Upper Iowa men's basketball defeated Michigan Tech 93-87 at the JustAgame Crossover tournament for their first win of the season, going 1-1 over the weekend. Jake Hilmer hounded the Husky defense this evening as he scored 39 points on 9-17 shooting, along with going 18-18 from the charity stripe.
 
The Peacocks spent most of the first half battling from behind, but not quite out of reach. Nick Reid strung together his own five-point run to give Upper Iowa a 19-17 advantage, but it was quickly relinquished and the Huskies stayed out in front to lead at the end of the first stint 38-37. 
 
The duo of Hilmer and freshman William Kiburis came out in the second half and rallied off six straight points to command a 43-38 lead. UIU held as much as a 10-point lead (68-58), but it slowly dwindled as MTU chipped away at the deficit and tied the ball game 80-80 with just over three minutes left to go. 
 
The Peacocks would not record another field goal as the remainder of their points scored in the contest all came from the foul line. Hilmer went 10-10 while Noah King netted two and Austin Hilmer added one. Their charity stripe conversions and defensive scheme was enough to hold off the Huskies and seal the 93-87 decision. 
 
Offensive tempo was set by Upper Iowa as they recorded 19 fast break points in comparison to Michigan Tech who only had two. Both teams were even from the field tonight as UIU shot 43.3% while MTU was 44.9%. 
 
As a unit the Peacocks shot 40 free throws and sank 35 of them (87.5%). 
 
Other notable statistics include Hilmer with five assists while Reid and Ethan Steinbronn both grabbed eight rebounds, followed by Caleb Delzell with seven.
 
The Peacocks are on the road again next weekend as they head to Aberdeen, S.D for the prestigious Small College Basketball Champions Classic, hosted by Northern State. UIU is set to challenge Northwest Missouri State on Nov. 17 at 5 p.m. and Northern State on Nov. 18 at 7:30 p.m.