. After NSU hit one of two free throws,
Josh Weeber got on the board for the first time with a 10-footer from the baseline before Woods earned a steal and fast-break dunk. His slam gave UIU a 34-26 cushion with a little over two minutes to play in the opening period.
Weeber and Woods kept up the pressure as the duo capped an 8-0 run for UIU. Yet despite that run for the Peacocks, NSU finished the half on their own 6-0 offensive burst to pull within six at the break, 38-32. Woods had a team-high 15 points at intermission as the Peacocks shot 53-percent from the floor. But UIU had a much slower start in the second stanza.
UIU begun the period just 1-of-6 from the floor, but never relinquished the lead as Lang hit another three and Weeber hit two more free throws. NSU on the other hand, started the half on a 9-5 run, but that run was broken with back-to-back treys from
Luke Lenhart. The freshman hit two deep threes from each sideline and then earned a steal on the defensive end. The Storm Lake, Iowa native forced the 12th NSU turnover and it led to a pair of free throw attempts from
Bo Pagel as UIU took a 50-41 lead.
After the under ten-minute media timeout, Weeber found space beyond the arc and drained his first triple of the game. Woods added a free throw at the 9:01 mark to give UIU an 11-point lead, 54-43 – their largest lead of the second half.
A minute later, NSU's Skye Warwick jump-started a 10-0 run for the Wolves with five-straight points. Mitch White capped that spurt with two free throws as NSU tied the game for the fourth time. Two free throws from
Kierre Ogbonna ensured UIU regained the lead. A minute later, Woods made a half-court pass to a streaking Lang and the junior wing converted the layup, but momentum was on the Wolves' side.
NSU pulled within one, 59-58, after a layup inside, but once again the Peacocks hit a three to shift the momentum. The trifecta was the fifth of the game for Lang as UIU clung to a 59-56 lead. It didn't last.
Warwick hit another three on the Wolves' next possession and NSU tied the game, 63-63, at the 3:42 mark with two more free throws. The Peacocks found an answer though as
David Smith earned a trip to the charity stripe and drained both of his freebies. Woods added another but the Wolves kept within striking distance after hitting two free throws of their own. With just two minutes left, Hay earned another trip to the free throw line and he converted both of his attempts to give UIU a 70-67 lead.
UIU then earned a stop on defense before Woods converted a running layup off the glass with less than a minute to play. After NSU hit 1 of 2 free throws, Woods headed to the line again and nailed both of his attempts, all but solidifying the victory.
Lang hit two more free throws for UIU as the Peacocks sealed the 76-70 victory and the weekend sweep – their first road sweep of the season.
Stat of the Game
Over the first 16 minutes of the second half, UIU hit just 6 of 23 shots from the floor, but five of those field goals were threes (5 of 10). The Wolves outscored UIU by four during that stretch, 29-25. The Peacocks hit both of their final two shots and drained their final 10 free throw attempts.
UIU Standouts
Woods (24 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds, 1 steal, 1 block), Lang (19 points, 5-of-8 3FG, 4 rebounds)
, Weeber (9 points, 2 rebounds, 2 steals), Hay (8 points, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 1 block, 1 assist), Lenhart (6 points, 1 rebound, 1 steal)
Up Next
The Peacocks will stick to the road as they head to Wayne State next Friday night and Augustana next Saturday. Friday's matchup in Nebraska with the Wildcats will begin at 8 p.m.
