The Denver men’s basketball season (15-17, 8-8 Summit League), their last in the Summit, ended with a first-round conference tournament thud, an 83-67 drubbing by North Dakota. UND, by no means a basketball power, advanced to the finals against North Dakota State. The Fighting Hawks were dispatched, 64-51, in the conference final. It was a bitter end to an unexpectedly competitive season, which was preceded by changes on and off the court. Let’s not get carried away – Denver won more games just two seasons ago and advanced to the Summit League final. It is not yet fair to say Denver basketball’s on-court product is clearly on an upward trajectory. There is still plenty of work to be done. Continue reading Denver Men Can Use Season End as Wake-up Call →

DU Men’s Basketball (15-17, 8-8) faced #3 seed University of North Dakota Friday night in the quarterfinals of the Summit League Tournament in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. It was a dismal first 20 minutes for the Pioneers as they were outshot 46% to the Fighting Hawks 53% from the field. Denver went 2 of 10 from distance while UND nailed 7 of 12 (58%) from downtown. Denver committed an uncharacteristic 9 turnovers. UND delivered 14 points in the paint (38 for the game) in what felt like a bad dream. UND redshirt freshman Greyson Uelmen scored 19 points in the first half, leading the rout. When the smoke cleared, DU trailed 42-29. The game was all but over. Continue reading North Dakota Dispatches DU at Final Summit League Tournament Championship, 83-67 →

In a LetsGoDU interview earlier this week, DU men’s basketball head coach Tim Bergstraser discussed the Summit League Basketball Tournament in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.  While the program’s future lies to the West and the West Coast Conference next season, Bergstraser has his attention firmly directed north to Sioux Falls, South Dakota and his team’s tournament prospects. Continue reading Tim Bergstraser Discusses DU Men’s Basketball Prospects in Pios’ Final Summit League Tournament →

Denver men’s basketball (15-16, 8-8) completed their regular season Thursday night against ORU in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was an opportunity to finish the regular season with a winning record and finish +2 in Summit League play and a 7-1 record in their final 8 games to conclude the regular season. Instead, Denver had one of their poorest outings of the season, falling behind by 21 points in the first half and never threatened the Golden Eagles in the humiliating loss. Continue reading ORU Crushes DU in Regular Season Finale, 102-78 →

Denver men’s basketball (15-15, 8-7) closed-out the regular season schedule at Hamilton Gym in their last Summit League home game. It was Senior Day, too, with Jeremiah Burke, Logan Kinsey, Zane Nelson, Julius Rollins, Devin Carney, and Josh Lee taking their final bows. St Thomas, sitting in second place in conference was the perfect foil to gauge DU’s readiness for the Sioux Falls conference tournament in several weeks. Respond? Denver certainly did in the 82-80 win. Continue reading Denver Stuns St. Thomas 82-80 →

It is hard to believe but Denver men’s basketball (14-15, 7-7) season entered its final two home conference games, starting Thursday night with South Dakota. In a game loaded with fouls, Denver needed to shoot lights out – and they did. Denver shot 47% from the field, 9 of 17 from downtown, and 23 of 25 from the charity stripe to drop the Coyotes. Carson Johnson was lethal down the stretch, finishing with 32 points and 3 assists. Continue reading Denver Dodges Coyotes and Fouls in 90-70 Win Over South Dakota →

Denver men’s basketball (11-14, 4-6) opened its two-game road swing Thursday night against the North Dakota State Bison, 9-0 in conference play. Denver battled for both halves as Carson Johnson paced the Pioneer scoring and Gabe Oldham hauled down 12 big rebounds. Denver rebuffed the Bison down the stretch in the confidence-building win.

The teams exchanged points early when DU’s Gabe Oldham scored a pair of consecutive buckets to put DU up 9-5 at the five-minute mark. At the first media timeout (10:14), DU led 19-14 as Jeremiah Burke and Carson Johnson combined for 13 points and Gabe Oldham pulled down four rebounds. The first ten minutes had only two fouls called. Zane Nelson buried a shot from distance, 26-18, and a Josh Lee bucket-and-one gave the Pioneers their biggest lead on the back of a 10-0 run. In the final five minutes, a Carson Johnson tray, his third in the first half, held off a Bison run, 34-27. After trading baskets, Julius Rollins finished the DU scoring, 40-34, halftime.

The second half opened with each side scoring, followed by a Logan Kinsey bucket-and-one that put DU up by nine. Denver held an 11-point edge at the ‘officials timeout’. Following three straight stops, NDSU’s Wheeler Thomas’ three-point play closed the gap to 8. Pioneer fouls put the Bison in the penalty with 13 minutes remaining. Denver went cold from the field while NDSU came surging back on a Tay Smith tray-and-one, 55-51, with eleven minutes left. NDSU knotted the game, 55-55, on a 9-0 Bison run. At 7:19, NDSU got its first lead on a pair of free throws, 58-57. However, Denver responded down the stretch.  Zane Nelson secured a rebound and bucket put-in to extend the Denver lead with five minutes left. Denver led by 4 on a Carson Johnson floater with a minute remaining. Logan Kinsey ran the baseline and took a Johnson feed and bucket with 27 seconds left, 72-68. NDSU was called for basket interference and the ball went back to Denver with 19 seconds remaining. Foul shots ensued. Denver’s Zane Nelson and Carson Johnson sank the charities and DU came away with the 78-71 win.

Denver was the best team all night, holding NDSU to less than three minutes in the lead. Denver shot 50.9% and out-rebounded NDSU 35-33. On a personal note, Jeremiah Burke had a solid night against his old team with 15 points, 3 rebounds and 2 steals. Next up is North Dakota on Saturday at 12:00 MT in Grand Forks. The Fighting Hawks, one of the league’s hottest teams, have won five conference games in a row.

DU men’s basketball (10-14-3-6) played the Omaha Mavs on Saturday afternoon at Hamilton Gym. The Pioneers were trying to string together consecutive wins and build on their previous road win in Kansas City. Omaha finished strong in the closing minutes for the 84-82 win. The Mavs owned the paint, scoring 44 points inside and out-rebounding DU by 10 in a physical battle. Continue reading Omaha Muscles Their Way Past Denver, 84-82 →