Jan. 6, 2004

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DENVER - The University of Denver men's basketball team snapped a four-game losing streak against Wyoming as the Pioneers defeated the Cowboys 63-62, Tuesday, Jan. 6, in front of a record-breaking crowd of 6,319 at Magness Arena. The Pack the House game, highlighted by a visit from colorful commentator Dick Vitale, broke Magness Arena's previous attendance record of 6,188 at a hockey game versus Colorado College on Jan. 19, 2001. Senior center Brett Starkey (Lakewood, Colo.) recorded his third double-double of the season, scoring 10 points and tallying 14 rebounds. Senior forward Zeljko Zupic (Sinj, Croatia) led the team in scoring with 16 points. Denver improves to 8-4, while the Wyoming falls to 7-5.

"This is what we want our program to be, especially with the crowd," head coach Terry Carroll said. "We want to be competitive whether we are playing Wyoming tonight or Louisiana-Lafayette next weekend. We are not worried about our opponent, we just want to come out and win. In the second half we reestablished our defense and did a better job of finding the open man."

After an early 7-0 run by the Cowboys, junior Rodney Billups (Denver, Colo.) stole the ball at half-court and fed the ball to Starkey, who slammed it in to put the score at 16-14, with the Pioneers trailing by two. Consecutive baskets by Starkey with 2:10 remaining in the half again cut the Cowboy's lead to two, but baskets by Dion Sherrell and Jay Straight pulled the Cowboys a head 32-28, to end the half. Denver had nine turnovers in the first half, compared to the Cowboy's six.

Billups led the Pioneers on a quick 6-0 run to start the second half and tie the game for the first time at 32-32 with 17:49 remaining in the half. Wyoming answered with a 5-0 run and led 38-36, until senior Carvell McAlister (Fresno, Calif.) hit a jumper to tie the game again at 38-38 with 12:16 left in the half. Freshman Antonio Porch (Denver, Colo.) hit a shot to give the Pioneers only their second lead of the game, 41-40.

The Cowboys opened the gap again and made two quick 3-pointers to give Wyoming a five point lead (46-41). A basket by McAlister and a dunk by Porch sparked the Pioneers on an 8-0 run to take the lead, 49-46. The battle between the two teams continued and a goaltending call on Wyoming tied the score at 53-53 with 3:02 remaining. A pair of free throws from McCalister and a 3-pointer from Zupic gave Denver a 58-53 lead with 1:11 left in the second half. Wyoming continued to attack and added eight points in the final minute of the game, but free throws from Billups and junior Erik Benzel (Spokane, Wash.) secured the 63-62 win for the Pioneers.

Four of Denver's five starters scored in double-figures, led by Zupic's 16 points. Billups added 13, McAlister had 12, and Starkey netted 10. Jay Straight was the leading scorer for the Cowboys, contributing 17 points.

Denver won the rebound battle, (42-37), including 14 from Starkey. Mory Correa had nine for Wyoming. The Pioneers shot 40 percent from the field but were 2-for-12 from beyond the arc. Wyoming shot 39 percent and was 6-for-12 from the 3-point line.

The Pioneers will conclude their two-game homestand when they open conference play vs. Louisiana-Lafayette on Sat., Jan. 10, at 4 p.m., in Hamilton Gymnasium.