Coming off a tough two-game losing streak on the road, DU men’s basketball (11-7, 3-2 Summit League) fired back with two conference wins at Magness Arena on Jan. 11 and 14.
DU took the first game on Jan. 11 against the Western Illinois University Leathernecks (6-11, 3-3 Summit League) 84-70.
“Early in January, it’s like the dog days, you don’t know what’s coming. There’s so many distractions, but to be able to come in and play as hard as we did and play really good defense, I’m happy with our effort and the outcome,” said Head Coach Rodney Billups after the game.
Denver plays a fast-paced brand of basketball that quickly outpaced the Leatherbacks on Wednesday night. Western Illinois stayed close to finish the first half and turnovers in the first few minutes of the second half kept the Leathernecks in the game, but back to back threes by point guard sophomore Joe Rosga (St. Paul, Minn.) halfway through the second act took the lead back for the Pioneers. Another three-pointer one minute later created some distance in the score that Western Illinois was never able to make up.
Western Illinois took more shots than DU, but strong defense from the Pioneers stopped them. DU limited WIU to a 36.5 percent field goal shooting percentage on the game while also out-rebounding the Leathernecks.
Despite a few miscues, the Pioneers’ quick and precise ball handling gave them more opportunities to take smart shots, making them more efficient than Western Illinois. As a unit, DU was clicking well. Rosga and Jack Pemberton (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) combined for a couple of long-range alley-oops that left the Leathernecks far behind.
However, the play of the game was forward Duke Douglas’s (New Orleans, Louisiana) dunk off an assist from Pemberton midway through the second half. The moment really showed DU’s second-half dominance over the Leathernecks.
Pemberton got into some late foul trouble, but WIU never pulled within more than eight points after the dunk. With a few minutes left in the game, the Leathernecks started fouling, but DU kept making shots, ensuring their win.
“Their players did exactly what we thought they would,” said Billups. “They have two guys that are value shooters and we just tried to make it tough on them. Our guys stuck to it, they stuck to the game plan and they came out with the win.”
Rosga and center Daniel Amigo (El Paso, Texas) have been this season’s highest scorers so far, and Wednesday was no different. Even though he missed some easy layups early in the game, Amigo was 6-16 with 13 points. Rosga had a game-high 25 points, including four three-pointers and four assists. Pemberton also had 11 points.
DU continued their dominating defense into their game against league-leading North Dakota State University (12-6, 4-1 Summit League) on Jan. 14 with a powerful 79-55 win, breaking NDSU’s four-game winning streak.
This year’s first match-up against NDSU was a role reversal of last year’s match-ups, where the Pioneers lost both games to the Bison by margins of 20 points per game.
Strong defense and impressive rebound totals powered DU to the win. Amigo continued his break-out season with a double-double, scoring a game-high 28 points and racking up 12 rebounds.
“I feel pretty good. If we can stay healthy, I think we [have] a chance to win the regular season and go on and win the conference championship, but we got to stay dialed in,” said Billups. “Besides school and family, basketball’s the most important thing now.”
The young coach—who celebrated his 34th birthday on Jan. 14 with the win against the Bison—seems to have injected a new energy into the team that bodes well for the rest of the season.
DU is currently fourth in the Summit League. Their next game is Jan. 18 at Nebraska-Omaha.
