It was senior night for University of Denver guard Nate Rohnert, but that didn’t deter freshman teammate Chase Hallam from taking over.
When Rohnert was ceremoniously removed from the Sun Belt Conference game in the final minute of a 63-47 victory over Louisiana-Lafayette on Saturday night, his contingent from Parker led a standing ovation at Magness Arena.
Hallam kept the DU crowd going with a layup to cap his 20-point outing, a career high.
Just don’t tell Hallam he stole Rohnert’s show.
“Nate is the heart and soul of this team,” Hallam said. “He’s our leader. He’s going to take us to this conference tournament win.”
Rohnert and the Pioneers head to Hot Springs, Ark., as the No. 6 seed in the Sun Belt Tournament, which begins next Saturday.
The players and their coach, Joe Scott, believe DU has a strong chance of making some noise in the tournament.
In his third season as coach, Scott — already guaranteed his most wins at DU (17-12, 10-8 Sun Belt) and a third-place tie in the Sun Belt’s West Division with Louisiana-Lafayette — knows the future just gets better with Hallam in the picture.
“He’s a special freshman,” Scott said. “He’s going to be a significant leader in building this program.”
DU locked out Sun Belt player of the year candidate Tyren Johnson early. He entered the game as the Sun Belt’s leading scorer, averaging 20.1 points. But Johnson, a senior forward, whiffed on all six first-half shots. He was held to 14 points.
“Ty is a freak athlete,” Hallam said.
Even with Johnson struggling and 6-foot-7 junior guard Chris Gradnigo sidelined because of a back injury, the Ragin’ Cajuns (13-16, 10-8) stayed with DU early. Hallam took over behind the arc to rescue DU from a 15-14 deficit.
DU ended up dictating the tempo and won its 15th consecutive home game.
Rohnert said farewell to Magness Arena with a double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds). He rose to being the Pioneers’ ninth-leading all-time scorer.
“It was a special night for me,” Rohnert said. “Leaving the game with all those people in the stands was kind of special.”
Natalie Meisler: 303-954-1295 or nmeisler@denverpost.com
