GAME #21
ART U Urban Knights (5-15, 2-8 PWC) vs. GCU Antelopes (10-7, 5-2 PWC)
Thursday, Feb. 10, 2011 at 7:15 PM MST
Phoenix, AZ - Antelope Gymnasium
Live Stats
Live Video
GAME #22
ART U Urban Knights (5-15, 2-8 PWC) vs. DSC Red Storm (12-5, 5-2 PWC)
Saturday, Feb. 12, 2011 at 7:30 PM MST
St. George, UT - Burns Arena
Live Stats
Live Audio
Live Video
Game Notes
KNIGHTS' TRIP FEATURES PACWEST REMATCHES
The Academy of Art University men's basketball departs for a pair of Pacific West Conference road rematches this week. ART U sustained tough losses to Dominican and Notre Dame de Namur in the last five days, but the Urban Knights will look to take care of business against Grand Canyon and Dixie State on this upcoming roadtrip.
OPENING TIP
On Thursday, Feb. 10, ART U will be in Phoenix, AZ for a rematch with Grand Canyon. The teams play inside Antelope Gymnasium with tipoff scheduled for 7:15 PM MST (6:15 PM PST). The Knights next stop will be St. George, UT where Academy of Art faces Dixie State for the second time this season. ART U and the Red Storm tip off at 7:30 PM MST (6:30 PM PST) inside Burns Arena. All games will have live coverage (see links above) and live score updates will also appear on the Academy of Art University Athletics Twitter.
KNIGHT WATCH
Either freshman forward William Overton, Jr. or junior forward Keith Davis have paced the Urban Knights in scoring in all but one game this season. Against NDNU, the respective third and fourth PacWest leading scorers poured in 28 second half points to help Academy of Art fight back late. For the potent one-two offensive punch, solid production has recently come from sophomore guard Ivan "B.J." Prema, Jr. as well. Prema, Jr. has knocked down six 3-pointers in his last two games and is averaging 8.7 points per contest over his last three.
SCOUTING THE ANTELOPES
Since its 60-58 loss to Academy of Art on Jan. 20, Grand Canyon has been on fire. The 'Lopes have won three of their last four games including a 69-64 nationally televised victory over BYU-Hawaii (the top team in the PacWest) on Jan. 29. Grand Canyon is also currently amid its longest conference homestand of the season with five more games to come inside Antelope Gym this year. Dixie State managed to deal the 'Lopes a 70-59 loss most recently on Feb. 5. Currently the best three-point shooting team in the PacWest (.365), the Antelopes have three players in the top 10 in that category. Guard Kyle Speed, one of the aforementioned three, leads the squad with a 10.5 points per game average and continues to pace the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.5).
SCOUTING THE RED STORM
After opening PacWest play with a loss to Grand Canyon, Dixie State has been victorious in five of its last six games and is now in a three-way tie for second place in the standings. It appears that 70 points is the key mark for the Red Storm as DSC has scored less than that number in all five of its losses. Forward Tom Whitehead continues to lead the team in scoring (13.4 points per game) and ranks fourth in the PacWest in free throw percentage (.847). Along with Whitehead, forward Griffon Jones has been an inside force, averaging 10.8 points and 5.6 rebounds per contest. Dixie State is scheduled to play Dominican on Feb. 10th prior its matchup with the Knights.
KNIGHTS HEAT UP IN SECOND HALF, NDNU HOLDS ON TO WIN 74-71
It was another close back-and-forth battle between Academy of Art and Notre Dame de Namur this past Monday night at Walter Gleason Gym. For two teams who have a history of intense games decided by late shots, the contest on Feb. 7 was no different. The teams fought through nine ties and 10 lead changes with important offense coming from Prema, Jr. and freshman center Noah Koné-Nelson in the early going.
Though the Argos led at halftime, the Urban Knights quickly erased that deficit with a 7-0 run to start the second half where Davis began to catch fire. The junior forward finished with 18 points in the second period and propelled ART U to a 46-45 lead on a 3-pointer. Academy of Art stayed close before Overton, Jr. reeled off 10 points in the final five minutes to bring the Knights within one, 72-71, with 28 seconds left. Down by three on its last possession, ART U got three potentially game-tying long range looks from Overton, Jr., but not one would fall. NDNU prevailed for a 74-71 final.
LOOKING AHEAD
When Academy of Art returns home from this roadtrip, the Knights will play host to two Hawaii schools next week. ART U faces Chaminade first on Thursday, Feb. 17 and then takes on BYU-Hawaii in an afternoon matchup on Saturday, Feb. 19.
