KIRKSVILLE, Mo. - The Bulldogs of Truman State play Upper Iowa University for the second time in a row on Saturday, December 9th at 3 p.m. in Fayette, Iowa. Truman took the last matchup 97-85.
The Bulldogs jumped out to a 10-0 lead after 3-pointers from Xavier Hall and Kobi Williams, then a layup from Brennan Lovette and a jumper scored by Landon Eiland.
The Peacocks cut the lead to six with 12:26 left in the half, but Truman was able to maintain distance and went into the break up 45-30.
The Bulldogs kept a double-digit lead for the rest of the second-half, with both teams trading buckets throughout. Truman made their late-game free throws, and won 97-85 in an offensive showcase.
Trey Shearer had a career and game-high 28 points on 9-13 shooting, which included going 4-6 from three and 6-6 on free throws. Shearer also had six rebounds, three assists, and a steal with no turnovers.
Kobi Williams had another impressive performance, dropping 19 on 7-11 shooting. He also went 4-6 from behind the arc and had three rebounds, two blocks, and two steals.
Xavier Hall was third in scoring with 14 along with five rebounds, and a game-high eight assists.
Landon Eiland was the final Bulldog with double-digit points, scoring 11 on 4-7 shooting and an efficient 3-4 from three.
Truman shot 34-63 (54.0%) from the field and 14-23 (60.9%) on 3-pointers. They went 15-19 (78.9%) on free throws.
The Bulldogs held Jake Hilmer, one of the nation's best shooters, to his second-lowest point total of the season with 19. Prior to the matchup, Hilmer scored 37 against Concordia, St. Paul, a team the Bulldogs have played this year. Hilmer has been fantastic all season, averaging 25.6 points per game on 50% shooting from the field.
As for the Truman State, freshman Kobi Williams has burst onto the scene, leading the team in scoring (12.6), and is second in rebounds (3.9), and third in assists (1.9). Williams has scored 14, 6, 2, 23, 8, 16, and 19 points in games so far this season. The St. Louis, Mo. native ranks 21st in scoring the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
Junior Trey Shearer from Montezuma, Iowa is not far behind Williams in scoring, averaging 12.4 points per game. He has been an efficient shooter, going 53% from the field and 56% from three. As mentioned earlier, Shearer dropped a career-high 28 points on Upper Iowa, and looks to have another solid performance against the Peacocks.
Sophomore Xavier Hall is Truman's third double-digit scorer with 10.1 points a contest. Hall leads the team in assists with 5.1, 2.5 more than Shearer who is second on the team.
Jake Hilmer has been one of the nation's best scoring, but his teammate Noah King has also been great, averaging 18.9 points per game through eight games. King, the 6-2 guard from Caldonia, Minn., has scored 20+ points in his last four games. He had a team-high 22 points on 10-15 shooting against the Bulldogs.
Nick Reid is Upper Iowa's third and final double-digit scorer, putting up 12.5 points per game. Reid was kept under control in the previous meeting, scoring seven points on six shots.
Upper's head coach Brooks McKowen is now in his 11th season at the helm in Fayette, coming from Southwest Minnesota State. His best seasons were in 2016-17 and 2021-22. In 2016-17, he led Upper Iowa to a 22-11 record and they finished 16-6 in NSIC play. He set a school record in Division II wins, and reached the NCAA Tournament. In 2021-22, McKowen had an even better season, setting a new school record in DII wins (26), and reached the Central Region Semifinals.
Following this game, the Bulldogs get a short break before heading to Las Vegas for games against Pittsburg State and Central Missouri on December 18-19. The Bulldogs will be playing at Desert Oasis High School.
Truman State head coach Jeff Horner is one win away from passing Bulldog legend Don Fauot in all-time wins. The win would be his 93rd, and Horner would take the fourth place spot, behind Jack Schrader who has 165 wins.
