* DU Athletics Media Advisory *

University of Denver Weekly Press Conference

Tuesday, March 12, 2013, 12 p.m. MT

Champions Room (concourse level of Magness Arena)

ONLINE: The press conference will be streamed live FREE on Pioneer Vision at www.DenverPioneers.com

Schedule

11:50 a.m. - Pizza available

12 p.m. - Comments from hockey head coach George Gwozdecky

12:05 p.m. - Comments from men's lacrosse head coach Bill Tierney

12:10 p.m. - Comments from women's lacrosse head coach Liza Kelly

12:15 p.m. - Comments from men's basketball head coach Joe Scott

HOCKEY (19-11-5, 14-9-5 WCHA)

• The No. 11/10 Pioneers enter the 2013 WCHA Playoffs as the No. 5 seed and will host intra-state rival Colorado College for a best-of-three first round series this weekend at Magness Arena. Friday's playoff opener will start at 7:37 p.m. (MT), while Saturday's game two will see a 7:07 p.m. (MT) puck drop. If necessary, Sunday's decisive third game would start at 7:07 p.m.
• Denver has hosted the opening round of the WCHA playoffs in each of the last 10 seasons and has advanced to the WCHA Final Five in six of those seasons including each of the last five overall.
• Denver is 80-59-6 all-time in WCHA Tournament games and 58-19-5 on tournament games on its home ice. This weekend's series will mark the first time that Denver and Colorado College have squared off in the WCHA playoffs since the 2005 season, when the Pioneers defeated the Tigers 1-0 to claim the WCHA Title.
• Denver last met CC in the opening round in 2004 and was defeated 2-0 by the Tigers. Denver leads the all-time series with Colorado College 159-111-15 (.583), which began in 1949-1950. The Pioneers posted a 2-1-1 mark in the season series with Colorado College and reclaimed the Gold Pan Trophy after losing it to the Tigers in 2012.

No. 3/5 MEN'S LACROSSE (5-1, 1-0 ECAC)

• The University of Denver men's lacrosse team returns home to take part in the second annual Whitman's® Sampler® Mile High Classic, hosted by Inside Lacrosse at Sports Authority Field at Mile High Stadium on Saturday. The Pioneers will take on top-ranked Notre Dame at 4:30 p.m., following the Air Force vs. Loyola game that is slated to begin at 2 p.m. The Pioneers' game will be available on ESPN3 and tape-delayed on ESPNU.
• Denver is 4-13 all-time against the Irish, 3-11 since turning DI in 1999. The last time the Pioneers defeated Notre Dame was on April 5, 2008 with Denver taking a 9-8 decision.
• Denver finished the week securing a key conference win with a 10-9 victory over No. 8/11 Ohio State in its league opener.
• Senior Eric Law (Centennial, Colo.) led the Pioneers with three goals and an assist, while goalie tandem of sophomore Ryan LaPlante (Fort Collins, Colo.) and junior Jamie Faus (Lakeville, Conn.) recorded a combined 18 saves. Law leads the Pioneers with 28 points so far this season off 13 goals and 15 assists, while sophomore Wes Berg (Coquitlam, B.C.) leads the team with 18 goals.

WOMEN'S LACROSSE (6-1)

• Denver wraps up a five-game home stand when Boston University visits Peter Barton Stadium on Wednesday.
• The Pioneers won the only previous meeting with the Terriers in 2011. Prior to taking over as DU's head coach in 2007, Liza Kelly coached at BU, leading the team to the NCAA Tournament appearances in 2005 and 2006.
• Senior Kate Henrich (Lansdale, Pa.) had 15 caused turnovers in three games last week, moving into 11th in NCAA history with 129 career caused turnovers, just five away from joining the Top 10.
• Sophomore Kiki Boone (Cherry Hills Village, Colo.) tied DU's single-game record with 12 draw controls against Fresno State on March 10.

MEN'S BASKETBALL (23-8, 18-2 WAC)

• The Pioneers head to the WAC Tournament in Las Vegas this week as the No. 2 seed and will play their first game in the Quarterfinals on Thursday, facing the winner of a First Round game between No. 7 Texas State and No. 10 Seattle. Denver swept both series this season, beating Seattle 64-51 on the road (Jan. 12) and 72-55 at home (Feb. 7), and dropping Texas State 64-53 at home (Jan. 3) and 79-64 on the road (Feb. 2).
• Junior Chris Udofia (Irving, Texas) was named to the All-WAC First Team, senior Chase Hallam (Mesquite, Texas) made the Second Team, and sophomores Brett Olson (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) and Royce O'Neale (Killeen, Texas) both made the Third Team. Udofia and Hallam also were selected to the WAC All-Defensive Team.
• Denver's 10-game winning streak is the longest against Division I opponents in team history and tied for the fourth longest overall. It's also the sixth-longest current winning streak in the nation. Since New Year's Eve, the Pioneers have gone 17-1 (.944), the third-best winning percentage in the nation, behind only Gonzaga (18-1) and Memphis (18-1). During that stretch, Denver also ranks first in the NCAA in assists (20.9 per game), assist/turnover ratio (1.71) and turnover margin (+9.7).
• DU is also second in the NCAA in points allowed (52.6) and fourth in field goal percentage (.504) since Dec. 31.

Parking: FREE - Ritchie Center Loading Dock Spaces, Event Spaces, & Lot 401 (RSVP to receive a parking pass for these spaces to display on dashboard)

Enter: Media entry at back loading dock of Magness Arena

RSVP: Please RSVP to Nicole Bostel (Nicole.bostel@du.edu or 303-871-4990)

ONLINE: The press conference will be streamed live FREE on Pioneer Vision at www.DenverPioneers.com