THIS WEEKEND IN PEACOCK MEN'S BASKETBALL... The Peacocks will hit the road after spending the last two weeks on their home court. Upper Iowa will first head to Sioux Falls, S.D. where they will take on the University of Sioux Falls Cougars on Friday, Jan. 24 at 7:30 p.m. The road trip will continue onto Marshall, Minn. where UIU will face the Mustangs of Southwest Minnesota State University on Saturday, Jan. 25 at 5:30 p.m. Live stats, a webcast, and an audio broadcast will be available at UIUPeacocks.com/LIVE. The game will also stream live on the NSIC app through Roku and Fire devices, as well as Apple and Android TV.
STORMIN' THROUGH DORMAN... Upper Iowa claimed wins this weekend over Bemidji State University, 105-93, in double-overtime on Friday night and the University of Minnesota Crookston, 102-94, the following evening. The pair of victories pushed the Peacocks' win streak to four games and improved their record in NSIC home games to 7-0. Friday night's win versus Bemidji State was the Peacocks' third overtime victory this season, the team is 3-1 in games that have extended past regulation. The win was also UIU's first double-overtime victory since January 2015. Upper Iowa passed the century mark in both games over the weekend. The Peacocks have scored 100 points or more four times this season, winning all four games.
On Friday, Bemidji State got out to a double-digit lead early, but Upper Iowa used a 15-4 run to go ahead by a slim margin at the half. The Beavers and Peacocks each posted a pair of runs in the second half that resulted in a 76-76 draw at the end of regulation. Bemidji State and Upper Iowa continued to go toe-to-toe in the first overtime period. Cade Moritz and Lucas Duax combined for 12 points which was enough to tie the game again at 88. The second extra period was in complete control of the Peacocks as Upper Iowa held a 17-5 advantage resulting in the 105-93 win. Saturday's game started in a similar fashion with the Golden Eagles going ahead early and the Peacocks securing the lead by halftime. The two teams traded a pair of second half runs, but Upper Iowa held the final advantage that led them to the 102-94 victory.
The weekend featured an abundance of firsts and career-highs. Joshua Carter recorded the Peacocks' first double-double of the season as he scored 16 points and matched a career-high 10 rebounds Friday night. Moritz registered single game career-highs in points (20) and blocks (6) on Friday, as well as rebounds (8) on Saturday. Lucas Duax reached a new career-high in rebounds with eight and matched a career-high four steals on Friday night. Additionally, Jareese Williams matched his career-high rebound total with eight while Jackson Joens scored a career-high 22 points on Saturday evening.
PRIDE OF THE PEACOCKS... Moritz earned a spot on the NSIC week 10 top performers list after averaging 18 points, six rebounds and three blocks per game over the weekend. Moritz shot a near perfect 15-17 (88%) from the floor including 3-3 from downtown. Moritz's 1.3 blocks per game ranks ninth in the NSIC. Moritz (20,16) was one of two Peacocks who posted double figures in both games this weekend along with Jake Hilmer (18,20). Hilmer increased his points per game total to 12.1, the third highest total on the team. Hilmer dished out 13 assists this weekend, his 4.8 assists per game ranks fourth in the NSIC while his 2.2 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks fifth.
After a quiet Friday night, Williams posted a 16-point, eight-rebound performance on Saturday. Williams 13.9 points per game is a team high and his 4.9 rebounds per game is the second highest total out of all Peacocks next to Carter (5.2). Despite only converting two three-pointers this weekend, Williams' 45.6% three-point percentage still sits atop the NSIC and ranks 19th nationally. Joe Smoldt scored 30 points on the weekend, his 13.3 points is second on the team only to Williams. Smoldt went 9-12 from the charity stripe, his 81.3% rating from the line is the 10th best in the league. Lucas Duax netted five steals against Bemidji State and Minnesota Crookston, his 2.2 per game is an NSIC best.
SCOUTING THE COUGARS… The career series between the Peacocks and the Cougars is even at seven games apiece since Sioux Falls joined the NSIC during the 2012-13 season. This season the Cougars have a league best 14-4 overall record and 10-2 mark in conference play. Sioux Falls is coming off a 69-66 loss on the road to Minot State University. Prior to the defeat, the Cougars were on a seven-game win streak, which included victories over SMSU (84-69) and Concordia University St. Paul (74-59). The Cougars have four double-digit scorers who share the load on offense: Chase Grinde (11.2), Austin Slater (10.7), Teathloach Pal (10.7) and Jack Thompson (10.2). Pal (8.9) and Slater (7.2) both rank among the top 11 NSIC players in rebounds per game. As a team, Sioux Falls holds a +3.3 scoring margin and a +6.5 margin on the boards.
SCOUTING THE MUSTANGS... SMSU holds a 20-8 record in the career series against Upper Iowa. This season the Mustangs sit at the bottom of the NSIC South Division with a 6-12 record overall and 3-9 in NSIC play. SMSU split their most recent series grabbing a win over Minot State (61-57) before falling to the University of Mary (75-60). The Mustangs are led by Kenny Byers (17.6) and Nick Dufault (12.7), the duo averages over 30 points per game. Byers also leads the team in rebounds per game with 7.8 and assists per game with 2.9. As a team the Mustangs (4.1) nearly double the amount of blocks per game tallied by their opponents (2.4).
