Against the Marauders, UIU was led by senior post
Tucker Wentzien - who had 16 points - but the Peacocks had four different
players score in double-figures, including Joey Woods (pictured) who finished
the weekend with 29 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists and just three turnovers
BY: Steven Wilson - Graduate Assistant, Sports
Information - (1/12/2013)
Box
Score
BISMARK, N.D. – Senior wing Sam Elgin missed his first five shots of Saturday night’s matchup with the host Marauders of U-Mary in their NSIC showdown. With just ten seconds left and a two-point lead for the Peacocks Elgin was fouled and went to the line to seal the victory.
Normally a 97 percent free-throw shooter in NSIC play this year, Elgin has been almost golden from the charity stripe.
But this time, he missed it.
“I struggled shooting the ball tonight, but that will happen every once in a while,” Elgin said. “The biggest thing is, you can’t get down on yourself. I got fouled with a chance to ice it and I missed the free throw. I think that got me a little ticked off. So I went in there and just stole it and ended up making a pretty good play for us.”
Elgin went after the Marauder’s point guard after missing the free throw. His aggressive play led to a steal and a wide-open layup – his first and only bucket of the game.
“I was thinking I have a good chance at dunking this, but I’m 0-for-5, I might as well just take it easy here,” Elgin said with a smile.
Elgin’s finger-tip bucket came with just five seconds left in the game and pushed UIU out to a four-point lead – A lead that held as time clicked down and the Peacocks earned the victory, 67-63, in Bismark, North Dakota.
Four different Peacocks finished in double-digits as UIU won its fifth straight game on the road in the NSIC this season.
“Anytime you can go on the road and get a sweep, it’s a good weekend,” UIU Head Coach Brian Dolan said. “We just have to play better on Tuesday night though.”
The Peacocks will host the 13-3 Warriors of Winona State on Tuesday night at Dorman Gym, but the Peacocks couldn’t look ahead because they had their hands full with U-Mary.
The Marauders entered Saturday with just a 2-6 mark in conference play despite having the ninth and 17th ranked scorers in the conference. Alex Dorr and Josh Turner have led U-Mary in scoring with 15 and 13 points per game, respectively, but that was before they ran into the brick wall that was the Peacock defense.
UIU has held six of its nine conference opponents to 63 opponents or less this year and the Peacocks’ stingy defense continued over the weekend.
The Peacocks forced Minot State and U-Mary into 31 turnovers in their two games, while holding Dorr to 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting and Turner to 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting. UIU also recorded a season-high six blocks against the Marauders.
“They are tough to guard,” Joey Woods said. “They run stagger screens, so if you jump the passing lane they can beat you with a backdoor cut. So we had less steals tonight, but I think we played solid all-around on the defensive end.”
Woods was just one of four different Peacocks to finish in double-figures against the Marauders, but most of the starting five struggled early in the game. All except Tucker Wentzien.
Wentzien went 5-of-8 from the field in the first half for a team-high 12 points. His production in the paint pushed the Peacocks to a 39-32 lead at halftime.
Wentzien’s numbers weren’t surprising though. The senior post from Solon, Iowa has made the road a home-away-from-home this season. Wentzien is averaging 14.7 points per game on the road, compared to just eight points a game at home.
“Every rim is ten-feet tall,” Wentzien said. “Sometimes just getting away from Dorman – because we’ve been practicing there all week – is good.”
While Wentzien did the dirty work in the first period, Jake Hughes sunk 10 of his 13 points in the second half, including four free throws in the final two minutes to seal the game.
“My teammates are finding me for easy shots,” Hughes said. “I’m not making difficult shots, I’m making layups and I have to credit my teammates for that.”
After just seven assists to 27 buckets on Friday night, the Peacocks’ passing improved a night later. UIU finished with 14 assists to go with 25 buckets on Saturday – play coach Dolan is much more accustomed to seeing. Woods and Hughes combined for half of those assists.
“It was a big weekend from me and my teammates,” Woods said. “I feel like I had a little rhythm going. I’m just playing how coach wants me to play – just letting the game come to me and not forcing anything.”
Woods finished the weekend with 29 combined points on 10-of-18 shooting, while also adding six rebounds and six assists compared to just three turnovers.
Grant Lang was the final of four Peacocks in double-figures as the sophomore finished 4-of-6 from the field for 10 points off the bench.
With the win, UIU improves to 11-4 overall and 7-2 in the Northern Sun, while the loss drops the Marauders to 3-10 overall and 2-7 in conference play.
The Peacocks will be back in action earlier than expected this week. UIU will host the Warriors of Winona State on Tuesday night inside Dorman Gymnasium.
“It’s high school all over again,” Wentzien joked about the mid-week battle.
The meeting will be the first between the squads since Wentzien kissed a last-second reverse layup off the glass as time expired in a 64-63 Peacock victory in Winona, Minnesota on December 1st.
“Everybody’s saying that game was a fluke,” Wentzien said. “I mean, I did do a circus-shot for the win, but I’m hoping we show up, play like we can and give them a good fight.”
The rematch is scheduled for an 8 PM tip-off.
“I’m not downplaying it,” Hughes said. “It might be the biggest game of our career. I’m just more than excited to play.”
BISMARK, N.D. – Senior wing Sam Elgin missed his first five shots of Saturday night’s matchup with the host Marauders of U-Mary in their NSIC showdown. With just ten seconds left and a two-point lead for the Peacocks Elgin was fouled and went to the line to seal the victory.
Normally a 97 percent free-throw shooter in NSIC play this year, Elgin has been almost golden from the charity stripe.
But this time, he missed it.
“I struggled shooting the ball tonight, but that will happen every once in a while,” Elgin said. “The biggest thing is, you can’t get down on yourself. I got fouled with a chance to ice it and I missed the free throw. I think that got me a little ticked off. So I went in there and just stole it and ended up making a pretty good play for us.”
Elgin went after the Marauder’s point guard after missing the free throw. His aggressive play led to a steal and a wide-open layup – his first and only bucket of the game.
“I was thinking I have a good chance at dunking this, but I’m 0-for-5, I might as well just take it easy here,” Elgin said with a smile.
Elgin’s finger-tip bucket came with just five seconds left in the game and pushed UIU out to a four-point lead – A lead that held as time clicked down and the Peacocks earned the victory, 67-63, in Bismark, North Dakota.
Four different Peacocks finished in double-digits as UIU won its fifth straight game on the road in the NSIC this season.
“Anytime you can go on the road and get a sweep, it’s a good weekend,” UIU Head Coach Brian Dolan said. “We just have to play better on Tuesday night though.”
The Peacocks will host the 13-3 Warriors of Winona State on Tuesday night at Dorman Gym, but the Peacocks couldn’t look ahead because they had their hands full with U-Mary.
The Marauders entered Saturday with just a 2-6 mark in conference play despite having the ninth and 17th ranked scorers in the conference. Alex Dorr and Josh Turner have led U-Mary in scoring with 15 and 13 points per game, respectively, but that was before they ran into the brick wall that was the Peacock defense.
UIU has held six of its nine conference opponents to 63 opponents or less this year and the Peacocks’ stingy defense continued over the weekend.
The Peacocks forced Minot State and U-Mary into 31 turnovers in their two games, while holding Dorr to 11 points on 4-of-12 shooting and Turner to 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting. UIU also recorded a season-high six blocks against the Marauders.
“They are tough to guard,” Joey Woods said. “They run stagger screens, so if you jump the passing lane they can beat you with a backdoor cut. So we had less steals tonight, but I think we played solid all-around on the defensive end.”
Woods was just one of four different Peacocks to finish in double-figures against the Marauders, but most of the starting five struggled early in the game. All except Tucker Wentzien.
Wentzien went 5-of-8 from the field in the first half for a team-high 12 points. His production in the paint pushed the Peacocks to a 39-32 lead at halftime.
Wentzien’s numbers weren’t surprising though. The senior post from Solon, Iowa has made the road a home-away-from-home this season. Wentzien is averaging 14.7 points per game on the road, compared to just eight points a game at home.
“Every rim is ten-feet tall,” Wentzien said. “Sometimes just getting away from Dorman – because we’ve been practicing there all week – is good.”
While Wentzien did the dirty work in the first period, Jake Hughes sunk 10 of his 13 points in the second half, including four free throws in the final two minutes to seal the game.
“My teammates are finding me for easy shots,” Hughes said. “I’m not making difficult shots, I’m making layups and I have to credit my teammates for that.”
After just seven assists to 27 buckets on Friday night, the Peacocks’ passing improved a night later. UIU finished with 14 assists to go with 25 buckets on Saturday – play coach Dolan is much more accustomed to seeing. Woods and Hughes combined for half of those assists.
“It was a big weekend from me and my teammates,” Woods said. “I feel like I had a little rhythm going. I’m just playing how coach wants me to play – just letting the game come to me and not forcing anything.”
Woods finished the weekend with 29 combined points on 10-of-18 shooting, while also adding six rebounds and six assists compared to just three turnovers.
Grant Lang was the final of four Peacocks in double-figures as the sophomore finished 4-of-6 from the field for 10 points off the bench.
With the win, UIU improves to 11-4 overall and 7-2 in the Northern Sun, while the loss drops the Marauders to 3-10 overall and 2-7 in conference play.
The Peacocks will be back in action earlier than expected this week. UIU will host the Warriors of Winona State on Tuesday night inside Dorman Gymnasium.
“It’s high school all over again,” Wentzien joked about the mid-week battle.
The meeting will be the first between the squads since Wentzien kissed a last-second reverse layup off the glass as time expired in a 64-63 Peacock victory in Winona, Minnesota on December 1st.
“Everybody’s saying that game was a fluke,” Wentzien said. “I mean, I did do a circus-shot for the win, but I’m hoping we show up, play like we can and give them a good fight.”
The rematch is scheduled for an 8 PM tip-off.
“I’m not downplaying it,” Hughes said. “It might be the biggest game of our career. I’m just more than excited to play.”
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