Box Score

Photo Gallery (images by Austin McKeon)

San Francisco, CA -- In a game which saw 12 lead changes in the second half, the Urban Knights came out on top 74-71 over Hawaii-Hilo Thursday night at Kezar Pavilion. After the Vulcans took a 71-70 lead with just over a minute and a half left, Academy of Art University capitalized on UHH fouls late and made the final push defensively to a victory. Junior guard Ameer Shamsud-din posted a game-high 27 points, sophomore guard William Overton, Jr. added 24 points, and junior guard Ivan "B.J." Prema, Jr. contributed nine points as well several crucial rebounds down the stretch in a complete team effort.

“It was really a tight game so we constantly needed effort and we got it,” head coach Mark Sembrowich said. “We did some things really well defensively that we haven't done as consistently this season. I thought everybody had to contribute in some way and everybody did so that made it a little more satisfying.”

Hawaii-Hilo jumped out to an early 11-2 lead and though Shamsud-din had also quickly found his stroke, the visitors began to grow their advantage into double digits on shots from distance. It was UHH's 11-4 push a little while later which created their largest margin of the half, 14, with just under eight minutes to go. Academy of Art, however, was not about to give in and responded with an incredible 23-5 surge.

The run started off with free throws by Shamsud-din and then freshman guard Aaron Anderson found the Portland, OR native for a 3-pointer. As the Knights continued to force missed shots and turnovers by their opponents, they kept converting on the other end and it was an 11-0 burst which was later sustained by more points off turnovers. That included a steal and breakaway layup by sophomore guard Czar Robotham.

“We strung together some stops and, when you get a stop, it just feels easier to score,” Coach Sembrowich said. “The pressure isn't on you and sometimes the momentum is with you. That just opened up for our guys a bit and made us free-flowing on offense which resulted in us hitting some big shots, but that happens when you get stops. You have got to get stops in order to win.”

From down 14 to up two at halftime, 38-36, Academy of Art knew it was in for a challenging second half as the Vulcans were sure to respond. It was back-and-forth early in the period as neither team created a significant margin until back-to-back dunks by Mychael Hearn put UHH up by six, 52-46, with just under 14 minutes left. More offense from Shamsud-din kept things from getting out of hand there though as the Knights promptly retook the lead by way of an 8-0 run.

The teams fought through four more tie scores before the two-minute mark. After Vulcan free throws made it a 68-67 contest late, Prema, Jr. proceeded to complete three-point play which brought the Kezar Pavilion crowd to its feet. Sophomore center Noah Koné-Nelson delivered the assist on the play inside and momentum seemed to have swayed back to ART U. A 3-pointer by Kiel Myers, however, put Hawaii-Hilo back in front. In the end, Overton, Jr. and Shamsud-din combined to make 4-of-4 free throws as the Knights defense forced two more missed shots from UHH and helped secure the 74-71 win.

“B.J., Mike [Jorritsma], Noah, and Aaron played with a lot of energy and I thought Czar really did a good job on Hearns,” Coach Sembrowich said. “Those kids really defended down the stretch. Even though you give up 71 points, I thought it was some really good defense late. Noah helped off the ball screen and that made all the difference. Will came up with the ball, B.J. poked one loose; those were all big plays because [Hawaii-Hilo] likes to go, go, go and there were instances where the shot clock was coming down to the end so the turnovers started to come.”

On the Urban Knights' side, Shamsud-din had the team-high with 27 points which included an 8-of-10 night from the foul line. He also grabbed nine rebounds and dealt out five assists along with three 3-pointers made.

“Ameer is able to put points on the boards and able to create shots,” Coach Sembrowich said. “But I think even more impressive than the scoring was the nine rebounds and five assists he had. I was pleased he could help us in other ways and I thought he also played some big defense on Mack down the stretch.”

Helping the team to victory alongside Shamsud-din was Overton, Jr.'s 24 points which came on an efficient 10-for-16 from the field. He took down four rebounds as well. As previously mentioned, defense was a major reason for ART U's victory Thursday night and that was evidenced by four Knights with two steals apiece as well as 22 points off turnovers.

Also among the notable standout performances was Prema, Jr.'s nine points and nine rebounds. He added two steals, was 3-of-3 from the foul line, and the nine boards were a season-high for the junior with three of those coming on the offensive glass.

“Anybody who watched us closely knows that once we got into conference play, B.J. has really started to give tremendous effort pretty close to most of the time,” Coach Sembrowich said. “He is a gifted athlete and I thought he put some of that on display tonight. He's strong and springy and he gave us nine points as well as nine rebounds. And those rebounds he gets are really big because his head and shoulders come above everyone so even three of those feels like a dozen. It's just exciting to know that he has one more year to play.”

The Vulcans had four players score in double figures, but it was not enough to get the win. Myers Terrell Mack each had 15 points while Hearn added 12 points and Michael Melonas finished with 10. Zachary Wilde, one of PacWest's Top 15 scorers, was held to just six points on 3-of-9 shooting from the field.

The Urban Knights now turn their sights on Grand Canyon for the teams' second meeting in the past two weeks. Tipoff is scheduled for this Saturday, Feb. 23 at 2:00 PM inside Kezar Pavilion.

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