Tied for the country’s third- longest home winning streak, the University of Denver men’s basketball team will try for its 17th straight victory at the Ritchie Center tonight against Sun Belt Conference-leading Western Kentucky.
Denver (12-11, 5-5) is 1-10 on the road – not including three neutral-site victories to begin the season in Fairbanks, Alaska.
“If we knew how to fix the problem we would have fixed it a long time ago,” center Yemi Nicholson said of the Pioneers’ road woes. “I think we’re just not relaxed on the road. Whereas at home, we have our fans behind us and have everything going for us, it’s our baskets, our court. We just feel a lot more comfortable.”
Denver’s 16-game home streak includes 13 consecutive in conference play.
Gonzaga has the longest Division I home-court winning streak (35), and Wisconsin-Milwaukee is second at 18. Denver is tied with Creighton and Hofstra.
DU coach Terry Carroll said winning on the road is difficult for all teams.
“It takes a lot of toughness and great leadership, because when things go bad, you need somebody to step up and take control,” he said.
Mike Chambers can be reached at 303-820-5453 or mchambers@denverpost.com.
