DENVER – The University of Denver men's basketball team has announced its 2023-24 non-league schedule that includes six games inside Hamilton Gymnasium to bring the season-total to 14 home games this season.
"Our non-conference slate will challenge our team with seven true road games and another two neutral site games," head coach Jeff Wulbrun said. "We are thrilled to be adding in-state foe Colorado State to the schedule and hope to see our fans up in Fort Collins in December. The fans came out last season and significantly increased our home attendance, and we're looking to continue that trend and make Hamilton a fun environment for fans, and a tough place to play for our opponents."
Denver will open the 2023-24 season at UC San Diego on November 6, starting a stretch of seven of nine away from home to begin the campaign. The Pioneers will host Cal Poly on November 9 , its final contest before heading to former Sun Belt Conference foe South Alabama for their three-day MTE (Nov. 15-17).
"Multi-team events provide us with a chance to prepare for the Summit League Tournament later in the season, giving us three games in three days away from home on short rest and preparation. It will also give us another difficult road venue when we play South Alabama, all things we need to experience before getting into Summit League play." Wulbrun added.
The Pioneers will host Colorado Christian in their final game before the Thanksgiving holiday on November 22. DU will round out its November slate with trips to Texas A&M Commerce (Nov. 26) and Idaho (Nov. 29) after the start of its winter break.
Denver will play four of seven games at home in December, starting with a visit from Colorado College on December 2. The Pios will then make trips to Colorado State (Dec. 6) and BYU (Dec. 13) before two home games in three days against Adams State (Dec. 18) and Northern New Mexico (Dec. 20) inside Hamilton.
"I'm excited for the opportunity for two of our student-athletes to return to their home state of Utah to be able to play in a tough road environment at BYU." Wulbrun said.
The Crimson and Gold will begin Summit League play on December 29 with a trip to Omaha before returning home for a date with Oral Roberts (Dec. 31).
For the first time, Denver and the rest of the league will step out of conference play to begin January for the 2024 Big Sky-Summit Challenge, consisting of one home and one away game for each program. This season, Denver will host Idaho State in the challenge on January 4 before traveling to Northern Colorado on January 6.
Denver will have a full week off after the event before hosting South Dakota State on January 13. Following a weekend trip to North Dakota State (Jan. 18) and North Dakota (Jan. 20), the Pioneers will welcome South Dakota (Jan. 25) and Omaha (Jan. 27) to Hamilton Gymnasium.
The Pioneers will start the month of February on their longest road swing on the league calendar, traveling to Kansas City (Feb. 1), Oral Roberts (Feb. 3) and South Dakota (Feb. 8) in a seven-day span.
Denver will follow up the road trip with four of the next five at home. The Crimson and Gold welcome St. Thomas (Feb. 10), North Dakota (Feb. 15) and North Dakota State (Feb. 17) to the Mile High City before returning a trip to South Dakota State on February 22.
DU's final two games in the league see the Pioneers host Kansas City on Leap Day before wrapping up the regular season at St. Thomas on March 2.
The 2023-24 Pioneers:
2022-23 Summit League All-Newcomer Team pick Tommy Bruner returns as the leading scorer for the Pioneers, averaging 15.9 point, 4.2 assists and 2.8 boards a year ago. Touko Tainamo was the third of five Pioneers that averaged double figures last season, pouring in 10.6 points and pulling in 6.4 rebounds per game. Denver brings seven newcomers to the program heading into the 2023-24 season, including a pair of true freshmen.
"I think our fans will see a hard playing and exciting team with excellent three-point shooting, unselfish play and a focus and intensity on the defensive end." Wulbrun said.
In addition to its attendance, Denver will look to continue its climb in wins under Wulbrun, taking the program from two wins the season before his arrival to 11 in his first campaign and 15 in the 2022-23 slate.
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