Dec. 2, 2005

Box Score

DENVER - Sara Benham (Muleshoe, Texas) led the Pioneers with 14 points and grabbed nine boards, but it was not enough to give Denver the win in its home opener as the Pioneers fell 76-70 to Portland Friday evening in Hamilton Gym. Lauren Reini (Portland, Ore.) added 11 points and Tyesha Lowery (Arlington, Texas) nabbed 10 as Denver moves to 1-3 on the season.

"We showed defensive intensity in spurts, but we still made turnovers during critical times that took us out of the game," said head coach Pam Tanner. "From the beginning, we did not show much desire to get a win and until we can put forth a complete effort from beginning to end, we are going to struggle."

Head coach Pam Tanner looked to every player to provide a spark early in the game, with every Pioneer recording at least five minutes in tonight's contest, with the exception of Sara Bents, who is recovering from a stress fracture.

Despite limiting Whitney Grant, Portland's leading scorer to three points in the first half, the Pilots established a 44-32 advantage at the break. The Pilots were hot from the field in the opening period, shooting 58.6 percent and hitting 6-of-10 from behind the arc. Benham led the way for Denver with 10 points and four rebounds.

While Denver committed a season-low 19 turnovers, it was the time of the turnovers that hurt DU in the end. After fighting back to within two at 65-68 with 2:25 remaining, the Pilots scored on two consecutive DU turnovers to build their lead back up to seven and overcome Denver's second-half surge to seal the game at 76-70.

The Pioneers shot 42.1 percent for the game, while Portland got the victory on 50 percent shooting. Denver also could not match the Pilot's accuracy from behind the arc, finishing 6-for-26, while Portland shot 7-for-13 from three-point range.

The Pioneers are back in action Sunday, hosting regional rival Wyoming at 2 p.m. in Hamilton Gym.