The Upper Iowa men's basketball team dropped their second game in the Hillyard Tip-Off Classic in a 75-67 loss to the Missouri Western Griffons on Saturday night. The loss is the second for the Peacocks to start off the 2018 campaign while the Griffons move to 3-1 on the season.
The Peacocks struck first as
Joe Smoldt put up a quick four points at the start of the game to give Upper Iowa the lead out of the gate. The Griffons answered quickly and went on a 13-2 run that would give them a lead that they would hang on to for the remainder of the game. Despite Smoldt's 14 first half points, the Peacocks couldn't close the gap before the intermission as they went to the break trailing the Griffons 43-37.
The second half saw the Peacocks emerge from the locker room with a renewed energy.
Munachiso Okonkwo battled in the paint for two quick buckets to start the second half to bring the Peacocks within two. Upper Iowa tried to stick with the Griffons in the second half, but hit just 2 of 13 from beyond the arc. The Peacocks couldn't get the points they needed to close the gap and the Griffons would hang on for a 75-67 victory.
UIU had four different players with double-digit scoring performances on the night. Smoldt led the Peacocks with a 22-point performance followed by Okonkwo who put up 15 of his own while pulling in 12 boards to record his first double-double of the season.
Chris Olson and
Jareese Williams each put up 10 points for the Peacocks.
The Peacocks struggled to slow down Tyus Millhollin who put up 22 points for the Griffons including hitting 6 from downtown. Missouri Western also saw a big night from leading scorer Lavon Hightower helped the Griffon's efforts with 16 points of his own.
The Peacocks will return to action on Friday when they hit the floor in Dorman Gym for the first time in 2018. UIU will take on the Quincy University Hawks with a 7 p.m. tip-off.
