The Peacock men's basketball team's season came to an end in Minot, N.D. on Wednesday night in the first round of the 2018 NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament. Upper Iowa had stormed back to tie the Beavers of Minot State University at 66 apiece with 8:17 to go in the second half. From that point on, the home team outscored UIU 25-5 the rest of the way en route to a 91-71 win. With the loss, Upper Iowa drops to 17-15 overall, while Minot State improves to the quarterfinal round on Saturday in Sioux Falls, S.D.

The program says goodbye to seniors Carson Parker and Mitch Eighme. Parker added 17 more points to his career, finishing with 1,475 career points, the eighth most in Upper Iowa history. Parker finished with another double-double with 10 rebounds in the game as well, and added 8 assists in all 40 minutes. Eighme added four points, and capped off his four-year career for Head Coach Brooks McKowen. Kam Rowan led the Peacocks in scoring with 18 off the bench on 7-12 from the floor including a season-best 3 connections from behind the arc. Jareese Williams scored 12 off the bench, while Dennis Austin III tallied 10.

Minot State got off to a 13-6 start on Wednesday, and trailed only once in the game, 3-2, 1:23 into the first half. Upper Iowa trailed by as many as 11 points in the first period, and fell behind 43-36 at the break. The Beavers shot 58% from the floor in the opening half (18-31), and were very good inside the paint. UIU's 5-11 from behind the arc was not enough in the opening half, and the team had to play catch-up the rest of the ballgame.

The Peacocks used a big run in the second half to eventually even the game. Both teams went back-and-forth in the early moments of the second half, as Upper Iowa trailed by 11, 60-49, with 11:39 to play. At that point, the visitors used an 11-0 run fueled by eight points by Rowan. The redshirt junior hit a pair of three-pointers and a contested layup, and hit Parker for another trifecta to tie the game at 60. The run took just 1:56, and the game was back on. Smoldt and Rowan hit three-pointers on the next two possessions to tie the game again, at 66-66, with 8:17 to play. From that point, however, it was all Minot State.

The Beavers went on a 12-0 run in 2:05, and ended the game on an 11-0 run with big free throws to extend the lead out. UIU scored just 5 points the rest of the way, and struggled to get shots from the outside to fall. Upper Iowa shot just 37% from the floor in the second half, and shot 8-24 from behind the arc in the final 20 minutes as well. The Peacocks could not get inside on Wednesday, unlike the first time they played Minot State. UIU tallied 56 points in the paint in the first meeting, but just 18 in the first-round tournament game. Upper Iowa was outscored 30-16 inside in the loss.

The Peacocks wrap their season in the opening round of the tournament for the first time since the league moved to 16 teams in 2012-13. Upper Iowa is now 5-1 in first-round games, and will look to build off their young talent and returning players next season. Kam Rowan, Dennis Austin III, Munachiso Okonkwo, and Quentin Blaue all come back for their senior campaigns, while Joe Smoldt, Jareese Williams, and Peghuentz Pericles come back for their second full seasons of playing time. UIU secured its second consecutive winning season in 2017-18.