DENVER – The University of Denver men's basketball program came 15 down to take a five-point lead with 14:30 to play, but North Dakota State regained momentum late in a 82-77 win over the Pioneers on Thursday night inside Hamilton Gymnasium.
 
LEADERS:
Sophomore guard Carson Johnson led the Pioneers with 21 points and five assists one of five Pioneers to finish in double figures. Zane Nelson also had 20 to go with six boards and three dimes. Gabe Oldham posted a double-double on 11 points and 10 boards.
 
North Dakota State had six players in double figures led by 23 from Trevian Carson.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
First Half:
After Denver opened the game on a Logan Kinsey dunk, North Dakota State went on a 10-2 run to race out to an early six-point advantage. Zane Nelson scored five points to briefly stop the run, but NDSU held a 16-9 lead at the first media timeout with 14:34 remaining.
 
Carson Johnson hit back-to-back triples in the next segment, but North Dakota State continued to shoot well on the other end to take a 22-15 advantage into the second media.
 
North Dakota State stretched its lead out to 13 before an 8-2 Pioneer run trimmed the Bison margin back to eight with under eight minutes to play.
 
The Bison continued to find their offensive stride stretching the lead to 43-30 at the final media timeout of the opening 20 minutes.
 
Denver responded with a 9-2 run to end the half and cut the deficit to just eight at the intermission.
 
Second Half:
After an offensive onslaught in the first half, both offenses were cold starting the second before a Gabe Oldham tipin off a Nelson runner trimmed the deficit to six with 18:14 to go.
 
Nelson followed that up with back-to-back triples to make it 45-45 with 16:39 to go. The Denver graduate student's six quick points made it a 17-4 run over a span of 9:07 dating back to the late stages of the first half.
 
Out of the first media, Jeremiah Burke connected on an out of bounds layin to give Denver its first lead since the opening minutes and Kinsey connected on his second triple of the night to make it an 18-0 Denver run and extend the Denver lead to five.
 
North Dakota State got its nose back in-front, taking a three-point lead with 8:05 to play after Denver's offense went in a cold spell of going more than two minutes without a point, shooting 0-7 in that stretch. Johnson hit a long jumper to stop the drought, but NDSU responded with its third triple of the half to take a 62-58 lead into the under-8 media timeout.
 
NDSU continued to build on its regained momentum, getting its lead to six before a Kinsey bucket in the paint made it 64-60 with 5:40 to play.
 
A Burke throw down and back-to-back triples from Burke and Nelson leveled things up at 68-68 with 3:32 to play.
 
The teams traded buckets before a missed Denver jumper and a pair of free-throws on the other end gave North Dakota State a four-point lead with under a minute to play. Andy Stefonowicz hit a triple to make it a seven-point advantage in the final 25 seconds.
 
NOTES:

• The crowd of 1,889 is the second largest men's basketball crowd in the history of Hamilton Gymnasium (1999), and the largest since January 27, 2007 vs. Western Kentucky (2,665).
• Denver had five players finish in double figures for the second time in league play.
• Zane Nelson finished with 20 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists.  
• Nelson finished in double figures for the eighth-straight game, the 13^th time this season and the 39^th time in his career.
• Nelson finished with 20+ points for the second-straight game, the fifth time this season and the 13^th time in his career.
• Carson Johnson finished with 21 points and 5 assists.
• Johnson finished in double figures for the ninth-straight game, the 19^th time this season and the 39^th time in his career.
• Johnson had 5+ assists for the third time this season and the fifth time in his career.
• Logan Kinsey finished with 10 points and 4 rebounds.
• Kinsey finished in double figures for the 12^th time this season and the 63^rd time in his career.
• Jeremiah Burke finished with 13 points and 5 rebounds.
• Burke finished in double figures for the second-straight game, the 16^th time this season and the 18^th time in his career.
• Gabe Oldham finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
• Oldham recorded his fourth double-double of the season and of his career.
• Oldham finished in double figures for the fifth time this season and of his career.
• Oldham finished with double digit rebounds for the seventh time this season and of his career.

 
UP NEXT:
Denver will wrap-up its three-game homestand on Saturday afternoon when the Pioneers welcome North Dakota to Hamilton Gymnasium. Opening tip on the Summit League Network is set for 2 p.m. MT. The game is the backhalf of a double header. One ticket for Western Day at Hamilton Gymnasium will get you into both games.
 
TICKETS:
Tickets for the 2025-26 season are on sale now, and can be purchased here.
 
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