Jan. 22, 2005

Final Stats

DENVER - Sophomore forward Antonio Porch (Denver, Colo.) tallied 23 points and pulled down 10 rebounds to lead the University of Denver men's basketball team to a 68-58 win over Arkansas Little Rock tonight in Sun Belt Conference play at Magness Arena. The perfect 5-0 record in SBC play marks the best start in school history. The win improves the Pioneers to 10-6 overall. Arkansas Little Rock drops to 12-6, 4-2.

"We are beginning to buy into the team concept," said head coach Terry Carroll. "It is obviously a great start, but there is a long way to go. We need to get better with each practice and each game."

Denver's defense used the first three minutes to set the tone of the game, forcing the Trojans to commit three turnovers. Junior center Yemi Nicholson (Denver, Colo.) sparked the Pioneers' offense, sinking a jump shot and a dunk to give Denver an early 4-0 lead. Nicholson continued to dominate on offense, tallying six points in just over a minute to put the score at 19-13, with 8:38 left in the half. The teams continued to battle, but the quickness of senior guard Rodney Billups (Denver, Colo.) created scoring opportunities and had the Pioneers leading 26-22, with 4:19 left to play. Porch hit three baskets in the last 2:10 of the half to give Denver a 34-28 advantage heading into the second stanza.

Porch tallied 12 points in the half, with teammate Nicholson adding 10. The Pioneers shot 44.1 percent (15-34) from the field, to the Trojans' 38.7 percent (12-31). The Pioneers also forced the Trojans to commit seven turnovers.

The Pioneers made three consecutive baskets to begin the second half and started to pull away from the Trojans. Three free throws made by Nicholson gave the Pioneers an 11-point advantage, putting the score at 45-34, with 14:12 left to play. Denver continued to put pressure on the Trojans' offense, grabbing rebounds and forcing Arkansas Little Rock to take hard shots. The Pioneers' offense responded with a 9-0 run, led by three points from Porch, giving Denver a 54-37 lead with 10:47 left to play.

Denver carried its offensive momentum through the rest of the half, as Porch sunk two-consecutive baskets to give Denver a 17-point lead, with 6:25 remaining on the clock. A pair of free throws by senior guard Erik Benzel (Spokane, Wash.) and Porch, and a bucket from Nicholson put the game out of reach for the Trojans, leaving the score at 68-47, with 3:44 left in the game. Arkansas Little Rock's Elijah Muldrow hit three-consecutive baskets to try and put the Trojans back in the game but the Pioneers held on for the 68-58 victory.

Porch led all scores with 23. Nicholson added 20 and Billups had 10. Brandon Freeman led Arkansas Little Rock with 18 points. Porch also pulled down a game-high 10 boards, while teammate Nicholson added nine and Billups contributed seven assists. The Pioneers outshot the Trojans, 40.7 (22-of-54) to 36.5 (23-of-63).

The Pioneers' next two games are on the road at South Alabama on Thursday, Jan. 27, and New Orleans on Saturday, Jan. 29. Both contests will begin at 6 p.m. MT.