Box Score
FAYETTE, Iowa -- The Minnesota State University Moorhead men's basketball team was within one point with 2:42 left, but Upper Iowa outscored the Dragons 10-2 the rest of the way in a 71-62 Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference win Friday night in Fayette, Iowa.
MSUM fell to 15-6 overall and 9-6 in the NSIC with the loss, while Upper Iowa improved to 15-6 overall and 11-4 in the league.
The Dragons had five players score in double figures, led by freshman
Tyler Vaughan with 15 points. Sophomore
Jordan Riewer had 13 points, while senior
Anthony Tucker and freshman
Ben Figini had 11 each. Senior
Alex Novak, playing in his home state of Iowa, had 10 points, six rebounds and three blocks. Tucker had a game-high six assists.
MSUM shot 42.3 percent (22-of-52) for the game, compared to 42.1 percent (24-of-57) for Upper Iowa. The Peacocks had a 38-28 edge in rebounds.
The Dragons, who trailed by many as nine points in the second half, cut the lead to 51-50 with 8:21 left when Vaughan drained a three-pointer. Upper Iowa built the lead back to six at 58-52, but the Dragons again climbed within one at 61-60 with 2:42 left when Tucker converted a layup.
The Dragons had a chance to take the lead at the 1:41 mark but a three-pointer wouldn't fall. On the ensuing possession, Tucker Wentzien --- who had a game-high 21 points converted a three-point play to push the Upper Iowa lead to 64-60, and MSUM never got closer as the Peacocks iced the game from the line by going 7-of-8 in the final minutes.
MSUM led 2-0 at the 19:11 mark of the first half when Figini made a layup,but that proved to be the Dragons' only lead of the night. However, each time Upper Iowa appeared poised to pull away, the Dragons had a response.
Upper Iowa built a 13-5 lead, but an 11-3 Dragon spurt tied the game at 16-16. After Upper Iowa pushed the lead back to five, a Vaughan three-pointer tied the game at 27-27 with 2:06 left in the first half. MSUM trailed 32-29 at halftime.
The Peacocks scored the first four points of the half to stretch the lead to 36-29, and later led 42-33 with 15:21 left. However, the Dragons went on a 12-4 run over the next five minutes to climb within 46-45. Riewer and Tucker each scored four points during that stretch, and from there, the game was close.
The Dragons wrap up the weekend -- and stretch of four straight road games -- at league-leading Winona State on Saturday at 6 p.m.
Steve d'Eustachio Stat of the Game: The Dragons have now lost five games in a row at Upper Iowa. The last time the Dragons defeated the Peacocks in Fayette was Jan. 12, 2007 by the score of 74-52.
