KANSAS CITY, MO --Tommy Bruner and Tevin Smith combined to score 36 total points, but the Pioneers fell to the UMKC Kangaroos 70-60 on the road Saturday.

The Pioneers (12-12, 3-8) had two players score in double figures, led by Bruner, who had 19 points and two steals. Smith added 17 points and two blocks and Marko Lukic added eight points.

Touko Tainamo pulled down four offensive rebounds to lead the Denver offense which grabbed 15 boards and turned them into 17 second chance points.

Denver's defense held UMKC to only 40 percent shooting from the field, including 21.1 percent from beyond the arc. The Pioneers also limited RayQuawndis Mitchell to 3-of-14 shooting in the game.

How It Happened

After falling behind 4-2, Denver went on a 5-0 run with 16:36 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Bruner, to take a 7-4 lead. The Pioneers then maintained that lead and entered halftime with a 30-27 advantage. Denver got a great contribution from its bench in the period, as non-starters accounted for nine of its 30 total points.

UMKC proceeded to take a 46-39 lead before Denver went on a 6-0 run to shrink the deficit to 46-45 with 8:50 to go in the contest. UMKC responded and outscored the Pioneers the rest of the way, ending the game with a final score of 70-60. Denver made the most of eight offensive rebounds to tack on five second chance points out of 30 total in the period.

Game Notes

» The Pioneers held the Kangaroos to only 40 percent shooting from the field.
» Tommy Bruner and Tevin Smith carried the load for the Pioneers, accounting for 60 percent their points.
» Denver cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 15 offensive boards in the game.
» Tommy Bruner led the Pioneers with 19 points.
» Denver got seven rebounds from both Touko Tainamo and Lukas Kisunas.

This article was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.