Feb. 13, 2003

Box Score

The University of Denver women's basketball team dropped a 90-81 decision to North Texas despite a career-high and team-season-high 28 points from Tasha Jones (San Antonio, Texas/Holmes). Denver falls to 12-13, 6-5, while North Texas improved to 9-13, 4-7. The Pioneers set the all-time attendance record with 4,799 fans who came out as part of the Pack the House promotion. The previous record was 3,307 (1/11/99) vs. CU in the first year the building opened.

Denver held a one-point lead at the intermission (33-32), but North Texas began the second half with an 18-6 run to open a 10-point lead (50-40) with just five minutes gone in the period. The Pioneers closed the gap to seven points on a lay up from Nicky Eason (Carpentersville, Ill./Barrington) before the Lady Eagles mounted a 10-1 run to earn a 16-point margin. The Pioneers' strategy of fouling the Lady Eagles down the stretch was effective, but Denver never got closer than seven points.

"We scored 81 points, but we didn't play defense as well as we needed to," head coach Pam Tanner said. "You can't let a team score 90 points and expect to win a game. North Texas had a greater will to win than we did tonight. It always comes down to the players having a will to win."

The Pioneers led by as many as seven points in the first half thanks to a 13-5 run capped by a layup form Kellie Carwell (Villa Park, Ill./Timothy Christian). Leading 27-20, the Pioneers failed to score for the next five minutes while North Texas rattled off 12 unanswered points. Ashley Atkinson (Springfield, Mo./Kickapoo) and Eason finished the half by scoring back-to-back three pointers to erase UNT's five-point lead and give Denver the one-point edge (33-32).

Jones led the team with 28 points on 10-19 from the field, including 3-5 from long range. Atkinson added 15 points, and Eason scored 10 and had eight rebounds. Kim Blanton led four Lady Eagles in double figure scoring with 25 points. Heather Trout scored 16, Erika Bobo added 13, and Emily Britt contributed 12.

Denver has lost three consecutive games, and will look to get back on track next weekend when the Pioneers travel to New Orleans to face UNO and South Alabama in two pivotal Sun Belt Conference West Division games.