The Peacock men's basketball team bounced back in a big way on Saturday inside Dorman Gymnasium on a snowy Fayette night. Upper Iowa trailed by 10 points at halftime to the Dragons of Minnesota State University Moorhead, but responded by scoring a season-high 58 points in the second half on a remarkable 71% shooting. UIU quickly grabbed the lead and extended it out to a 13-point victory, 91-78. With the win, the Peacocks get back over .500 at 14-13 overall and 7-11 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. MSU Moorhead drops to 6-18 overall and 4-14 in the league with the loss.

Scoring came aplenty for Upper Iowa Saturday, with five players finishing in double figures. Senior Carson Parker notched his ninth 20-point game of the season, hitting it right on the nose on an extremely efficient 7-9 shooting from the field. The point guard added nine rebounds to match teammate Quentin Blaue for the team-high, and dished out five assists as well. Freshman Joe Smoldt continued his outstanding freshman campaign with 18 points on 7-11 from the field, including 4-8 from behind the arc. Smoldt's five rebounds were also a big part of a 42-rebound night for UIU. Dennis Austin III and Kam Rowan each tallied 14 points, and Rowan's 7 assists were by far a game-best. Munachiso Okonkwo added 12 points in the paint on 5-7 from the floor in 24 minutes. Mitch Eighme added seven points off the bench for the Peacocks as well.

MSU Moorhead got off to the good start in the first half, but it took the visitors awhile to pull away. Upper Iowa trailed by eight points early on, but chipped away to stay close halfway through the period. Trailing 18-17 with 9:23 remaining, UIU grabbed the lead with a pair of Austin III free throws. However, the Dragons then used a big offensive run to close the half. With 3:04 until halftime, the Dragons went on a 13-4 run to extend their lead to 43-33 at the break. A pair of three-pointers from All-NSIC guard Tanner Kretchman helped the visitors earn their largest lead of the game. But in the second half, the Peacocks began to make their move.

Trailing by double digits, it usually takes a gradual run to get back in the game. That was not the case Saturday night, as Upper Iowa immediately got themselves back in the contest. Parker got the half started with a jumper in the paint, and Okonkwo followed that up with a hard-fought, three-point play on the next possession. After the foul, the Dragons were charged with a technical foul, giving three free throws to UIU. Parker hit the technical-foul shots, but Okonkwo missed his and-one chance. However, an offensive rebound and a three by Parker finished off the seven-point possession to immediately get the Peacocks back in it, trailing 43-42. It took 1:18 to close the gap, and UIU was not done. Trailing 48-47, Parker went back to work with a jump shot to take the lead with 16:46 to play. It took just 3:14 for Upper Iowa to turn a 10-point deficit into a one-point lead. The Peacocks still were not done.

Points in the paint were crucial to the 71% shooting effort in the second half for the home team. Rowan and Okonkwo continued to work hard inside to convert tough shots, and the Peacocks slowly started to push the led out themselves. After missing all nine shots from behind the arc in the first half, Blaue and Smoldt hit back-to-back three pointers to push the lead out to nine points. The Peacocks led by as many as 17 in the second half after outscoring the Dragons 47-20 in 14 minutes. All together in the half, UIU tallied 58 points, their best half of the season, and pulled away for a 13-point victory.

UIU outscored their guests 50-30 in the paint, and got on the glass with a 42-39 edge in rebounding. The 71% shooting in the final 20 minutes is the best of the season for the team, as the Peacocks earned their fourth win in the last five games. For the game, UIU shot 54% from the floor, including 6-18 from distance. The 91 points for the game is the sixth time this season the team has reached 90 more points; Upper Iowa is 6-0 in those games. During the winning streak (4 of 5), the Peacocks have have reached the threshold three times. The win is the first over MSU Moorhead since Jan. 2014, and is the first time the senior class (Parker, Eighme) has topped the Dragons. The 2018 seniors have now defeated all 16 teams in the NSIC.

Upper Iowa will ride their momentum into central Minnesota next weekend as they travel north to Mankato and St. Paul for two games against divisional opponents. The Peacocks will match up with the Mavericks of Minnesota State University, Mankato Friday, Feb. 9 at 8 p.m. before heading over to take on the Golden Bears of Concordia University, St. Paul on Saturday, Feb. 10 at 6 p.m.