FAYETTE, Iowa - Upper Iowa men's basketball (12-2, 7-0 GLVC) cruised past Lewis (Ill.) (4-10, 2-4 GLVC), 89-72 on Saturday. Forward Cael Reichter scored a team-high 18 points, shooting 9-for-9 from the floor

Reichter was the glue the Peacocks needed. In the first two minutes of the game, he scored all six of UIU's points. Reichter also scored a crucial six of Upper Iowa's last eight points in the last four minutes to help the Peacocks put the nail in the coffin, 89-72.

The game opened in a stalemate, tied 6-6, 2:30 into it. On the next possession, Kyle Hrncir was fouled and split a pair of free throws. Jack Miller secured the offensive rebound on the miss, and Hrncir quickly made amends by finishing a driving layup to spark the offense.

Upper Iowa started a run after that, going 11-0 over the next two and a half minutes. A Ty Pflughaupt 3-pointer at the end of the run gave UIU the 17-6 advantage.

Lewis closed the gap to seven with 12 minutes to go in the first half off an Arius Alijosius 3-pointer. However, a layup by freshman forward Anton Fontin 30 seconds later would halt the momentum, 26-17. 

Upper Iowa controlled the rest of the half. A buzzer-beater jump shot by guard Joe Bean gave UIU a 51-39 halftime advantage.

The Flyers brought the score within eight after scoring the first four points of the second half. Those points came from a John McCrear turnaround jumpshot and a Cale Cosme layup. 

With 17:46 to go, Reichter scored a layup off a pass from Hrncir to make the score 53-43. This catapulted a 15-5 stretch over the next six minutes, extending the Peacock lead once again, 66-48. Two minutes later, a pull-up jumper by senior Trey Lewis gave Upper Iowa a 19-point advantage, 73-54. 

Lewis then went on a 6-0 run over the next minute and a half to close the gap to 13, but the Peacocks controlled the last eight minutes, aided by a pair of Hrncir free throws and a Miller 3-pointer. 

Upper Iowa led by 20 at 2:04 off a Pflughaupt layup, before the Flyer's Alijisius hit a shot from behind the arc, to make the score, 89-72. The score remained the same over the last as both teams emptied their benches. 

Reichter added three rebounds, an assist and a block to his career night. Hrncir played stellar as well, posting 17 points, six rebounds, six assists and a steal. 

Lewis led the team in rebounds with seven. He also scored 16 points and dished out six assists. Miller had 10 points shooting 3-of-6 (50%) from deep, three rebounds, two assists and a block. 

Fontin (eight), Eric Kenesie (five), Pflughaupt (five), Zach Erwin (four), Bean (four) and Ashton Hermann (two) all scored in the game as well. Pflughaupt and Bean each hauled in four rebounds. Austin Hilmer had two assists.

Alijosius scored a Lewis team-high 22 points shooting 9-for-16 (56.3%) from the field. Drew Fisher hauled in a team-best six rebounds. 

UIU played 12 guys, with four players playing over 20 minutes in the game. The Peacocks held an advantage on the Flyers 37-27 in rebounds, 23-8 in bench points and 44-40 in the paint. 

Upper Iowa shot 34-for-54 (53.1%) from the floor and 8-for-22 (36.4%) from beyond the arc. Lewis shot 30-for-65 (46.1%) from the field and 4-for-12 (30.8%) from behind the 3-point line. 

The Peacocks stay home for their next two games. On Thursday, Jan. 15, UIU plays Quincy (Ill.) (7-8, 2-5 GLVC), and on Saturday, Jan. 17, plays Truman State (Mo.) (6-9, 3-4 GLVC).