DENVER - Powered by a career-high 24 points from junior Britteni Rice (Pampa, Texas), the University of Denver women's basketball team (1-1) topped the visiting CSU Rams (2-1) 68-55 on Wednesday evening in Magness Arena. This is the fifth straight win by the Pioneers over the Rams, second under head coach Erik Johnson.

To go along with her career-high 24 points, Rice finished with four rebounds, two steals and one assist, while also shooting 64.3 percent from the floor on 9-of-14. The guard was also a perfect 4-of-4 from the charity stripe for the night and 50.0 percent from beyond the arc (2-of-4). Of her 24 points, Rice scored 16 in the second half alone.

"It was a great team effort tonight," Johnson said. "We knew CSU was going to come in and contest every shot and go for every rebound and right off that bat that's what they did. After calling that first timeout in the opening minutes, we refocused, regrouped and got back to what our game plan was. I couldn't be more proud of the way our girls responded and played our game."

Also turning in strong numbers for the Pioneers was sophomore Kaetlyn Murdoch (Temple, Texas) and junior Brianna Culberson (Jefferson City, Mo.) as both finished in double digits. Murdoch finished the night with 15 points, seven rebounds and three blocks, while Culberson added 12 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals.

For the game, Denver was 57.8 percent accurate from the floor on 26-of-45 shooting, while the Rams finished 35.1 percent from the floor on 20-of-57 shooting. The Pioneers also out-rebounded the Rams 33-29 and dished out an impressive 15 assists.

Down 28-24 with less than two minutes remaining, Denver went on a six-point rally to close out the half and head into the locker room with a two-point cushion.

Sparked by a Culberson jumper, momentum swung in favor of the Pioneers as they forced a turnover by the Rams and got a key bucket from Rice with a 1:03 left to tie the game 28-28. Following another miscue by the Rams, Denver took the lead as Culberson once again drove to the basket with 37 second remaining.

Culberson and Rice led Denver in the opening stanza with eight points each, while Murdoch added seven points, three rebounds and two blocks. Also turning in good numbers for the Pioneers was freshman Laura Palmere (Denver, Colo.) as she finished the first half with five points, three rebounds and two assists.

Denver continued to stretch its lead after the intermission, going on a 7-1 run in the opening 2:51 of play. However, the Rams were able to pull within three, 44-41, five minutes later as Chantil Van Grinsven and Zoi Simmons both converted jumpers. The Pioneers ended the Rams short burst of momentum as freshman Emiko Smith (Los Angeles, Calif.) and Murdoch both provided buckets to give Denver a 48-41 cushion.

After allowing the Rams to pull within three just moments later, the Pioneers took control of the game, stretching their lead by as much as 14 points with 4:14 remaining. The Rams were unable to get back to within single digits of Denver, as the Pioneers finished the game with a 13-point advantage.

Following a 54.2 percent showing from the floor in the first half, Denver rebounded with a 61.9 percent shooting percentage from the floor in the second half, while the Rams shot 34.4 percent from the floor in the final 20 minutes.

Next up for the Pioneers will be a visit to Missoula, Mont., to take on the Montana Grizzlies on Tuesday, Nov. 24 at 7 p.m. MT. The game will be available on Pioneer Radio as Mitch Hyder will call all the action on the hardwood. The game marks the first of six road games that Denver will embark on over the next two and a half weeks.

- PIONEERS -