DENVER – The University of Denver women's basketball team won 94-85 over Western Illinois on Thursday afternoon. With the win, Denver improves to 16-12 overall and 9-6 in the Summit League while avoiding the season sweep against WIU. It is also the first time that Denver has defeated Western Illinois since the 2013-14 season breaking a nine-game losing streak.

Madison Nelson led the Pioneers with 24 points, nine rebounds, three assists, one block and one steal. She shot 7-of-15 from the floor and 10-of-12 from the free throw line in 32 minutes of action.

Courtney Smith returned from a nearly one-month injury absence and responded with 22 points, 13 rebounds and five assists while playing almost 20 minutes.

Claire Gritt produced 14 points, eight rebounds and five assists over 25 minutes. The sophomore shot 5-of-12 from the floor and 3-of-8 from downtown.

Despite fouling out Lauren Loven had eight points, two assists and a rebound. The junior made two 3s on the day and set a new single-season Summit League record for 3s made in a season with 100.

The Pios got off to a solid start in one of their biggest games of the season, opening up a six point lead prior to the first media timeout. After the break Western Illinois cut Denver's lead to just one thanks to three consecutive baskets but a 3 from Claire Gritt and two free throws from Sydney Mech gave Denver a 26-20 lead after ten minutes.

DU continued to hold the small lead throughout the early portion of the second quarter but a 3 from WIU's Taylor Higginbotham made it a five point game. Head coach Jim Turgeon's team then ripped off an 8-0 run to extend their lead to 36-23, forcing Western Illinois to take a timeout.

The game of runs continued as the Leathernecks went on a 7-3 spurt after the break as Denver's lead was trimmed to single-digits. After a timeout from Turgeon, Tsimba Malonga hit from 3 to extend the lead back to 10 but WIU closed the quarter on an 8-4 outburst, making it 48-43 at the end of one half.

Eight Pioneers tallied baskets in the opening 20 minutes as Claire Gritt led the team with nine points, four rebounds and two assists.

Western Illinois exploded out of the halftime break, opening with a 13-5 run to eliminate Denver's lead and grab a one point lead of its own. After a DU turnover, Olivia Kaufmann hit a 3 to extend the lead to four, forcing Turgeon to take a timeout to stop the bleeding with 4:28 left in the quarter.

The Leathernecks kept up the solid 3-point shooting out of the break, extending the lead to five with a pair of long-range jumpers. Denver responded with four-straight free throws from Nelson to cut the deficit to just one with 1:40 left in the period. WIU then responded with a 3 from Higginbotham but Smith converted a pair of free throws to cut the Leatherneck lead to 71-69 after 30 minutes.

Western Illinois maintained the strong play early on the in the fourth quarter. JD Gravina's team opened the period with a 7-2 run, stretching the lead to seven, their largest of the contest. Despite the spurt from WIU, DU showed no quit as Smith scored three-straight baskets to cut the lead to 78-77 with just under six minutes to play.

Nelson added a free throw for Denver in between defensive stops, increasing Denver's lead to two points. Smith's incredible quarter continued as she made another layup to extend the lead to four while giving her 10 points in the frame. After trading buckets with WIU the Pioneers got five-straight, stretching the lead to eight with 1:39 to play. With the outcome nearly decided, Denver went on to hit a handful of free throws to ice the contest and secure the season split against WIU.

Next up: Denver will wrap up the regular season on Saturday night when the Pios host Omaha at 7 p.m. MT. Seniors Courtney Smith, Haley Simental and Samantha Romanowski will be honored prior to their last home game as a Pioneer.

DENVER ATHLETICS TICKETS: For all Denver Athletics ticket inquiries, call 303-871-GOAL (4625), or visit DenverPioneers.com.

PIONEER MOVEMENT: 
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.  

Play4Kay Game: 
Join us and the Kay Yow Cancer Fund in fighting and bringing awareness to breast cancer across the world. Players, coaches and fans will be uniting in an effort to extend and improve the lives of all women battling cancer by raising money for research and assisting the underserved. You can help us by participating in the National Free Throw Challenge benefitting the Kay Yow Cancer Fund using this link - https://pledgeit.org/denver-play4kay?fbclid=IwAR0or0WCxuC0yp-tiyaa64FktKHAHRAvUdpB_jozPP2OcIMkRxCQ9P-aMUY.

- Pioneer Together -
Like Denver Pioneers and Denver Women's Basketball on Facebook