DENVER, CO --Five Pioneers scored in double figures and Denver beat the North Dakota Fightin' Hawks 78-71 at home Saturday.

The Pioneers (11-9, 2-5) had five players score in double figures, led by Tevin Smith, who had 20 points and two blocks. Lukas Kisunas tacked on 12 points and Tommy Bruner chipped in as well with 12 points and four assists.

Tyree Corbett pulled down five offensive rebounds to pace the Denver offense which grabbed 10 boards and turned them into 13 second chance points.

Denver did a great job disrupting North Dakota shots in the contest, coming away with five blocks. Smith's two rejections led the way individually for the Pioneers.

How It Happened

After jumping out to a 17-14 advantage, Denver went on a 6-0 run with 12:07 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Kisunas, to increase its lead to 23-14. The Pioneers then lost some of that lead, but still entered halftime with a 37-34 advantage. Denver did most of its first half damage in the paint, scoring 24 of its 37 points close to the basket.

The Fightin' Hawks proceeded to tie things up at 50-50 before Denver went on a 7-0 run, finished off by Pedro Lopez Sanvicente's three, to seize a 57-50 lead with 13:00 to go in the contest. The Pioneers held onto that lead for the rest of the game for the 78-71 win. Denver took care of business in the paint, recording 22 of its 41 points in the lane.

Game Notes

» Tyree Corbett notched a double-double for the Pioneers with 10 points and 15 rebounds, his league-leading sixth of the year. 
» The Pioneers held the Fightin' Hawks to only 37.3 percent shooting from the field.
» Denver improved to 9-1 this year when leading at the half. 
» The Pioneers withstood 15 made 3s from the Fightin' Hawks, the most allowed against DU this year. 
» Denver never trailed on the way to a 78-71 victory, its first wire-to-wire win since Colorado College back on Nov. 10.
» The Denver bench came alive by scoring 24 points to its scoring output.
» Five Denver players scored 10 or more points.
» Denver had a 40-33 edge on the boards in the win.
» The Pioneers were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, recording five blocks as a team.
» Denver cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 10 offensive boards in the game.
» Tevin Smith led the Pioneers with a game-high 20 points, his third game this year with at least 20. 
» Tommy Bruner added 12 points and four assists. 
» Denver got a game-high 15 rebounds from Tyree Corbett, the most by a DU player this season.

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This article was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.