2021–22 Denver Pioneers men's basketball team

The 2021–22 Denver Pioneers men's basketball team represented the University of Denver in the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Pioneers, led by first-year head coach Jeff Wulbrun, played their home games at Hamilton Gymnasium in Denver, Colorado, as members of the Summit League.

2021–22 Denver Pioneers men's basketball
ConferenceSummit League
Record11–21 (7–11 The Summit)
Head coach
Associate head coachBrandon Dunson
Assistant coaches
  • Rob Zewe
  • Rob Williams
Home arenaHamilton Gymnasium
Seasons
2021–22 Summit League men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
South Dakota State 18 0   1.000 30 5   .857
North Dakota State 13 5   .722 23 10   .697
Kansas City 12 6   .667 19 12   .613
Oral Roberts 12 6   .667 19 12   .613
South Dakota 11 7   .611 19 12   .613
Western Illinois 7 11   .389 16 16   .500
Denver 7 11   .389 11 21   .344
St. Thomas* 4 14   .222 10 20   .333
Omaha 4 14   .222 5 25   .167
North Dakota 2 16   .111 6 25   .194
* Ineligible for the 2022 NCAA tournament due to transition from Division III
2022 Summit League tournament winner

Previous season

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In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Pioneers finished the 2020–21 season 2–19, 1–13 in Summit League play to finish in last place. They failed to qualify for the Summit League tournament.[1]

On March 1, 2021, the school announced that there would be a "change in leadership," ending Rodney Billups' five-year tenure with the team.[2] On March 29, it was announced that Stanford associate head coach Jeff Wulbrun would be the Pioneers' new head coach.[3]

Roster

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2021–22 Denver Pioneers men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Hometown
G 0 Payton Moore 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr Los Angeles, CA
G 1 Tevin Smith 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr Danville, IL
G 2 KJ Hunt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jr Little Rock, AR
G 3 Korey Hess 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 160 lb (73 kg) So Centennial, CO
G 4 Taelyr Gatlin 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Sr Jackson, MS
G 5 Coban Porter 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Columbia, MO
G 10 Drake Muller 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Cedar Hill, TX
G 11 Jordan Johnson 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Memphis, TN
F 13 Felipe Motta 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 196 lb (89 kg) Fr Brindisi, Italy
F 15 Pedro Lopez-Sanvicente 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Fr Canary Islands, Spain
F 22 Tristan Green 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Sr Boerne, TX
F 23 James Sanders IV 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr Fountain, CO
F 24 Michael Henn 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Sr Bellevue, WA
F 25 Touko Tainamo 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Helsinki, Finland
F 42 JaVonni Bickham 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Jr Minneapolis, MN
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster
Last update: December 18, 2021

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 9, 2021*
7:00 pm
Regis W 68–65  1–0
Hamilton Gymnasium (1,607)
Denver, CO
November 12, 2021*
6:00 pm
Ottawa (AZ) L 71–72  1–1
Hamilton Gymnasium (981)
Denver, CO
November 15, 2021*
4:00 pm
vs. IUPUI
UTSA Invitational
W 63–47  2–1
Convocation Center (197)
San Antonio, TX
November 16, 2021*
6:30 pm, CUSA TV
at UTSA
UTSA Invitational
L 64–78  2–2
Convocation Center (848)
San Antonio, TX
November 17, 2021*
12:00 pm
vs. Texas A&M–Corpus Christi
UTSA Invitational
L 67–69  2–3
Convocation Center (124)
San Antonio, TX
November 21, 2021*
2:00 pm
Houston Baptist W 74–61  3–3
Hamilton Gymnasium (550)
Denver, CO
November 24, 2021*
2:00 pm, MWN
at Air Force L 65–66  3–4
Clune Arena (1,076)
Colorado Springs, CO
November 27, 2021*
3:00 pm, ESPN+
at Utah Valley L 68–77 OT 3–5
UCCU Center (1,386)
Orem, UT
December 2, 2021*
7:00 pm, MWN
at Wyoming L 64–77  3–6
Arena-Auditorium (4,030)
Laramie, WY
December 5, 2021*
12:00 pm, ESPN+
at Texas State L 58–71  3–7
Strahan Arena 
San Marcos, TX
December 9, 2021*
7:00 pm, MWN
at New Mexico L 67–87  3–8
The Pit (8,046)
Albuquerque, NM
December 11, 2021*
7:00 pm, ESPN+
at Dixie State L 62–82  3–9
Burns Arena (1,276)
St. George, UT
December 15, 2021*
7:00 pm, Altitude 2
UC San Diego W 64–56  4–9
Hamilton Gymnasium (318)
Denver, CO
Summit League regular season
December 20, 2021
7:00 pm, Altitude
Western Illinois L 80–84 OT 4–10
(0–1)
Hamilton Gymnasium (682)
Denver, CO
December 22, 2021
2:00 pm
St. Thomas W 75–74  5–10
(1–1)
Hamilton Gymnasium (910)
Denver, CO
December 30, 2021
6:00 pm, ORSN
at Oral Roberts L 66–83  5–11
(1–2)
Mabee Center (2,896)
Tulsa, OK
January 8, 2022
2:00 pm, Altitude 2
North Dakota L 69–87  5–12
(1–3)
Hamilton Gymnasium (526)
Denver, CO
January 10, 2022
7:00 pm, Altitude 2
North Dakota State W 93–74  6–12
(2–3)
Hamilton Gymnasium (727)
Denver, CO
January 13, 2022
6:00 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+
at South Dakota L 71–80  6–13
(2–4)
Sanford Coyote Sports Center (1,090)
Vermillion, SD
January 15, 2022
1:00 pm
at South Dakota State L 62–80  6–14
(2–5)
Frost Arena (1,595)
Brookings, SD
January 17, 2022
6:00 pm
at Kansas City
Rescheduled from January 1
W 63–55  7–14
(3–5)
Swinney Recreation Center (495)
Kansas City, MO
January 22, 2022
2:00 pm
Omaha W 94–63  8–14
(4–5)
Hamilton Gymnasium (695)
Denver, CO
January 27, 2022
7:00 pm, Altitude
Kansas City L 61–72  8–15
(4–6)
Hamilton Gymnasium (474)
Denver, CO
January 29, 2022
2:00 pm
Oral Roberts L 80–89  8–16
(4–7)
Hamilton Gymnasium (839)
Denver, CO
February 3, 2022
6:00 pm, MidcoSN/ESPN+
at North Dakota W 81–79 OT 9–16
(5–7)
Betty Engelstad Sioux Center (1,296)
Grand Forks, ND
February 5, 2022
12:00 pm, ESPN+
at North Dakota State L 65–73  9–17
(5–8)
Scheels Center (1,860)
Fargo, ND
February 10, 2022
7:00 pm, Altitude 2
South Dakota State L 61–84  9–18
(5–9)
Hamilton Gymnasium (767)
Denver, CO
February 12, 2022
2:00 pm
South Dakota L 76–84  9–19
(5–10)
Hamilton Gymnasium (1,229)
Denver, CO
February 17, 2022
6:00 pm
at Omaha L 69–72  9–20
(5–11)
Baxter Arena (1,367)
Omaha, NE
February 24, 2022
6:00 pm
at St. Thomas W 91–80  10–20
(6–11)
Schoenecker Arena (770)
St. Paul, MN
February 26, 2022
1:00 pm, ESPN3
at Western Illinois W 83–77  11–20
(7–11)
Western Hall (0)
Macomb, IL
Summit League tournament
March 5, 2022
6:30 pm, ESPN+
(7) vs. (2) North Dakota State
Quarterfinals
L 62–82  11–21
Denny Sanford Premier Center (9,336)
Sioux Falls, SD
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Mountain.

Sources[4][5]

References

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  1. ^ "2021 #SummitMBB Championship Bracket Released". The Summit League. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  2. ^ "Denver Men's Basketball to Undergo Change in Leadership". University of Denver Athletics. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  3. ^ "Jeff Wulbrun new men's basketball coach at University of Denver". ESPN. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  4. ^ "2021-22 Men's Basketball Schedule". University of Denver Athletics. Retrieved December 18, 2021.
  5. ^ "2021-22 Denver Pioneers Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved December 18, 2021.