Box Score

San Francisco, CA – On an emotional night inside Kezar Pavilion with the regular season coming to a close and ART U Women's Basketball seniors honored, the Urban Knights found themselves in a dogfight with the second place team in the Pacific West Conference standings, Azusa Pacific. The Cougars had the upper hand this time around, shooting over 50 percent from beyond the three-point arc, finishing the first half on a 12-4 run, and ultimately defending against an Academy of Art comeback.

Anyone's game in the early going, the teams fought through four ties in the first eight minutes, briefly coming to an 11-11 standstill in between back-to-back 3-pointers by Sha'Nice Storey. All nine of Storey's points came in the first half on shots from beyond the arc, effectively energizing the team and soon getting them ahead 17-13 when Zoie Sheng found her on a fast break.

Aleigh Krug helped ART U maintain the four-point advantage with an offensive rebound and put-back around the nine-minute mark, but soon the Cougars made a move. Beginning with a layup by Sendy Valles, Azusa Pacific swung ahead by four, 25-21, thanks to a 7-0 burst. Allison Greene, who would figure prominently in the remainder of the game, knocked down a triple in that span, but the margin was reduced back to zero on free throws by Sheng and Krystal Forthan.

From that moment, tied 25-25, APU turned the pressure on and tossed in three consecutive triples as part of the aforementioned 12-4 surge to close the half. Forthan scored a layup and rejected a final attempt by the Cougars in the last 12 seconds, but the visitors had managed to capture a 37-29 lead at the break.

The Urban Knights had the lead back into single digits early in the second half as Sheng went to work right away. When Sheng wasn't scoring herself, she was setting up teammates for baskets in the paint. Molly O'Brien, Forthan, and Jasmin Guinn converted on three trips downcourt, but Azusa and Greene answered each time on the other end.

Though Guinn got the hoop once more to cut the margin to 48-41, the Cougars responded with another 12-4 push that saw a variety of contributors on offense. Missed free throws and missed layups were particularly debilitating for the Knights during that stretch which eventually had Azusa Pacific up by 21 with seven minutes remaining.

ART U forced the action over the next two minutes, drawing three fouls and trimming the lead to 69-54, but APU did not let their opponents come any closer. The Cougars went 6-of-7 from the free throw stripe in the final five minutes, and despite Academy of Art's best efforts to get within striking distance, Azusa carried on to an 84-66 victory.

Despite the loss, ART U still finishes the 2013-14 regular season 21-7 overall and 18-2 in conference, making them the PacWest regular season champions. Thursday night, the team was led by Forthan's 13th consecutive double-double which came in the form of 16 points and 14 rebounds in addition to three assists and three blocks. Sheng contributed 17 points, including 11-of-13 from the foul line, and four assists. Guinn had nine points and seven rebounds while Storey had nine points all on three first-half triples. The Knights also forced their average of 20 turnovers, scoring 19 points off those miscues.

Playing in the final regular season game of each of their respective careers, Amanda Encelan and Alisa Griggs were each honored prior to the game. Encelan had three rebounds and two assists in her 14 minutes of action while Griggs takes her 959 career points scored and 562 career rebounds into the post-season after playing in her program-best 105th game.

Azusa Pacific finishes its 13-14 campaign 17-8 overall and 15-4 in the PacWest after a game that saw five Cougars score in double figures. Greene had 18 of her 23 points come in the second half and added five rebounds, five assists, and four steals. Supporting was Valles' 15 points, nine rebounds, and five assists.

The PacWest Conference Tournament on Mar. 6-8 in San Diego is the next stop for ART U Women's Basketball. Hosted by Point Loma, the three-day event will determine the team that receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Division II Championship Tournament set to begin later in March. Fans can purchase PacWest Championship Tournament tickets two ways: Presale tickets are available for $10 general admission and $25 all-tournament pass by ordering through the link below. Tickets can also be purchased at the door on each day of the tournament. All-tournament passes are only available through presale. Check out the tournament homepage here!