DENVER, CO --Five Pioneers scored at least 10 points and Denver took down the South Dakota Coyotes 86-68 at home Saturday.

The Pioneers (14-16, 5-12) had five players score in double figures, led by Touko Tainamo, who had 17 points and six rebounds. Marko Lukic added 15 points off of the bench and Justin Mullins helped out with 13 points, four assists and six steals.

Denver took advantage of excellent ball movement in Saturday's game, piling up 16 assists on 30 made field goals. Individually, Tommy Bruner dished out the most for the Pioneers with six assists.

Denver did a great job disrupting South Dakota shots in the contest, coming away with six blocks. Tevin Smith's three rejections led the way individually for the Pioneers.

How It Happened

After playing to a 2-2 tie, Denver went on a 19-0 run with 18:04 left in the first half, culminating in a bucket from Lukic, to take a 21-2 lead. The Pioneers then added nine points to that lead by the end of the period and entered halftime with a 40-12 advantage. Denver did most of its first half damage in the paint, scoring 20 of its 40 points close to the basket.

Denver kept its lead intact before going on a 6-0 run, finished off by Tainamo's layup, to grow the lead to 86-59 with 2:54 to go in the contest. The Coyotes narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Pioneers still cruised the rest of the way for the 86-68 win. Denver took care of business in the paint, recording 24 of its 46 points in the lane.

Game Notes

» The Pioneers held the Coyotes to only 35.9 percent shooting from the field.
» Denver with the win picked up its first regular-season sweep of South Dakota since 2015-16. 
» The Pioneers improved to 5-2 this year when making at least 7 3s in a game this season. 
» The Crimson and Gold are now 13-4 under head coach Jeff Wulbrun when allowing fewer than 70 points in a game. 
» Justin Mullins had a career-high six steals, most by a Pioneer since December of 2020. 
» Denver never trailed on the way to an 86-68 victory.
» Denver recorded 16 total assists in the game.
» Five Denver players scored 10 or more points.
» Denver had a 38-34 edge on the boards in the win.
» The Denver defense forced 16 turnovers.
» The Pioneers were active in affecting shots on the defensive end, recording six blocks as a team.
» Touko Tainamo led the Pioneers with a game-high 17 points.
» Denver got six rebounds from both Touko Tainamo and Tevin Smith.
» The 12 points allowed in the first half were the lowest allowed by DU in a half this year. 

TICKETS: Single-game tickets are also available and can be found right HERE.

Pledge Per Win Campaign: Winning time is giving time, for every win this season, your gift will be MATCHED up to $1,000. For more information and to setup your pledge & make an initial gift, click HERE

Visit DenverPioneers.com for complete coverage of all 18 of Denver's NCAA Division I sports.
Like Denver Pioneers on Facebook 
Follow @DU_Pioneers on Twitter 
Follow @DenverPioneers on Instagram

This article was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.