DENVER – The University of Denver women's basketball team improved to 6-5 on the season after claiming an 81-73 victory over Southern Utah on Monday in Hamilton Gymnasium.

The contest was part of Hoops and Education day at DU, a tradition that has dated back the last several years that brings in several local schools from around the community to watch a game while supporting the Pioneers.

"It is a lot of fun to play in front of a crowd like we had today," head coach Jim Turgeon said. "I really appreciate the enthusiasm from the crowd.

"Lauren (Loven) was a lot more active today, she kept moving. Madison (Nelson) was fantastic and very active on the boards," Turgeon added. "I thought we executed our sets very well today."

Senior Madison Nelson led the Pioneers with 15 points and 15 rebounds, while also recording five assists and three steals. Nelson scored her 1,000th career point with 2:41 to go in the opening quarter after making a layup. The senior becomes the 26th player in program history to score at least 1,000 points in her career.

Lauren Loven was lethal from the field, pouring in a season-high 31 points after shooting 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from the field, highlighted by going 5-of-10 from beyond the arc. The Scottsdale, Arizona native moved to fourth in the Summit League record book with 282 career 3s made.

Southern Utah sank its first three shots of the game to jump out to a 6-0 lead and force a Denver timeout just 1:20 into the game. Nelson ended Denver's 1:49 scoring drought to open the game with a layup at the 8:11 mark out of the timeout. The Thunderbirds pushed their lead to 12, their largest of the game, after a layup from Claudia Armato at the 2:57 mark made it 25-13. 

Denver, however, responded, going on a quick 5-0 run to close out the opening quarter down just seven, 25-18.

The Crimson and Gold picked up right where it left off to start the second, opening on an 8-4 run, cutting the Thunderbirds' lead to 29-26 just before the media timeout. At the 4:27 mark, Loven knocked down a 3 to knot the game at 29-29. Ashley Larsen hit both her free throws to tie the game at 31-31 and end a 3:05 7-0 Denver run. After holding Southern Utah to 3-of-10 shooting from the field in the second quarter, the Pioneers took a 37-33 lead to the break.

DU came out hot to start the second half, making three of its first four shots to extend its lead to eight at 43-35 going into the media timeout. Junior Jasmine Jeffcoat finished a layup with 3:19 to go in the third quarter and extend the lead to 10, 49-39, Denver's largest of the game. Despite going scoreless for the remaining 2:03 of the third, Turgeon's squad took a five-point edge into the final 10 minutes of play.

Loven made a jumper 20 seconds into the fourth quarter to extend the Denver lead to seven, while redshirt junior Briana Johnson went 2-for-2 at the charity stripe just less than a minute later to put the Pioneers up 55-46.

Southern Utah refused to go away though, cutting the Pioneer lead to four on multiple occasions during the fourth. DU, though, wouldn't let them get any closer than that, going on to secure the win.

UP NEXT
The Pioneers travel to San Juan, Puerto Rico for the Puerto Rico Clasico Dec. 20-21. Denver will matchup with Akron on Dec. 20 at 9 am (MT) and Western Michigan Dec. 21 at 11:30 am (MT).

TICKETS:
For all Denver Athletics ticket inquires, call 303-871-GOAL (4625), or visit DenverPioneers.com. Purchase season tickets for the 2019-20 season by CLICKING HERE.

SHOP PIONEERS:
Get dressed for Game Day! Get your Pioneers gear at ShopPioneers.com, the official online store of University of Denver Athletics.
 
DONATE:
Fans interested in making a donation to the women's basketball program can do so by CLICKING HERE. Your contribution will make a direct impact on the success of YOUR Pioneers. Thank you in advance for your unwavering support of our student-athletes and their quest for excellence.