THIS WEEK IN PEACOCK HOOPS… Upper Iowa earned its third trip, and first since March 2017, to the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Championships on Sunday night after being named an at-large bid in the NCAA Division II Central Region. The Peacocks will meet the region's fifth-seeded Bronchos of the University of Central Oklahoma (24-6) on Saturday, March 12 at 7:30 p.m. at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. The NCAA Division II Central Region Championship consists of four quarterfinal games on Saturday, two semifinal contests on Sunday and a title game on Tuesday night. Eight regional champions will meet in Evansdale, Ind. for the NCAA Division II Elite Eight on Mar. 22, 24 and 26 at the Ford Center.
 
LIVE OPTIONS… Live stats and webcasts will be available for all the games of the NCAA Division II Central Regional through the links at UIUPeacocks.com/Live or by using the links included with this story. The action will also stream live on the NSIC Network app through Roku and Fire devices, as well as Apple and Android TV.
 
TICKETS… Tickets are available online at Ticketmaster.com, the Sanford Pentagon Box Office or by phone at 605-312-7917. Session Ticket Prices: Adults $15 | Students $7 | Children 2 & under free. All Session Pass: Adults $50 | Students $24.
 
GETTING TO KNOW THE NO. 18 BRONCHOS... Central Oklahoma is 24-6 this season. The Bronchos won the MIAA regular season title for the first time since joining the league in 2012. UCO posted an 18-4 record in league play. UCO's 24 wins this season are the most since 2011, when the Bronchos last made the national tournament. That mark is also tied for the sixth most in school history. Central's 18 conference wins this season are the most in any season in school history and are tied for the fifth in MIAA history. Central Oklahoma averages 82.1 points per game on offense and allows 70.3 points per game to their opponents. On offense, the Bronchos are making 49.4% of their field goals including 37.1% from beyond the three-point arc. UCO has taken advantage of their trips to the free throw line converting 79.7% of their attempts and averaging 17.2 free throw makes per game. Isaiah Wade leads four Bronchos in double-figure scoring with 18.7 points per game; the senior forward is hitting 57.6% of his shots including 39.2% from three while pulling down 8.3 rebounds per game as well. Callen Haydon averages 15.2 points and 6.1 assists per game from his point guard position. Jaden Wells is averaging 14.4 points and 5.7 rebounds, while Camryn Givens is scoring 13.3 points and grabbing 5.3 rebounds per game with a 52.5% shooting percentage. Both Wells and Givens are shooting better than 42% from deep this season.
 
2,000-POINT CLUB... Joe Smoldt is now one of two Peacocks, in the history of the men's basketball program, to score over 2,000 points in his career. Only Jim Bushkofsky (2,194 - 1970-74) has scored more than Smoldt in their career in Peacock blue and white. Smoldt surpassed the rare milestone with a three-pointer from the left wing. The make came as no surprise to Peacock fans... Smoldt is one of two Peacocks to make more than 300 career three-pointers, along with teammate Jareese Williams. The Reinbeck, Iowa product is on the books for 2,013 points, 364 three-pointers, 357 free throws as well as 453 rebounds and 334 assists. This season, Smoldt is averaging 17.8 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game with shooting averages of 44.2% overall, 38.7% from three and 82.3% from the charity stripe. His career-high came in the NSIC/Sanford Health Basketball Tournament with 30 points against Northern State University, but Smoldt scored 20-plus points in 11 games this season.
 
TURN IT UP... Point guard Jake Hilmer has an extra gear with a basketball in his hand and he has pushed the pace for Upper Iowa all season. The junior earned his third straight All-NSIC honor this season after averaging 17.1 points, 3.7 assists and 2.1 rebounds in the 22 Northern Sun Conference contests. Hilmer shot 46.2% from the floor and 37.6% from deep, while leading the team at the charity stripe converting 123 of his 133 attempts for a 92.5% clip; the fourth-best percentage in the nation this year. The Walker, Iowa native has 26 games in double digits this season including nine 20-plus point games. Hilmer scored a career-high 30 points at Augustana University and 29 against the University of Mary in Fayette.
 
LIMITLESS RANGE... Guard Jareese Williams returned from injury and played in the final two games of the regular season and both of UIU's NSIC/Sanford Health Tournament games after missing 12 games. He became the second Peacock to cross over the 300 three-point threshold with a long ball against Minnesota State University, Mankato and then nailed seven triples at Concordia University, St. Paul.  After earning his third All-NSIC honor, the graduate student averaged 14 points in UIU's two games at the Pentagon fueled by six long-range makes. For the season, the Mason City native averaged 17.7 points and 4.2 rebounds while shooting 42.3% from the floor, 43.5% from three and 90.8% from the free throw line. Williams scored in double figures in 15 times in his 18 games and scored over 20 points eight times. His current 1,561 points rank seventh all-time after passing Greg VonArx's 1,551 (1992-96) last weekend.
 
PEACOCK LEADERS… Upper Iowa is averaging 83.3 points per game and shooting 48.3% from the floor, 38.3% from three, and 78.4% from the free throw line, which is the 13th-best percentage in the nation. The Peacocks are led by a trio of scorers, Smoldt (17.8), Williams (17.7) and Hilmer (16.4), but six other players are regulars in the scoring column and all have had double-figure scoring nights including a few with games of 20-plus points. Lucas Duax averages 9.8 points a game, but made one of the biggest impacts in UIU's win over Northern State in the NSIC quarterfinals without scoring a point. Nick Reid (6.9), Dylan Jones (6.7), Connor Duax (6.4), Cade Moritz (5.8) and Max Duax (4.5) combine to average 40.1 points per game, which accounts for nearly half of the team's scoring. Reid leads the team in rebounding with 6.4 per game, but three more Peacocks are averaging at least four boards per game. Hilmer is averaging 3.9 assists per game, while Lucas Duax is snagging 1.8 steals per game. Moritz and Reid are combining for 2 blocks per game as well.