INDIANAPOLIS - In another game that went down to the wire, the Jaguars were unable to protect their home court as their two-game winning streak was snapped in a 78-74 loss to Denver. The Jaguars had the opportunity to tie the game in the final seconds, but a long three by Darell Combs was just off the mark to seal the Jaguars' fate.
 
"We had the chance to make a play at the end, but unfortunately we weren't able to make it today," senior Kellon Thomas said after the game.

In the first half, the Jaguars picked up where they left off last game, and shot 57.7 percent en route to a 43-38 lead at the break. They stretched their lead to a 50-41 margin in early in the second half, but the lid on the rim tightened as the Jags struggled to get shots to fall. They were only able to convert 35.5 percent of their shots from the field, and went 4-of-13 from distance in the half.
 
"I thought we got good looks in the second half, but we just missed them," Head Coach Jason Gardner said. "You can credit Denver as far as turning the pressure up, and I think we got a little bit rushed."
 
The tempo slowed down as the whistles tightened in the second half and Denver (12-8, 4-3 Summit) was able to continue to build a rhythm on the offensive end. After shooting 50 percent in the first half, the Pioneers followed it up by going 14-of-24 (58.3%) in the second frame.

"In the first half we did a good job of not fouling, but the second half we came out and started playing a little bit with our hands and forearms on the drives, and our positioning could have been better," Gardner said.
 
"Our last few games, we've allowed teams to shoot over fifty percent, and it's hard to win games like that," Thomas added.
 
Holding the Pioneers to 78 points was the lowest mark for the Jags defense in Summit League play, but the hosts could not string together enough stops on defense. They sent double teams to the post, and were left to contest shooters on the three-point line, and the Pioneers took advantage of the scrambling Jags. Joe Rosga led the Pioneers with 19 and Daniel Amigo added 18 before fouling out in the second half.
 
"I thought our closeouts could have been better, and sometimes we left our feet on the shot fakes and Denver did a good job of driving us from there," Gardner said. "Our traps were good, and at times our rotations were really good, but leaving our feet on shot fakes hurt us."
 
The Jaguars (9-12, 3-4) got major contributions from the bench and were led again by Ron Patterson. Patterson finished with 13 points and Aaron Brennan added 12 of his own to the bench's 33-point output. Thomas chipped in with 11, but was the only starter in double figures. Matt O'Leary and Combs each had nine, while Evan Hall and D.J. McCall had six.
 
The Jags had to scramble late to make a game of it after trailing 75-69 with 1:22 left after DU's C.J. Bobbitt scored on a runner. Combs answered with a pair of free throws and Thomas then added two more freebies after drawing a foul after DU's Bradley George missed the frontend of a one-and-one. Thomas then collected a steal in the full court press that eventually led to Brennan splitting a pair of free throws on the ensuing possession. However, the Jags never fully got over the hump in the final minute. 

"It comes down to getting stops. We have to be in better position defensively, we have to move the ball on offense, and we have to shoot it better," Gardner said.
 
IUPUI will cap the first round of Summit League play on Wednesday (Jan. 25) when they trek north to face Fort Wayne at 7:30 p.m. inside Gates Sports Center. That game will be heard on 97.5 Fox Sports FM, 1260 WNDE and the iHeartRadio app.