Feb. 12, 2005

Final Stats

DENVER -Three players scored in double figures but it was not enough as the University of Denver women's basketball team fell to Sun Belt Conference East Division leader Western Kentucky, 71-58, this afternoon in Hamilton Gymnasium. Denver falls to 4-19 (2-9 SBC), while the Lady Toppers stay atop the East Division with a 17-6 (10-0 SBC) record.

Brooke Meyer (Denver, Colo.) and Tasha Jones (San Antonio, Texas) each scored 12 points, while Sarah Cyran (Broomfield, Colo.) added 11 to help the Pioneers battle the undefeated Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. Denver battled Western bucket-for-bucket for most of the game, and the Pioneers were within six points of the leader with just seven minutes to play in the game. But Western made its free throws down the stretch to earn the victory.

"We played some of our best basketball today," Head Coach Pam Tanner said. "We are on the cusp of moving from a young and inexperienced team to being a very good basketball team - I don't know if that will be in the next four games, but we competed the entire 40 minutes and did some very good things."

Both teams came out strong offensively in the first half, with Denver shooting 43.8 percent (14-32) from the field, compared to WKU's 58.1 percent (18-31). WKU held a slight advantage in the first five minutes of the game, but a quick 7-0 run, led by a long-range bucket from freshman point guard Meyer got Denver within one point at 15-14, with 11:18 to play. Consecutive baskets by the Lady Toppers' Tiffany Porter-Talbert extended WKU's lead to eight, but Denver managed a 9-2 run to come back within two points (28-26) with 5:18 left in the half. Back-to-back buckets from WKU's Crystal Kelly and a layup from senior guard Jones gave the Lady Toppers' a seven-point advantage (39-32) heading into the second half.

Western began the second half with a 9-2 run in the first four and a half minutes. The Pioneers' junior Venice Adams (Luling, La.) scored two layups to bring the score to 50-38, with 14:49 left to play. Three-pointers from Meyer and Jones closed the gap further, leaving Denver trailing 52-44, with 13:06 remaining. WKU's Porter-Talbert and Kelly widened the Lady Toppers' lead to 11, before senior center Cyran and Adams both sunk layups to pull Denver back within seven, with 3:53 left to play.

Freshman guard Jennifer Whetten (Evergreen, Colo.) made a pair of free throws in the last 1:36 of the game, but WKU's Camryn Whitaker sunk two pairs of her own to end the game and give the Lady Toppers the 71-58 victory.

Denver held Western to 71 points, nearly nine points below its average of 80 points per game. Kelly led all scorers with 25 points. Denver shot 46.3 percent (25-54) from the field, compared to the Lady Hill Toppers' 46.0 percent (29-63). The Pioneers also forced 12 steals and four blocks.

The Pioneers continue their homestand on Thursday, Feb. 17, when they play host to New Mexico State at 7 p.m. MT. Denver will finish its home schedule against North Texas on Sunday, Feb. 20, at 2 p.m.