It’s not easy right now for the Denver men’s basketball team both in the coaching department and on the court.
The Pioneers are currently 3-16 on the season and ranked 334th out of 336 in Division 1 basketball.
“It is a lot of ups and downs right now, a lot of turmoil, tribulations, from day one. Everybody has been fighting together, fighting through injuries. We got a team full of fighters right now,” said red-shirt sophomore forward Joe Jackson about the season. “We are playing hard, playing together. That is all we can do right now. We got to salvage something out of this season, and we can’t give up now.”
Before this season, Denver has had four consecutive winning seasons with an overall record of 67-54 and the school’s first berth ever in the National Invitation Tournament in 46 years.
The other setback has been the loss of Head Coach Terry Carroll, who has, according to the Division of Athletics and Recreation, taken a leave for personal reasons. In his place, assistant coach Keivn Reynolds has been promoted to the role of interim head coach.
The frustrating season began when DU lost an exhibition home game to Colorado State-Pueblo 84-46, a game that Denver should have won or at least not lost by close to 40 points. Then the Pioneers lost at the University of Colorado, 78-64, and at home to Southern Utah (74-68) and Sacramento State (74-53), before finally getting their first win of the season against Northern Colorado, 74-68.
“We have had a lot of injuries. We couldn’t gel with a lot of people out, can’t get enough practices in, can’t get enough games under your belt, and get that chemistry that we need. The coaching staff has done a great job keeping us focused,” said senior guard DaShawn Walker.
Injuries have also taken their toll, with three players currently out and two playing with injuries. Junior guard Steve Wetrich is out with a concussion, junior David Kummer with a knee injury and junior transfer Myke Lattimore with surgery on his left tibia.
“There have been a lot of setbacks with the season. The one thing that I don’t think has been talked about enough is the injuries that we have had on the team,” said Reynolds.
Reynolds, however, remains upbeat. “It has been fun. You never know when you are going to have an opportunity. I have been wanting to be a head coach since I started being an assistant, 15 years ago,” he said, adding, “I would never had planned it for this way.
The injuries and coaching change have impacted the players.
“It has been tough on us, but we are not the type of group to hang our heads or feel sorry for ourselves,” said senior forward Antonio Porch. “We knew at some point things would turnaround and that is what we are doing right now,”
One of the few bright spots this season for DU has been the play of DaShawn Walker who is averaging 16.6 points per game.
“Teammates are finding me,” Walker said. “They do a great job making me the player that I am. Without them I can’t get the ball. The coach does a great job with the plays.”
It has not been the season fans had hoped for, but the Pioneers are doing the best they can with the situation, players said.
“Coach has done a great job. He stuck in there and kept his head level. We just went out and played. It is about being focused and going out every night and doing what we came here to do and that is playing basketball,” said Walker.
