Feb. 4, 2006

Box Score

DENVER - Senior forward Venice Adams (Luling, La.) posted 19 points on 6-of-10 shooting from the floor and was one of four DU players in double figures as the Pioneers defeated Louisiana-Lafayette, 76-69 in Magness Arena Saturday evening. Denver, who went 2-0 this weekend, improve to 11-10 overall, 5-5 in the SBC, while the Ragin' Cajuns fall to 15-7 and 5-5 in the conference race.

Sophomore guard Brooke Meyer (Denver, Colo.) added 14 points and went 4-of-8 from behind the arc, while junior guard Tyesha Lowery (Arlington, Texas) added 14 points and tied her career-high eight assists in the victory. The Pioneers came together both on offense and defense to avenge a 70-56 loss to the Ragin' Cajuns in their conference opener Jan. 5.

"I was very pleased with the defensive intensity today," head coach Pam Tanner said. "There were a lot of solid individual performances and we played well on both sides of the ball and this is the first time we have done that all season. The boards and defensive intensity were an important piece of the puzzle today and we played all-around smart basketball. Each time they had a run, we matched it. After the struggles we had last week, it was a great win for us."

Smart basketball was the key for DU, who did a great job of taking care of the ball, while forcing Lafayette turnovers. In the first half, Denver kept the contest in their control with only three turnovers, while Lafayette tallied eight. DU also came up big on the boards, recording six offensive and four defensive rebounds through the first eight minutes of play. DU went 11-of 31 from the field in the first half and recorded 20 boards including 16 on the defensive end, keeping ULL's second chances to a minimum. Freshman Nnenna Akotaobi (Thornton, Colo.) led the Pioneers in scoring in the first half with eight points on 2-of-3 shooting from the floor.

The Pioneers kept the momentum from the opening period and launched an 8-2 run for a 45-36 lead at the 15:31 mark. While DU led by as many as 11, ULL threatened the Pioneer advantage with an 8-0 run, pulling within two points on a basket by Onna Charles with 10 minutes remaining. However, it was Lowery who shifted the momentum once again back in the Pioneer's favor, picking up a quick steal and driving to the hole to extend the lead to six before Adams completed a three-point-play to push the lead back to nine points. Lafayette would only get as close as five points in the final minutes as DU held the Ragin' Cajuns off for the victory.

ULL held a small 40-38 advantage on the boards, but DU's unselfish play and heads-up defense accounted for 16 assists and eight steals. Jeanenne Colbert led the Ragin' Cajuns with 24 points and three rebounds.

The win puts Denver in a four-way tie for first place in the west division and gives the Pioneers a two-game win streak heading into a battle with Western Kentucky at home Wednesday at 7 p.m.