Denver (10-6, 1-2) met Summit League favorites, the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles (12-3, 3-0) Saturday afternoon at Hamilton Gym. DU had the daunting challenge of stopping NBA prospect guard Max Abmas (18.9 ppg) on the perimeter and 7’5″ Connor Vanover on the inside. Continue reading Pioneers Fall to Summit Favorite Oral Roberts 80-62, to Close Out 2022
Monthly Archives: December 2022
DU Hockey Alumnus Deane Hansen Passes Away
Tragedy and sadness have touched the Pioneer hockey program once again this holiday season with the suicide of University of Denver alumnus Deane Hansen, 60, who played four seasons for the Pioneers between 1980 and 1984. Continue reading DU Hockey Alumnus Deane Hansen Passes Away
Denver Outlasts Kansas City in 3 OT’s, 85-83
Denver Men’s basketball (10-5, 1-1) returned to the court Thursday night against UMKC (5-10, 1-1). Denver desperately needed a home conference win to snap a two-game skid and it took three overtime periods to settle the final score. What was once a defensive struggle in the first half, turned into the Tommy Bruner show as a Tommy Bruner 3-point shot found net with 1:09 remaining in the third overtime period to land on the final score. The co-star on the night was UMKC’s Shemarri Allen who finished with 34 points, 6 rebounds and 3 steals. Bruner finished with 29 points, 4 assists, and 13 of 13 from the charity stripe to hold the charging Roos at bay. Continue reading Denver Outlasts Kansas City in 3 OT’s, 85-83
DU Men’s Hoops Inks NIL Deal with Shinesty
LetsGoDU got an exclusive look at the DU men’s basketball student-athletes recent NIL (Name, Image & Likeness) photoshoot for Shinesty.
Shinesty is a Colorado-based retailer of party clothing as well as men’s and women’s underwear. The company is a national marketer and was recently named to Inc. Magazine’s 5000 fastest-growing companies list and this NIL agreement is the first national clothing deal for the University of Denver student-athletes.
Shinesty’s first NIL social media campaign was conducted by CU football lineman Tommy Brown. DU men’s basketball is next on the list for Shinesty, renowned for its self-proclaimed “irreverent brand voice”. Denver student-athletes Tommy Bruner, Tyree Corbett, and Ben Bowen represented the team on the shoot, which was held at Roka Studios in Denver.
“When we were approached by Shinesty to model their party clothing and underwear in a social media campaign, we wanted to learn more because we represent more than just ourselves,” said redshirt freshman Ben Bowen. “We are representing ourselves as well as our fellow student-athletes. We wanted to have fun, generate some social media interest in Shinesty products and maybe even go viral – so people know more about us.”
The student-athletes jumped into the photo shoot with the same energy and confidence they have shown on the court. “Our team is tight,” said Bruner. “We want to do things that have never been done before at DU – this is just one more thing. NIL is a part of growing the student-athlete experience beyond the court.”
The Shinesty brand campaign had to be agreed upon by all participants before going out on social media. “While the CU ads were funny, we wanted to focus on Shinesty’s product-brand attributes and get people to visit Shinesty,” said the extroverted and versatile Tyree Corbett. “At the same time, we wanted people to see that we are a fun team and, maybe, people will want to come out to see our games, too. Who knows, maybe we build a long-term deal with Shinesty if the campaign is effective.”
When asked about the financial arrangement, the DU players would not disclose the details of their compensation – only to confirm it was ‘a very fair deal’ for both parties. The student-athletes had a free hand in developing the artistic direction and wanted their photoshoot to look like a magazine layout. Point guard Tommy Bruner said, “They [Shinesty] are very chill. They let us do our thing. We hope they like it.” KO Design created the graphic design for the campaign. The full social media campaign will roll out over the next several weeks with a total of 6 Shinesty visual messages posted on social media by the team.
“We hope we can make it onto a few local online news sites or even local television news because this is the first national NIL deal for DU basketball student-athletes. Hopefully, this is just the beginning for student-athletes at DU,” added Tyree Corbett.
For a press kit and images of the Shinesty Student-Athlete campaign with DU student-athletes, contact LetsGoDU via email.
DU Hockey Alumnus Faces Family Cancer Battle
Rhett Rakhshani, a DU 2010 all-American hockey player who played most of his pro hockey in Europe, is now facing a huge battle. His young wife Sharlene, 31, was recently diagnosed with aggressive stage four cancer. The Rakhshani family has decided to return to California (his home state) to begin Shar’s treatments, forcing Rakhshani, 34, to pause his hockey career. The family has three young girls – Stella age six, Scarlett age four, and Georgia, age two. Continue reading DU Hockey Alumnus Faces Family Cancer Battle
Denver Loses late to Oregon State, 57-52
Denver (9-5, 0-1) had the basketball and trailed by one-point in a highly contested game with less than 30 seconds to go in Corvallis, Oregon. Unfortunately, a Denver turnover thwarted the upset bid with the Pioneers eventually falling on free throws to the Oregon State Beavers, 57-52. Before the game, coach Jeff Wulbrun implored his team to step up their defense and “be a player-led team”. They did just that but just came up short Wednesday night following a strong effort. Continue reading Denver Loses late to Oregon State, 57-52
Denver Fades in Second Half, 83-66, Drops Opener
Denver Basketball (9-4, 0-1) traveled to Omaha (5-8, 1-0) to start the Summit League conference regular season. The teams were tied at the half but the Mavericks thoroughly outplayed Denver on both ends of the floor the final 20 minutes. Omaha nailed 6 of 10 three’s in the half, outscored DU 46-29, outrebounded Denver by five and the Pioneers committed 9 turnovers in the second half. The reason for the loss? “A lack of toughness if I’m being honest,” stated a disappointed Jeff Wulbrun. Continue reading Denver Fades in Second Half, 83-66, Drops Opener
Q&A: Jeff Wulbrun and Denver Basketball Aiming for New Heights
The conference basketball season begins tonight when DU men’s basketball (9-3, 0-0) faces Omaha to start the Summit League schedule. We interviewed head coach Jeff Wulbrun to get his thoughts on the overall program progress and the prospects for his team during the 2022-23 season. Continue reading Q&A: Jeff Wulbrun and Denver Basketball Aiming for New Heights
Order Now, Blame Us Later
We recently announced the reopening of the commemorative DU hockey jersey store. Unfortunately, while you can order now, there will not be a commemorative hockey jersey under the Christmas tree. We estimate that orders will take a minimum of 60-90 days to fulfill based on the supplier relocating manufacturing facilities. Continue reading Order Now, Blame Us Later
Pioneers Escape Upset-Minded Lions to Enter Holiday Break With Sweep and Close First Half at 16-4-0
The #1 Denver Pioneers (16-4-0, 8-2-0 NCHC) have one singular goal this year – win the program’s 10th national title and finally end Michigan’s two-and-a-half decade reign at the top. Anything short of it would be a disappointment. And while you can’t win a championship in December, championship hopes can easily be dashed by the holiday break. For these Pioneers, though, sitting atop the NCHC standings, holding onto the #4 spot in the Pairwise Rankings, and coming off of a sweep of the Lindenwood Lions (4-12-0) – 5-0 Friday & 5-4 tonight – DU is in about as ideal a spot at the halfway point of the season as they could have asked for on their path to Tampa. Continue reading Pioneers Escape Upset-Minded Lions to Enter Holiday Break With Sweep and Close First Half at 16-4-0