CHICO, CALIF. – Academy of Art men's basketball (1-5) rallied and nearly rendered a 17-point deficit nil in the second half of Saturday's contest against Cal State East Bay (6-1). However, the Pioneers were able to ride the backs of a 50 percent shooting performance to hold on for a 78-71 victory.
 
ART U kept things close for the majority of the first half and even held an early 4-2 lead after two minutes had expired. East Bay regained the momentum for the remainder of the period however, thanks in part to Druce Asah who posted a 12-point first half. The freshman posted back-to-back deep treys from six feet beyond the three-point arc to give CSUEB a 14-point, 34-20 lead with 4:11 on the clock. The Urban Knights did well to share their possessions as redshirt senior guard Sergio Valdeolmillos, freshman forward Luka Radovic, and freshman guard Gary Davis each exited the period with four points apiece.
 
Down 39-26 to begin the second half, ART U played even with the Pioneers throughout the first six minutes before going on an impressive run. After trailing by as much as 17 points, the Urban Knights went on an 11-0 run to make it a 6-point, 47-41 game with 11:03 remaining in the contest. The Knights would continue to make it a 16-2 run and brought the game to within three points with just 8:02 on the clock. ART U continued to hold back the Pioneers with stifling defense on the perimeter to force East Bay to take difficult shots. However, too many of their attempts found their mark as CSUEB landed 12 3-pointers in 26 attempts (46.2 percent). Academy of Art continued to push and trimmed the deficit to as little as four points with 2:58 to go, but the Pioneers would hold on for their sixth victory of the season.
 
Junior guard Uchenna Okeneme was one of the Knights who fueled an impressive second half. The advertising major scored 14 points in the second period, en route to a season and team-high 18-point contest. Okeneme's 18 points are his most since February 20, 2016 when he finished with a career-high 25 points against Dominican. Radovic also put together double-digit points in the second half (11) and scored 15 overall (the freshman's career-best in an ART U uniform). Junior guard Kendall Brown rounded out the Urban Knights' top three scorers with 13 points of his own and seven rebounds.
 
"These guys simply went out, played basketball, and made plays," said head coach Julius Barnes. "This is what we have been trying to get them to do consistently: come out with passion and purpose."
 
With the non-conference portion of the season now at an end, ART U will return home to prepare for Thursday's PacWest opener at Fresno Pacific.
 
"I firmly believe that if we play like we did in the second half for all 40 minutes, we can be a really good team," said Barnes. "We have to continue doing the little things that will help us win games."