There’s nothing like being put on the spot by a dare, but guards Brian Stafford and Brett Olson answered Louisiana-Monroe’s to defeat it from the outside.
The Pioneers duo combined to make 11 3-point field goals — and helped put a dent in the DU record book — on the way to a 76-57 victory Saturday that boosted the team to its first 20-victory season in men’s basketball.
The triumph also put coach Joe Scott and his players in a position to clinch the third seed in the Sun Belt Conference Tournament that begins March 3 in Hot Springs, Ark.
A victory next Sunday against North Texas in Magness Arena would clinch the third spot in the bracket, giving the Pioneers a bye in the quarterfinals.
With the sharpshooting of Stafford and Olson leading the way, the Pioneers cashed in 16-of-34 shots from long range, tying the arena record set Dec. 3, 2002.
Louisiana-Monroe coach Keith Richard explained that he thought playing a zone was the lesser of two evils, and he gambled that the Pioneers might miss the shots.
“I didn’t feel like there was any way we could guard them man-to-man,” Richard said. “I thought the zone was our only chance. It didn’t work.”
Stafford, playing a DU-record 121st game, connected on 6-of-9 from beyond the arch, and Olson was 5-of-9. Olson’s 3-pointer with 7:41 left in the first half broke a tie at 20, and the Pioneers led the rest of the way.
“We’re a hard team to zone,” Scott said. “We pass the ball well. Their zone slowed us down early, but our defense energized our offense into playing better. The key was they had only 10 points in the first 10 minutes of the second half.”
The Pioneers shot 65.2 percent from the floor in the second half and 55.3 percent for the game.
While Stafford and Olson were having target practice, center Chris Udofia found himself surrounded by Warhawks defenders. He did his part, going 3-for-3 from the field and hitting both free-throw attempts, along with eight rebounds, three assists and four blocked shots.
“We got the ball around to open shooters, and we were able to knock down the shots,” said Stafford, who led DU with 25 points.
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
