KENOSHA, Wis. – Upper Iowa outpaced Wisconsin-Parkside in the second half to win 78-69 for the first win of the Casey Kasperbauer era.
The Peacocks put the pedal to the metal during the first five minutes of the second half, outscoring the Rangers, 12-4 in the first five and a half minutes to lead, 52-40. Upper Iowa scored off UW-P's turnovers, fouls, and steals, which led to fastbreaks.
Wisconsin-Parkside went on a 20-10 run to bring the score within two at 62-60. A Zach Erwin and-1 and a Jack Miller jumper regained momentum, 67-60.UIU held on to win, 78-69, with Kyle Hrncir scoring seven of the last 11 points.
The Rangers opened the contest with a 9-0 run, but the Peacocks rallied back quickly with a 9-0 run of their own to knot the game at 9. Cael Reichter started the run with a layup, followed by a jumper from Hrncir. Tate Petersen added a second-chance 3-pointer, and Erwin scored on a second-chance layup.
Upper Iowa went on a 6-0 run around the eight-minute mark in the first half. Petersen sparked the run after he nailed two free throws. He added two more at the line before Austin Hilmer scored on a layup to tie the game at 25.
The teams battled back and forth during the final six minutes of the opening half, but Trey Lewis took over in the closing seconds. Lewis hit the first of his back-to-back 3-pointers with 34 seconds and hit his second with two seconds left. After that, Upper Iowa went into halftime up, 40-36.
Hrncir recorded his 10th career double-double. He finished with a team-high 16 points, 10 rebounds, three assists and four steals.
Petersen posted 15 points, four rebounds and shot 60% from behind the arc. Lewis added 12 points, two rebounds, two assists, two steals and one block. Erwin scored eight points, seven rebounds, one assist, and one steal.
Wisconsin-Parkside was led by Luka Mateski with 20 points and five rebounds. Paxton Warden added 19 points and a team-high six rebounds.
Upper Iowa led in points in the paint, 34-30, second-chance points, 34-30, and bench points, 36-26. UIU also shot 40.6% from the field (26-64), while the Rangers shot 45.1% (23-51).
The Peacocks play their second game of the Midwest Region Crossover tomorrow against Roosevelt at 3:30 p.m.
