Omaha (7-7, 1-0) shot 54.0% from the field and 47.8% from three- point-land (on 11 of 23 shooting) to handily defeat Denver (5-10, 0-1), 91 to 84, to open Summit League play.
The first five minutes were even at Omaha’s Baxter Arena. Then, a hot shooting Joe Rosga reeled off seven points in the middle of the frame to build a 19-11 Pioneer advantage at 11:24. From there on, poor interior defense and five 3-point buckets allowed the Mavs back into the contest. A Zach Jackson layup knotted the game 28-28 at 4:53. The teams traded points until Omaha’s Mitch Hahn hit a 3-point shot and a layup to give Omaha a 3-point lead with two minutes to go. A KJ Robinson bucket-and-one gave the Mavs a 4-point lead heading into the break, 41-37. Denver’s defense was poor, especially in the second half of the period, allowing clean 3-point looks and easy inside buckets. Omaha’s 6 first half turnovers kept Denver in the contest. Continue reading Hot Shooting Omaha Sinks DU, 91-84→
Denver (5-9) met a powerhouse Gonzaga team (11-2) which might well be a Final Four team – and the Pioneers learned how far they have to go to compete at an elite level. The Pioneers fell by 61 points, the largest losing margin in Denver’s D1 basketball history. Few expected Denver to win the game but it was the poor start and ragged play throughout the contest that left even DU’s most faithful fans shaking their heads.
Zags win!! Bulldogs post a record 61-point margin of victory and finish with ✋ players in double-figures #UnitedWeZag
Gonzaga shot 68.4% for the game with many shots coming at close range and supplemented by 10 3-point bombs that punished the Pioneers from the inside out. On the other hand, DU shot 24.6% for the contest and many of their misses were poor shots which fell far from the mark. The contest was played at a Bulldogs pace and it was clear that Denver was outclassed from the start. Continue reading Denver Gets Blasted by Gonzaga, 101-40→
DU faces #8 Gonzaga (10-2) Friday night at 7 pm MT. We will have tables reserved at The Pioneer, 2401 South University Boulevard for an official LetsGoDU watch party. Denver has won 3 of their last 4 games and Friday is the Pioneers’ last non-conference game before Summit League play begins.
Happy hour runs from 4-7 pm, so be sure to get off work early and get there for:
$3.5 Wells
$4 Micro Drafts
$4 House Margaritas
$5 CK Mondavi Wine
This is a rare opportunity to watch DU play a Top 10 hoops program. Be there to cheer on DU.
This game was a carbon copy of the recent Denver-UC Irvine contest but in reverse. DU (5-8) raced out to a 10-0 lead to start the contest. Then, DU players rained 3-point shots, 15 in all, to coast to an easy victory over Montana State (3-7) Tuesday night at Magness Arena. Continue reading Denver defeats Montana State, gets back to winning ways→
The University of Denver Pioneers (4-8) faced the UC Irvine Anteaters (10-2) on the road Saturday night and were thoroughly dismantled in the first half 47-16. The Anteaters Max Hazzard single-handedly outscored the Pioneers in the first half with 7 3-point buckets and a total of 23 points to DU’s 16. DU shot 17% during the embarrassing first 20 minutes. UC Irvine shot 47.1% from the field and nailed 11 for 19 from the arc. This was the worst half of basketball by DU in years and continued a worrisome trend of slow starts this season.
The fun continued in the second half for the Anteaters as Max Hazzard canned three more 3’s to secure an individual school record. At 13:27 of the second half of the game, Denver hit their nadir, 24-65. DU emptied the bench and so did UC Irvine as both teams went thru the required motions until the final whistle. Irvine capped the beating with their 17th three of the night, a school record, with less than a minute to go. Continue reading DU Pummeled by UC Irvine, 86-52→
LARAMIE, Wyo. – The University of Denver (4-7, 0-0) men’s basketball team started to put all the pieces together tonight in an 90-87 overtime win against the University of Wyoming. It had been 20 years since DU earned a win in Laramie and it could not have happened at a better time.
Denver led the game for a total of 31:53 minutes but their halftime lead melted during the second half, eventually leading to overtime. In the final minute of overtime, after trading leads in extra time, a tip-in by Donoven Carlisle gave Denver the lead once and for all, 86-84. A missed three point shot by Wyoming was rebounded by Joe Rosga. Rosga was fouled and made two free throws to give DU a 4-point advantage. Once again, Wyoming missed another 3-point attempt and Rosga got the rebound. Again, the veteran senior sunk two more free throws to give DU a 6-point lead with three seconds to go. Wyoming sank a desperation 3-point shot at the buzzer and the game ended 90-87, Denver. Continue reading Pioneers Beat Wyoming in OT Thriller, 90-87→
Denver (2-7) shot 31.4% for the first half and committed 9 turnovers to fall behind Air Force (4-5), 26-23, at the half. Despite the cold shooting by the Pioneers, the teams exchanged leads during the first half – until the final minute. The teams were knotted at 23 each following a Joe Rosga jumper with 30 seconds to go – but a jumper and a free throw by Air Force’s Scottie Lavelle gave the Cadets a 3-point advantage at the break.
Denver started slowly again in the second half. After 8 minutes, Air Force had built a 10 point lead, their biggest advantage of the night, capped by a 3-point jumper by Keaton Van Soelen. With 7:17 minutes to go, DU freshman guard Joseph Lanzi caught fire with a 3-point jumper to cut the AFA lead to 6 points. Two minutes later, Lanzi delivered again from the arc to cut the deficit to 5 points. A minute later, Lanzi hit a layup at 4:19 to make it 57-54. Lanzi capped his barrage with a final 3-point shot at 2:19 but DU could not make stops down the stretch to close the gap. Air Force hit 11 of 11 free throws in the final 1:09 to coast the rest of the way to a win. Continue reading Denver comes up short against Air Force, 73-65→
The Denver Pioneers (2-5) got rolled in the first half, minus three starters, en route to a Northern Colorado Bears (4-1) 88-72 victory. The score was a lopsided 48-29 at the halftime break and the Pioneers substituted liberally down the stretch, getting all five freshmen on the floor during the contest. In the first 20 minutes, the visitors went 9-17 from the arc and shot over 50% to build up a huge lead at Magness Arena and coasted with a double digit lead nearly the entire night.
DU junior Ade Murkey was the star of the night with 31 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists – his career best as a Pioneer. Freshmen guards Taylr Gatlin and Jase Townsend has 8 and 6 points respectively while freshman big man David Nzekwesi showed some soft hands and power inside with 7 points. The energy from the bench definitely improved after what must have been an ugly half-time meeting with coaches and Denver players responded with a respectable second half. Continue reading Wounded Pioneers Fall to Bears, 88-72→
There were few happy endings for the Denver Pioneers at the Elgin Baylor Classic as they dropped their final game to Fairfield and could only win one game out of three at the tournament. Despite the outcome, there were some positive signs for the Pioneers (2-4) but plenty of room to improve.
Absent three starters (Joe Rosga and Jake Krafka – rolled ankles, Tory Stewart-Miller – injured wrist), there were three to four freshmen on the floor for Denver most of the tournament – and the first-year players contributed along the way. Like most freshmen, their offensive consistency and interior defense were off-and-on all weekend but Joe Lanzi, David Nzekwesi, Jase Townsend, Taylr Gatlin, and Alperin Kurnaz got meaningful minutes and contributed in extended action. Continue reading Sleepless in Seattle: Denver drops two at the Elgin Baylor Classic→
