DENVER – The University of Denver men's basketball program returns to the road this week, and makes another trip to the west coast when the Pioneers travel to Cal State Fullerton Sunday for a 3 p.m. MT/2 p.m. PT tipoff. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and 104.3 the Fan HD3.  

LAST TIME OUT:
Denver had four different players finish in double figures, led by a career-high 24 points from Nicholas Shogbonyo in a 94-87 win over UCCS on Tuesday night in Hamilton Gymnasium. FULL RECAP

SERIES HISTORY – DENVER VS. CAL STATE FULLERTON:
Denver holds a 2-1 edge in the all-time series. The Pioneers and Titans split a same-season home-and-home in the 2004-05 campaign. The Pioneers won the last meeting 65-62 as part of Santa Clara's MTE in the 2019-20 season. 

SPREADING THE SCORING

• Denver had six players score in double figures and no one score more than 15 in Denver's 97-80 win over Western Colorado on Nov. 8.
• DeAndre Craig led the Pios with 15, Pedro Lopez-Sanvicente scored 13, Sebastian Akins added 12 and Nicholas Shogbonyo, Isaiah Carr and Josh Lee all finished with 10.
• It was the first time Denver had 6 players in double figures since December 15, 2012 against Omaha.
• 12 years ago - Royce O'Neale had 17, Chase Hallam had 12, Chris Udofia scored 11, Brett Olson and Nate Engesser chipped in 11 and Cam Griffin scored 10.
• Isaiah Addo-Ankrah and Nicholas Shogbonyo combined for 40 of Denver's 68 points in its Big Sky/Summit League Challenge win at Portland State on December 7.
• The Pioneers had six players with at least seven points in that 21-point win over Sacramento State in the first game of the challenge on December 4.
• DU also had six players with at least seven points in a 94-87 win over UCCS on December 10.

SHOGBONYO HEATING UP

• Junior guard Nicholas Shogbonyo is in his first year of NCAA hoops after transfering from McLennan CC in the offseason.
• In 2023-24, Shogbonyo was the NTJCAC Co-Player of the Year and was an All-Region selection.
• He leads Denver in scoring at 14.0 points per game, while pulling in 4.6 boards and 2 assists per game.
• Shogbonyo has had 15+ points in seven of the last nine games, and has grabbed at least four rebounds in nine of the last 10 games.
• Shogbonyo is in the top-25 in the country in free-throw percentage, shooting at a 93.0% clip (53-57).

AKINS NCAA DEBUT

• Freshman guard Sebastian Akins put up 15 points off the bench in the Pios season debut at Stanford on November 4.
• Akins is the fifth Pio to post 15+ points off the bench in a season opener since Denver rejoined Division I in 1998-99.
• Akins is the first since Jase Townsend scored 16 off the bench as a freshman in November, 2018.
• Akins is the fourth freshman to post 15+ off the bench in an opener.
• Akins is the 3rd to do it against a DI opponent and the 2nd to do it against a Power5/4 opponent.
• Akins has 15+ points in five games this season, including a season-high 22 in the Pios 21-point win over Sacramento State on December 4.

TAKING CARE OF THE BASKETBALL

• The Pioneers finished 35th in the country in turnovers per game, averaging just 10.0 turnovers per contest.
• Denver's 1 total turnover on November 17, 2023 against South Alabama was the lowest in DU's DI history.
• The Pioneers finished with single-digit turnovers in 17 games last season, including committing just seven in the 2024 Summit League Final.
• In a 50 minute game on December 1 at Portland, Denver turned it over just six times, its first single digit turnover game this season.
• Denver has turned it over 10 or less times in four-straight games. 

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