This was a measuring stick game. The Summit League only receives one NCAA Tournament auto bid. An early road game against the preseason conference favorite, St Thomas, was a good chance to evaluate Denver’s progress and prospects for the 2025-26 conference season. Denver (8-9, 1-1) did not play one of their most solid games, yet the Pioneers hung close to the Tommies on the road until the final seconds, 92-88.

Denver withstood the Tommies early push as Logan Kinsey knotted the score 8-8. Gabe Oldham gave DU the lead at the five-minute mark, 10-8. Denver went cold from the field under the St Thomas defensive pressure and turned the ball over during the next five minutes as STU went on an 11-0 run to build a 7-point lead. Denver countered with a scoring spurt of their own, capped by a Carson Johnson bucket and Gabe Oldham lay-in at 4:59 to pull within a point of UST. Denver’s leaky defense and mounting fouls (9) allowed the Tommies to build a 4-point margin. A last-second shot from UST’s Ben Oosterbaan set the score at 43-37 at the break.

DU seemed to press on the offensive end, shooting 44%, landing only 2-7 shots from three and turning the ball over 6 times. STU was able to move the ball inside, securing 8 offensive rebounds, and scoring 18 points in the paint in the first 20 minutes.

The two teams rained threes to open the second half. The Tommies started hitting unguarded shots from the corners but red-hot Zane Nelson (18 points) kept DU close, 55-53, with a bucket-and-one five minutes into the half. Logan Kinsey knotted the score, 55-55 on a pair of charities shortly thereafter. STU’s Nick Janowski and Ben Oosterbaan, with 20 & 16 points respectively, hit big shots to maintain a slight Tommy lead. Three free throws by Zane Nelson gave Denver the lead, 65-64, with 11 minutes remaining. After trading buckets, Denver carried a two-point edge at the 8-minute officials’ timeout. Following the break, St Thomas built a four-point edge and DU’s Carson Johnson fouled out. Still, Denver settled itself and St Thomas maintained a narrow 4-point lead with under three minutes. The margin remained until a Jeremiah Burke bucket pulled DU within 3 points with under a minute to go. Yet, another Tommy offensive board-and-foul gifted STU a 4-point lead. Denver was able to cut the lead to 3 points on a Burke basket from range, 91-88, with 8 seconds remaining. Denver was forced to foul as time wound down, final score 92-88.

Denver did not play their best game, yet they were very competitive with the Tommies. Defense betrayed Denver at critical points during the game, leaving wing players open. Also, STU’s Nick Janowski killed DU, especially in the paint, with a career high 31 points. STU canned five more threes than DU and finished with a whopping 16 offensive rebounds. Carson Johnson struggled against the STU defense, eventually fouling out with 11 points, 0 assists, and 2 turnovers. Zane Nelson had 24 points and 5 rebounds but, at times, was pressing too hard to score from the field (4-12). With continued improvement, Denver showed it can stay with the Summit League favorite – despite not putting its best game together. The rematch on February 21st at Hamilton should be another good measuring stick to evaluate Denver’s progress and conference tournament prospects.

Next, Denver takes on South Dakota State Thursday in Brookings, South Dakota at 6 pm MT.