University of Denver Men's Basketball Team (2-7) vs. Portland (7-3)

Saturday, December 11, 2010 • 4 p.m. MT
Magness Arena (7,200) • Denver, Colo.
TV: FSN Rocky Mountain • Radio: AM 1510 & FM 93.7 • Web: http://www.denverpioneers.com/

About Denver: The Pioneers return nine players, including four starters and seven of their top eight scorers, from last season’s squad that went 19-13 overall, 10-8 in the SBC and 15-1 at home. Denver was picked third in the Sun Belt Conference West Division in the annual coaches’ preseason poll. Through nine games, junior Brian Stafford leads the Pioneers with 14.1 points per game, while sophomore Chase Hallam has averaged 12.0 points and a team-high 2.2 assists per game. Junior Travis Hallam is leading the squad with 3.3 rebounds per game. DU is looking for its second-straight home victory on Saturday.
About Portland: The Pilots were picked to finish fifth in the West Coast Conference Preseason Coaches’ Poll, and Jared Stohl was named to the Preseason All-WCC Team. Portland is 7-3 with its three losses coming to Kentucky, Washington State and Washington. UP’s lost 94-72 to the Huskies in Seattle on Dec. 6 in the team’s last game, which snapped a three-game winning streak. Stohl is leading the Pilots with 14.7 points per game, while Luke Sikma is averaging a double-double with 12.3 points and 12.1 rebounds per contest. Nemanja Mitrovic is adding 11.5 points per game.

The Match-up: The all-time series is tied 6-6, but the Pilots have won the past four meetings, including a 72-62 victory in Portland on Dec. 12, 2010.
Last Time Out: The Pioneers fell 77-47 to St. Mary’s at the McKeon Pavilion on Dec. 8. Junior guard Travis Hallam led the Pioneers (2-7) with 12 points, tying his career high, but Denver shot just 37.5 percent (18-of-48) from the field and 21.1 percent (4-of-19) from three-point range. St. Mary’s (7-2) shot a blistering 59.6 percent (28-of-47) from the field and was led by Rob Jones’ 17 points and 10 rebounds. Mitchell Young added 14 points, including 11 in the second half, for the Gaels.
Century Club: Senior guard Kyle Lewis played in his 100th game as a Pioneer on Wednesday against St. Mary’s. Saturday’s game against Portland will mark the 300th game as a head coach for Joe Scott.