Box Score

San Francisco, CA – The Urban Knights jumped out to an early lead with 19 points unanswered on Thursday night, but Hawaii Pacific came back with a strong second half to earn the 68-64 victory at Kezar Pavilion. In front of a huge home crowd, Academy of Art University men's basketball put forth a valiant effort and just could not hold on. Freshman forward William Overton, Jr., the Pacific West Conference's third leading scorer, posted a game-high 26 points with seven rebounds.

“We like to fuel our offense through our defense and we got off to a good start and built a 19-point lead before they got on the board,” Head Coach Mark Sembrowich said. “But a lot of credit goes to HPU because they never threw in the towel. They hung tough and they just made a couple more plays at the end of the game. They really earned the win.”

Academy of Art was on fire offensively early, sparked by its relentless defensive effort. The Urban Knights started the game on a 19-0 run, holding Hawaii Pacific scoreless through the first eight minutes. HPU missed its first 11 shots and did not register a field goal made until 9:17 left in the first half. A 3-pointer from Davis ignited the opening surge and he later nailed two more triples to help his team.

Overton, Jr., and sophomore guard Ivan "B.J." Prema, Jr. also each added five points apiece in the offensive burst. Despite the Knights' firepower, Hawaii Pacific responded with a significant 15-2 run of its own to get back into the game. Late in the period, Overton, Jr. would score five consecutive points to push the ART U lead to double digits, 28-18.

The Sea Warriors closed out the opening period with an 8-0 stretch to come within two points, but Academy of Art still held on to its lead with a pair of free throws made by freshman guard Czar Robotham. The Urban Knights took a 30-26 advantage into the halftime locker room, and though HPU took its first lead of the game early in the second half, ART U pushed back ahead.

On a layup from junior center Hunter Hayden and a fastbreak 3-pointer from Overton, Jr., Academy of Art executed a 7-0 run to establish some separation. Davis later increased the Knights' advantage to seven points, 42-35, on one of his triples. ART U stayed ahead by that margin for several minutes, but Hawaii Pacific would not go away. A strong one-handed slam dunk by ART U sophomore center Mike Jorritsma then came with just over nine minutes left, bringing the home crowd to their feet.

Though the Knights fed off their fans and the raucous atmosphere, HPU managed to come back and knot the game, 53-53. From there, the teams experienced three more ties as they jockeyed for position. Deadlocked at 61-61, Hawaii Pacific went ahead by five points on a small burst which turned out to be the difference. Overton, Jr. knocked down a jumper, and senior guard Devin Williams made a free throw to bring ART U within two points in the final seconds, but HPU held on for the 68-64 victory.

“[Hawaii Pacific] made Will work extremely hard and he had to earn what he got,” Coach Sembrowich said. “He's talented and he made some shots and some plays that were big. He can do that so it's not very surprising to me.”

Overton, Jr. finished the night with a game-high 26 points (10-for-25 from the floor) and seven rebounds. Supporting the freshman forward, Davis chipped in 16 points including a season-high four 3-pointers made. Prema, Jr. contributed eight points off the bench. Game-highs also came for Hayden in the form of eight rebounds, and Robotham in five assists. The Urban Knights are now 5-13 overall, 2-6 in PacWest competition.

It was a balanced scoring attack for HPU led by forward Jason Jackson's 15 points. Three other Sea Warriors reached double figures in scoring including forward Kyle Allen who had 13 points (7-of-8 FT). Hawaii Pacific's record moves to 9-10 overall, and 4-3 in the PacWest.

On Thursday, Feb. 3, the Urban Knights will conclude their five-game homestand against Dominican University. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 PM following the women's contest inside Kezar Pavilion.