Upper Iowa's men's basketball team proved today that it isn't always about how you start, but how you finish. The Peacocks trailed 12-0 and 21-7 in the early going of their regular season finale at home against Minnesota State University, Mankato. However, UIU rallied to trail by only four at halftime and then claimed an 86-84 win on a game-winning layup by Lucas Duax with four seconds to play.
 
Upper Iowa earned a share of the NSIC South Division Championship with today's win. The Peacocks tied Wayne State College and the University of Sioux Falls for the top spot in the division with a 13-9 record. Upper Iowa, who posted a 16-12 record overall, got their win prior to 4 p.m. on Saturday and then sat back to watch the victory propel them into a tie for first as the remaining games unfolded.
 
Minnesota State came out of the gate on fire taking a 12-0 lead just three minutes into the game and kept the tempo up and pressure on as they extended their advantage to 14 points, 21-7, eight minutes into the contest fueled by nine points from Harrison Braudis and six points from Malik Willingham on a pair of threes.
 
An Austin Hilmer three-pointer cut the gap to six points, 24-18, with under eight to play in the first half, but the Mavericks bounced back and restored a double-digit lead, 30-20, with 6:15 showing on the clock.
 
Trailing 38-30, the Peacocks outscored their guests 12-8 over the final four minutes to pull within four at the break. UIU's final 12 points were highlighted by five points from Duax and scores by four different players.
 
Malik Willingham scored the first four points of the second half to put the Peacocks behind by eight points again, but a 9-0 run by the home team allowed Upper Iowa to take a 51-50 lead four minutes in. The 9-0 run was sparked by a Nick Reid three-pointer and included six points from Jake Hilmer. The teams exchanged the lead for several minutes until UIU put together a 13-2 run to push out to their biggest lead of the night, 69-61, with eight and a half minutes to play. The eruption was fueled by six points by Dylan Jones and five from Reid.
 
The Mavericks chipped away at the lead cutting the margin to one point, 79-78, with four minutes to play after Trevor Moore scored seven points over a three-minute span. Another jumper by Moore with with 2:23 to play knotted the score at 82-82 and set up a thrilling finish in Dorman Memorial Gymnasium.
 
The game remained tied at 84-all after each team got scores, but Upper Iowa made a big defensive stand after allowing an offensive rebound to take possession with 20 seconds to play. Upper Iowa set their final play and gave Lucas Duax an opportunity at a downhill drive from right to left with Hilmer set up on the ball side wing to keep any help from getting to Duax. The senior from Dubuque kissed the shot off the glass and gave UIU an 86-84 lead. MSU took the ball out immediately and tried to push before UIU could get set. The final three-point try came up short and UIU had their win to close the regular season.
 
Duax had a huge game with 25 points, six steals and four assists and knocked down 10 of his 15 shots. Jake Hilmer added 22 points, eight assists, five rebounds, and a pair of steals and Reid scored 19 points fueled by four threes and pulled down eight rebounds. Jones notched eight points and four rebounds.
 
Harrison's 21 points led the Mavericks, while Malik Willingham and Moore each scored 20 points, but combined to convert just four of their 19 three-point tries. Tyrell Stuttley came off the bench to score 11 points and grab seven rebounds.
 
Upper Iowa is the NSIC South Division's two-seed in the upcoming NSIC/Sanford Health Basketball Tournament. The Peacocks have earned a bye in the first round and will await the winner of the University of Minnesota Duluth – Minnesota State game, which will be played on Wednesday in Duluth, Minn. UIU's quarterfinal game will be played at the The Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. on Sunday, Feb. 26 at 4:30 p.m.