THIS WEEKEND IN PEACOCK MEN'S BASKETBALL... The Peacocks return home to Dorman Memorial Gymnasium to host a pair of NSIC cross divisional matchups. Upper Iowa will first host St. Cloud State University on Jan. 31 at 7:30 p.m. On Feb. 1, the Peacocks will take on the University of Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs at 5:30 p.m. Live stats and a webcast 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. Fans attending the game are encouraged to participate in super hero and Mardi Gras theme nights on Friday and Saturday evening. Additionally, Friday's game marks educator appreciation night while Saturday is youth day.

WINNING WEEKEND... Upper Iowa claimed wins this weekend over Sioux Falls University, 68-60, on Friday night and Southwest Minnesota State University, 80-77, the following evening. The pair of victories pushes Upper Iowa's win streak to six games and gives the Peacocks sole possession of second place in the NSIC South. UIU is just one game behind first place Sioux Falls in the NSIC South standings.

On Friday, Upper Iowa went ahead early on thanks to an 11-0 run. The Cougars quickly retaliated with an 11-2 run that made the game 18-16 with 10:08 to go in the first half. The score seesawed for the remainder of the half, Sioux Falls led 39-38 at the break. A 9-2 Peacock run fueled by six points from Cade Moritz put Upper Iowa ahead 52-45 with 14:58 to go. Sioux Falls immediately scored seven unanswered points to tie the game at 52. Upper Iowa then broke off on a 12-4 stretch highlighted by seven points from Jake Hilmer that put UIU up 64-56. The Peacocks held onto their advantage in the final moments of the game resulting in the 68-60 win.

On Saturday, the Peacocks went up 13-4 to begin the game. The run was highlighted by two three-pointers from Jareese Williams. The Peacocks and Mustangs then exchanged a pair of runs that left Upper Iowa ahead 45-37 at halftime. SMSU controlled the majority of the second half using a 9-1 run to make it a one possession game with 14:01 to play and a 9-2 run to go up 75-68 with 1:19 left on the clock. The Peacocks then locked in and went on a 12-2 run including nine unanswered points to leave Marshall with a 80-77 come-from-behind victory.

TOP PEACOCKS... Hilmer's play over the weekend earned him NSIC South Division Player of the Week honors. Hilmer is the second Peacock to claim the honor as Joe Smoldt received POTW in week nine. Hilmer averaged 18.0 points, 6.0 assists, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game. He also went 11-20 (55%) from the floor including 6-11 (54.5%) from long distance as well as a perfect 8-8 from the free throw line between the two games. Hilmer scored five unanswered points in the final moments of the SMSU game including a pivotal three-point play that led UIU to the comeback victory. Hilmer's 12.7 points per game is second best on the team and his 5.0 assists per game is third best in the NSIC.

Williams led the Peacocks with 24 points and five made three-pointers on Saturday night. He is the Peacocks' leading scorer with 14.3 points per game and the NSIC's most accurate three-point shooter as he connects on 46.4% of his attempts. Williams also tallied eight rebounds over the weekend, his 4.8 boards per game trails only Joshua Carter (5.2) out of all Peacocks. Carter totaled 15 points and 10 rebounds against Sioux Falls and SMSU.

Lucas Duax recorded four steals along with seven rebounds and six assists over the weekend. Duax leads the NSIC with 2.2 steals per game. As a team, Upper Iowa is first in the NSIC in steals per game with 7.5 and second in points per game posting 82.9 each contest. Cade Moritz provided a boost off the bench for the Peacocks on Friday with 14 points and six rebounds while Jackson Joens played the role on Saturday with 14 points and four rebounds.

SCOUTING THE HUSKIES… St. Cloud State holds the career series 13-6. However, after an 0-8 start, Upper Iowa holds a slight advantage six games to five since the 2012-13 season. The Huskies are 10-10 this season, 7-7 in conference play. St. Cloud State is coming off of a three-game skid that is comprised of losses to Minnesota State University - Mankato (95-83), Northern State University (88-71), and Minnesota State University Moorhead (80-78). Three Huskies score in double figures: Trevon Marshall (20.9), Anthony Roberts (13.1), and Ilya Tyrtrshnik (11.2). The trio combines for over 45 points per game. St. Cloud State has +5.3 scoring margin this season and hold a league-leading 3.3 turnover margin.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS...  Upper Iowa holds a slight edge 8-7 in the career series against Minnesota Duluth. The Bulldogs hold a league best 16-4 overall record and are 11-3 in NSIC matchups. The Bulldogs are currently on a three-game win streak picking up victories over Concordia University St. Paul (101-92), MSU Moorhead (77-70), and Northern State (87-79). Minnesota Duluth's starting five features four double-digit scorers: Brandon Myer (20.9), Drew Blair (16.5), Alex Illikainen (14.5) and Logan Rohrscheib (11.4) who combine for over 60 points per contest. The Bulldogs maintain a +11.3 scoring margin as well as +2.4 advantage on the glass.