CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Upper Iowa men's basketball traded blows with Northern Iowa throughout the first half before the Panthers pulled away in the second. The Peacocks fell 96–67 in Friday night's matchup.

The opening 20 minutes featured 23 lead changes, and Upper Iowa trailed by just one at halftime, 36–35. The Peacocks shot 44.8% from the field (13-29) and 50% (8-16) from beyond the arc while forcing six UNI turnovers in the first half.

Kyle Hrncir opened the game with a jumper at 18:46 to score the first basket and give Upper Iowa a 2–0 lead. Austin Hilmer then caught fire from beyond the arc, draining three straight three-pointers in just over two minutes to push the Peacocks ahead 16–13. His shots came at 14:57, 13:51 and 12:30.

The Peacocks briefly cut the deficit to then at 59–49 after a three-pointer from Trey Lewis and a series of baskets by Zach Erwin and Joe Bean, but UNI's offense proved too much down the stretch, outscoring UIU 38–18 over the final 10 minutes to seal the win.

Erwin, Hilmer and Jack Miller each scored 11 points for Upper Iowa, while Lewis added eight. Tate Pedersen led the team with three assists and Hrncir hauled a team-high six rebounds. Lewis recorded two blocks, and Miller had a pair of steals.

As a team, the Peacocks shot 41.9% (26-62) from the field, 42.9% (12-28) from three-point range and 42.9% (3-7) from the free-throw line. UIU won the turnover battle 12–10 but was outscored in the paint 46–22, in second-chance points 11–9 and in bench production 35–31.

Upper Iowa begins its regular season at the Midwest Region Crossover, Nov. 14–15, in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The Peacocks take on Wisconsin–Parkside Friday at 7 p.m. and Roosevelt (Wis.) Saturday at 3:30 p.m.