Upper Iowa dropped an 86-77 decision on the road at Wayne State College in Wayne, Nebraska on Sunday afternoon. The Wildcats outscored their guests 55-46 in the second half after the two teams went to the locker room tied at 31-all at halftime. WSC moves to 10-3 overall and 5-2 in the NSIC after the decision, while UIU falls to 7-6 overall and 4-3 in the conference.
 
After a first half that saw both teams take slight advantages but end in a 31-31 tie when Jake Hilmer hit a three-pointer with nine seconds to play before the break. The teams continued to battle back-and-forth through the first eight minutes of the second half as each team exchanged the lead. With 12:14 on the clock Caleb Delzell knocked down a layup to put UIU ahead 49-48, but the moment marked the final lead of the game.
 
After a three-pointer by Max Duax cut the margin to two, 54-52, the Wildcats went on a short 6-0 run to push their lead to eight points, 60-52, with under nine minutes to play. A minute later the lead grew to nine, 65-56, before a two-minute lull by both squads. After a Nate Mohr trifecta reestablished a nine-point lead, 68-59, with 5:46 to play, the Peacocks stormed back with a quick 7-0 run started with a long-range bullseye from Delzell and was capped off by a Nick Reid fast break dunk that cut the gap to two, 68-66 with 4:13 on the clock. Unfortunately for the Peacocks, the quick outburst was followed by two scoreless minutes.
 
Upper Iowa got back within four points two more times in the game with the last chance coming with 1:28 to play when Reid scored two on a pair of free throws to make the score 75-71. The Wildcats pulled out to a 10-point lead down the stretch as the Peacocks pulled out all the stops to rally. WSC secured the win by a nine-point advantage, 86-77.
 
Hilmer scored a game-high 27 points on 9-18 shooting with five three-pointers; the Walker, Iowa native added four assists and two steals. Lucas Duax tallied 19 points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals. Reid scored nine points and pulled down 10 rebounds.
 
Wayne State owned a massive advantage in rebounds, 47-29, including a 15-9 clip in offensive boards and knocked down 5-7 three-pointers in the second half after shooting 3-13 in the first half. Justin Eagans scored 26 points, pulled down 10 rebounds and scored four assists, while Jordan Janssen scored 25 points, snagged 16 rebounds and blocked three shots.
 
Upper Iowa will take some time off for the holidays before returning with three home games to celebrate the New Year. The Peacocks will host Winona State University on Dec. 31, Bemidji State University on Jan. 6 and the University of Minnesota Crookston on Jan. 7.