SAN FRANCISCO – The Academy of Art men's basketball team went wire to wire with Hawai'i Pacific at Kezar Pavilion on Sunday, but it was the Sharks who would come away with the narrow victory, 66-63. 
 
"Despite the outcome of tonight's game, I am extremely proud of our guys for the effort and intensity they played with," said head coach Scott Waterman. "We fell just short on the scoreboard but were in position to win the game. We have to learn from this and bounce back because there is still a lot of season left to play."
 
Hawai'i Pacific (7-10, 5-5 PacWest) got the game started with a pair of 3-pointers en route to building a 10-point lead that would last halfway through the first frame. It was then that the Urban Knights (5-13, 3-8 PacWest) would make their move, pulling off a 18-4 run that would give them a four-point lead with just over two and a half minutes left. An HPU bucket from deep would tie the game going into the break, 30-30. 
 
A set of free throws would start the half for the Sharks, but ART U took the lead back after a couple of buckets from junior guard Monte Lambert, who would finish with a season-best and game-high 22 points, 12 of which came in the second half of play. The Urban Knights lead lasted for just a few minutes before a Ronald Blain layup recaptured the lead for the Sharks, one they would not relinquish. 
 
ART U would not fade away down the stretch, as on more than one occasion the Urban Knights trimmed the lead down to one point, including in the closing moments of the game with eight seconds left. Without timeouts and needing to foul, ART U put the Sharks at the stripe where they would clinch the game, 66-63. 
 
To go along with his 22 points, Lambert also grabbed four rebounds. Junior guard Stefan Milivojevic would reach double-figures with 17 points, while senior guard Nemanja Kovacevic also finished with a season-high 11 points on the strength of 3-for-5 shooting from beyond the arc. Senior guard Victor Ruiz de Carranza would snatch a game-high 11 boards. 
 
Two Sharks would make it to double-digits in scoring, led by Blain with 21 points, four rebounds and four assists. David Rowlands would finish with 16 points, while Chidozie Ndu would lead HPU with five rebounds. 
 
The Urban Knights will hit the road for a three-game road trip the next time on the court, as they travel to Hawai'i to face Chaminade on Jan. 27.