(MINOT, N.D.) – The Minot State men's basketball team suffered a lopsided loss tonight to the visiting Upper Iowa Peacocks. UIU jumped out to an early lead and went wire-to-wire for the 94-71 victory.
 
Upper Iowa led by a significant margin the first half before the Beavers whittled that lead away and trailed by only five at halftime. In the second half, the Peacocks got on a roll and scored virtually at will. UIU went 9-15 from three for a 60% rate and scored 57 points in the second half. Minot State's offense could not keep up the pace and quickly trailed by 20+.
 
The Beavers were paced by their leading scorer Kyle Beisch on the offensive end. The guard scored a game-high 24 points and added four rebounds. Trevor Rothstein (12), Max Cody (11), and Kody Dwyer (10) all scored in double-figures. Dwyer led the way on the boards with 7 collections while a host of Beavers grabbed three or four. Cody, despite being hampered by foul trouble in the first half and early stages of the second, led MSU in assists with five.
 
Upper Iowa's balanced attack was led by guard Jareese Williams with 18 points followed by Joe Smoldt with 13, Josh Carter with 14, and both Lucas Duax and Jackson Joens with 10. Smoldt grabbed a team-high six rebounds and also lead in assists with seven.
 
Minot State is now 10-14 overall and 4-14 in league play. Upper Iowa improved their odds in the NSIC South by improving to 15-9 overall and 12-6 in the NSIC.
 
The Beavers will be back in action next weekend when they host Minnesota Crookston on Friday, Feb. 14 and Bemidji State on Saturday, Feb. 15.