Anyone listening to Denver guard Brian Stafford after the Pioneers went to 6-0 in the Sun Belt Conference might have wondered if he saw the game Thursday night.
The Pioneers had a hot time offensively, shooting 57.5 percent from the field and a sizzling 68.4 percent from 3-point range. Obviously, the offense was something to talk about.
“Defense wins games,” Stafford said as he looked back on a 74-36 victory over Arkansas State at Magness Arena. It was the seventh straight triumph for the Pioneers, who climbed over .500 for the first time this season at 10-9.
But after making a less-than-obvious observation, Stafford turned to the obvious.
“Tyler Thalken had a big spark for us,” Stafford said. “He knocked down every shot he took.”
Thalken, a 6-foot-4 guard from Tulsa, Okla., almost was as good as Stafford claimed. He was 6-for-7 from the field, including a 5-for-5 bull’s-eye on 3-pointers.
His shooting was a factor right from the beginning as the Pioneers broke away from a tie at 2 and led the rest of the way. Their first 15 points en route to a 15-4 advantage were Stafford’s layup, a hook shot and 3-pointer by center Andrew Hooper and three baskets by Thal- ken, two from beyond the arc.
“You have to have the mind-set that you only get one shot a game,” Thalken said. “You have to put that shot in and then go to the next one.”
“It might be hard to believe, but that’s one of the better teams in our league in terms of shooting ability,” coach Joe Scott said of Arkansas State. “We really worried about the game. I was happy with all facets of our game tonight. If we can continue to get better defensively as we’ve been doing, that gives you a chance to win every game.”
The Red Wolves (10-11, 4-3 SBC) finished with a dismal 33.3 shooting percentage from the floor. They also committed 20 turnovers, and the Pioneers scored 31 points off the turnovers.
Arkansas State didn’t reach six points on the scoreboard until 10:50 was left in the first half. It was DU’s largest margin of victory since returning to Division I status in 1998-99.
“They like to get the ball inside off of high-lows, and we had a guy helping every time,” Stafford said. “We were ready for all their stuff.”
DENVER 74, ARKANSAS ST. 36
ARKANSAS ST. (10-11, 4-3 SUN BELT)
Adams 1-1 2-4 4, Peterson 1-3 2-4 5, Finn 0-3 2-2 2, Allison 2-7 2-2 7, Boone 1-3 0-0 2, Thomas 1-1 1-3 3, Sterrenberg 1-6 1-2 3, Rashiduddin 0-0 0-2 0, Townsel 1-3 1-2 3, Branch 1-1 0-0 3, Kirkland 2-5 0-0 4. Totals 11-33 11-21 36.
DENVER (10-9, 6-0)
C. Hallam 1-3 6-7 9, Hooper 3-5 1-2 8, Stafford 4-6 2-2 12, Thalken 6-7 2-2 19, T. Hallam 1-3 0-1 3, Noonan 0-1 3-4 3, K. Lewis 2-4 0-0 5, Coughlin 0-3 0-0 0, Foeman 0-1 1-2 1, Pickert 2-2 0-0 4, Udofia 4-5 0-0 10. Totals 23-40 15-20 74.
Halftime — Denver 39-17. 3-point goals — Arkansas St. 3-9 (Branch 1-1, Peterson 1-2, Allison 1-3, Boone 0-1, Finn 0-1, Sterrenberg 0-1), Denver 13-19 (Thalken 5-5, Udofia 2-2, Stafford 2-4, Hooper 1-1, T. Hallam 1-2, C. Hallam 1-2, K. Lewis 1-2, Noonan 0-1). Fouled out — None. Rebounds — Arkansas St. 22 (Kirkland 6), Denver 26 (C. Hallam, Udofia 5). Assists — Arkansas St. 4 (Rashiduddin, Sterrenberg, Thomas, Townsel 1), Denver 17 (T. Hallam, C. Hallam, Thalken 3). Total fouls — Arkansas St. 22, Denver 21. A — 2,862.
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
