Men's Basketball, Men's Sports

Denver Men’s Hoops Moves Up in Class with Brighter Lights and Bigger Expectations

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Denver’s move up to the West Coast Conference (WCC) begins this season. The Pioneers’ home base will be a revamped Hamilton Gym with new seating, a large new video board, new field goal stanchions, and brighter lighting. The expectations and bright lights extend to a top-tier non-conference schedule and rugged WCC regular season. DU will be led by second-year head coach Tim Bergstraser, who is excited to see how his team responds to the challenge.

We sat down with the relaxed head coach, entering his second season at the helm. A mere 12 months ago (December 31st, 2025), DU accepted an invitation to join the basketball-centric West Coast Conference. One might expect this jump to be overwhelming, but Bergstraser maintains a positive attitude and keeps ‘stacking days’ in the run-up to the start of basketball. The Pioneers open the season November 2nd against the Wisconsin Badgers in Madison, Wisconsin. For perspective, the Badgers have an estimated $10-12 million player payroll while Denver plays Moneyball (our words – not Bergstraser’s), just like most mid-major basketball programs.

Just what can fans expect this season? “I am eager to see how we come out of non-conference play,” said Bergstraser. “I know it is going to prepare us for the WCC – our schedule is very tough. One of the tougher schedules this program has ever had (Wisconsin, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico State, Wyoming & Rice to name a few in non-conference action).

Bergstraser is using this time as an appetizer to mold and harden his team. “I don’t want to think I have all the answers before we play in-conference. We study as much as we can. I have looked at every roster and watched game film for each team  – but I have never been in the trenches against these guys. There are things I will learn during the year. Then, we will know what we need – and it may come at a cost.  I know we have a team that will be competitive and fight.  I’m never going to say we’re going to win ‘X’ number of games – that is not the way I coach.”

Bergstraser fielded a hard-working team last season (15-17, 8-8 Summit League). This season’s squad features only two returners, juniors Carson Johnson (Summit League Player of the Year) and Sean Wysocki, along with 12 new players. “The group (last season) competed – but not to my standards, to be honest. That’s not to be ungrateful. We put a team together really late. Put the pieces together and coached them up. We built a team that competed (night in and night out), and people told us they loved how hard our guys played – win or lose. The players cared for the guy next to them, and I take a lot of pride in that. I want our program to always be competitive and nasty.”

The hill gets even steeper this season. In the world of mid-majors, building new teams every year is the new norm, and Bergstraser and his staff must work doubly hard to restock a depleted squad. All this with fewer resources (NIL/profit sharing) than many of their peers and a history of limited success. Fortunately, he goes to battle with the WCC Preseason Team guard Johnson along with Wysocki, who both played for Bergstraser at Minnesota State Moorhead and DU. “They are floor leaders. They are leaders by action. They know how to play off each other. We need to be a player-led team, so I am going to be encouraging them to use their voice and challenge the team. Also, they need to take guys under their wings. Returners can fix a lot of things – even outside the obvious talent they bring to the court. Both guys have been outstanding, even during (prospect) visits and representing DU on campus. Fortunately, both players decided to stay.”

Two WCC teams, Santa Clara and Saint Mary’s College, are estimated to have 5-8 million in NIL funding. DU relies on profit sharing and player-driven NIL. No figures are available for Denver.

Bergstraser calls his new roster a ‘coachable group’. After two recent road-trip scrimmages, he observed, “I saw a bunch of guys that are playing hard. They listen. They watch film. They are basketball junkies – they work in the gym, they lift hard, and they are good at their nutrition – the little things. They want to win and do the right things off the court – great in the classroom. They understand we need to execute better and transfer that to the court – day-by-day, week-by-week. With 12 new players, there is a bit of trial and error with guys with different backgrounds and dispositions. We play a ton in practice – not a lot of drills and long practices. We learn and coach through playing – that’s how I liked it when I was a player. I want them to play free – not look over their shoulder. I like that, and that is how you develop chemistry.”

Bergstraser is not naive when it comes to the upcoming season. The WCC placed three teams in March Madness last season. “The first thing is the size of WCC rosters – everyone is big. They are strong, athletic, and quick. Then, add talent and skill – they are a bunch of pros. Bergstraser got a front-row view when he attended the end-of-season WCC Tournament to watch St. Mary’s vs. Santa Clara. “After watching them play, I thought, ‘That’s different!’ It’s exciting, but we need to recruit differently. We can still be who we are, find guys that fit us and develop them. The WCC has good, high-level basketball coaches, too. We need to be ready to go.”

With assistant coach Spenser Bland managing the offense, Bergstraser is free to play a more strategic and advisory role on the offensive side of the ball. “I don’t have to worry about that side of the ball, but I do provide ideas and recommendations for sets and specific players. I let Spenser handle it – and I am fortunate to have him. I give him total freedom. Spenser is good at recruiting, too – he knows what I like. He doesn’t care about accolades (recently named 2026 Silver Waves Media Most Impactful Major Assistant Coaches), but I am sure he appreciated the recognition he is getting now.”

Denver finished 61st (80.3 ppg.) in the nation last season in scoring out of 365 programs. “We do try to recruit to our system. Get guys who know how to score – obviously, we need to work on defense, too. I think we have a high IQ group.”

The Pioneers practice at Hamilton Gym.

Bergstraser understands the need to improve on the defensive end after giving up 84 points per game last season, fourth quartile in the NCAA defensive standings. “We are going to be facing size and athleticism this season. We’ve gotten bigger, but we need to get even bigger (in the future). I’ve been getting back to my roots – we’re starting from the ground up. We are going to be flexible in our approach (primarily man-to-man). We will put pressure on the ball and ball screens, blanket ball handlers, and put targets on the ‘Bigs’. We will employ team defense. We have a group that takes pride in making stops, hates getting scored on – they are a coachable group. The more we play, the more synergy and chemistry I am seeing. I am eager to see how we are going to be defensively.

The increase in skill and size of the current Denver roster has a lot to do with the new conference affiliation. Basketball players want to play in the WCC for the strength of schedule and the visibility (ESPN+). “This past recruiting cycle, we sold the WCC hard. We wouldn’t have this roster without the WCC. We are looking everywhere, regardless of geography. We are building a recruiting network and developing a talent pipeline – AAU coaches, prep coaches, agents, foreign players, and transfers. We will go to where the players are.”

Prior to the most recent capital upgrades, it was no secret that the Hamilton Gym experience for fans (and players) fell below most DI venues. Future plans, Phase 2, call for a suite/viewing area at the west end of the gym and future ‘sellouts’ to, potentially, be moved into Magness Arena. And, if rumors are true, a new DU pep band may be performing at games as early as this season.

Bergstraser has actively marketed Hamilton to new recruits. “When talking to recruits, we sell Hamilton and the Hamilton Experience. I’ve never been a part of a renovation like this – it is pretty cool. I’ve had a taste of what this gym can be with a big crowd. Now, the buzz is growing with our program moving to the WCC. It gets loud in here when you close the doors. We show recruits pictures and videos of our crowds. We show them our capital plans (phase 2). Of course, we want to add a successful product on the floor that makes people want to fill the place up. I am going to do everything I can (to get people to games) and get the help of people at the school. We need everybody to buy in, including student engagement. We want this place to be a hornets’ nest.”

As for players to watch, Bergstraser mentioned Kam Martin, Oskar Wickstrom Stumer, Jordan Rogers, and Spencer Mahoney. On Kam Martin from Samford and Long Beach State. “He has played in a lot of big games – he’s won 20+ games at the DI level with meaningful minutes. He just knows how to play basketball and fill it up (score). Kam is Selfless.

According to the Head Coach, Oskar Wickstrom Stumer is going to fill the hard hat, lunch pail role. He (Wickstrom) is the definition of toughness. He is hard to take off the floor – scoring or not. He’s 6’8″ and 230 pounds. He can play defense and rebound – really, a Swiss Army knife. He can bring the ball up the court. Look at the stat sheet: he may have 4 points but 6 rebounds, 5 assists, and no turnovers kind of guy. He can guard tough guys. Logan Kinsey was that guy for us last season. Stumer is that guy (Kinsey) with 20 more pounds.

Jordan Rodgers is a captain for our team (from NJIT).  He is a 6’6″ wing, and his dad played in the NBA and coached. He knows how to play basketball. He’ll be good for us right away, but I am pushing him to be more aggressive on the floor. Come January and February, we can cut him loose. He will impact games for us – he looks like a DI middle linebacker.

Spencer Mahoney is from Temple. At Denver, he is in a system that fits him, and he is comfortable in. A legit 6’9″ and can shoot the ball. We are pushing him on the defensive end – he has close to a 7′ wingspan. I think we have an opportunity with our entire roster to get creative and win different ways.

The WCC move was the right move for a host of reasons, athletic and institutional. No doubt, the lights are brighter, the challenge bigger, and the opportunity greater than ever before. In their first season, Denver has been tabbed as the WCC cellar dweller. The Pioneers could be like the mythological Greek Icarus, whose wax wings melted as he flew too close to the sun, or the biblical David who slain the overwhelming favorite, Goliath. This season’s hoops version is likely to fall somewhere in between. It will be fascinating to watch for fans and skeptics alike.  That doesn’t deter Bergstraser from the task at hand. He is determined to make the most of what he has at DU with ‘his guys’.

Bergstraser reflected on his rapid ascent in the coaching ranks, “I went from a D2 coaching job to a low major program (DU/Summit League) to a high mid-major (DU/WCC) before I coached my first Division I game at DU. It’s crazy – but I am excited about it. I want to win. I want to play the very best – I’m a competitor. We’re going to fight, scrap, and claw our way to represent DU the right way. It’s not going to be a press of a button – it will take time and effort. I have a vision: filling Hamilton Gym, national recognition, and basketball becoming an important part of Denver’s other highly successful programs.

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