Feb. 20, 2016 About Denver: The Pioneers come into Sunday's game with a 13-14 overall record and 5-9 in Summit League play. Denver fell to Oral Roberts on the road, 62-58 on Feb. 19, 2016. The Crimson and Gold are led by
Joe Rosga, who is averaging 12.1 points a game.
Nate Engesser is averaging 11.9 points, while
Marcus Byrd is adding 10.2 points and
C.J. Bobbitt is leading the team in rebounding with 3.7 a game. DU has six players averaging over 20 minutes per game. Denver was picked to finish eighth in the Summit League by league coaches, media and SIDs.
About South Dakota: South Dakota comes into Sunday's contest with a 13-15 overall record and a 4-9 mark in Summit League games. The Coyotes are coming off a mid-week non-league tilt at home against York, in a game USD won 82-55 on Feb. 17, 2016. South Dakota is led by the duo of Tre Burnette and Casey Kasperbauer who are both averaging 12.8 per game. Burnette also averages a team leading 6.7 rebounds a game. Shy McClelland is chipping in 11.5 points per contest. South Dakota was picked to finish fifth in the Summit League by league coaches, media and SIDs.
The Match-up: This is the 10th meeting between the teams. Denver leads the all-time series 6-3. DU defeated South Dakota in their first meeting of the season 66-52 in Denver on Jan. 28, 2016. The Pioneers defeated the Coyotes in their last meeting in Vermillion on Feb. 25, 2016, 66-48.
Broadcast Info: Sunday's game will air on ESPN3 (http://es.pn/1QFGsZ1) with Jay Elsen (PBP), Greg Steman (Analyst) and Carla Metts (Sideline) on the call. The game can be heard on Mile High Sports Radio AM 1340 with Raj Sharan calling all the Pioneer play-by-play action. The game can also be streamed via audio only on Pioneer Vision. For information on how to subscribe to Pioneer Vision please visit DenverPioneers.com.
Nifty Nate: Senior
Nate Engesser is averaging 11.9 points a game on 51.7 percent shooting from the field. Engesser has tied his career high twice this season on Nov. 15, 2015 against Lipscomb and Dec. 13, 2015 against Weber State scoring 26 points. The senior has four games this season where he has drained six 3-pointers. Engesser knocked down a career-high seven 3-pointers against Belmont on Nov. 26, 2014. Engesser set career highs in assists (6) and steals (3) vs. Western Illinois on Jan 14, 2015. He tied his career high in assists by dishing out six against Omaha on Feb. 7, 2015 and steals (3) at Santa Clara. Engesser grabbed a career-high seven rebounds at Western Illinois on Feb. 21, 2015. The senior played in his 100th career game against South Dakota on Jan. 28, 2016.
Byrd's Eye View: Redshirt senior
Marcus Byrd is averaging 10.2 points on 48.8 percent shooting from the field and 3.6 rebounds a game. Byrd scored a career-high 28 points at IPFW on Feb. 13, 2016. The Highlands Ranch native made a career-best eight 3-pointers, which tied for third most in a single game in team history also at IPFW. Byrd dished out a career-high eight assists against Lipscomb on Nov. 15, 2015. Byrd played a career-high 40 minutes at IPFW on Jan. 8, 2015 and again on Feb. 13, 2016. The redshirt senior tied his career-high with eight rebounds at Oral Roberts on Feb. 19, 2016 and three blocks at Omaha on Feb. 6, 2016. Byrd played in his 100th career game at San Diego on Dec. 9, 2015.
The Long Ranger: The Pioneers have at least one 3-pointer in 312 straight games, dating back to Feb. 2, 2006.
Jumping Joe: Freshman
Joe Rosga started his first college game of his career against Milwaukee and played a team-high 36 minutes, while scoring nine points. Rosga dropped in a season-high 23 points against Eastern Washington on Dec. 20, 2015. The freshman had a season-best five assists vs. IPFW on Jan. 9, 2016. Rosga set a career best with four steals on Dec. 13, 2015 against Weber State. Rosga is averaging 12.1 points, 2.2 assists and 2.2 rebounds on the season.
