Brian Stafford scored 21 points as Denver bounced back from its only conference loss of the season to beat North Texas 80-67 on Saturday.
Chris Udofia added 15 points and Chase Hallam and Tyler Thalken 13 each for Denver (11-10, 7-1 Sun Belt). The Pioneers had come off a 59-49 loss last week at Middle Tennessee that had snapped an eight-game winning streak.
Denver extended its lead over second-place North Texas (16-6, 5-4) in the conference's West Division to 2 1/2 games. Josh White led the Mean Green with 15 points, and George Odufuwa had had 14 points to go with his 11 rebounds.
The Pioneers took control with the help of back-to-back 3-pointers from Stafford and Chase Hallam, which started an 8-0 run that made the score 63-49 with 7:05 remaining.
