BELMONT, Calif. – A second-half explosion pushed Academy of Art men's basketball to set numerous season-best marks including a season-high in points, as ART U began Pacific West Conference Play with an emphatic 91-71 victory over Dominican on Saturday. 

"With conference play starting, our team took another big step tonight in terms of finding our identity," said ART U Head Coach Scott Waterman. "Our pressure took [Dominican] out of its offense and by forcing 23 turnovers we were able to get going in transition and get some easy buckets. What I am most proud about is 24 assists, which shows we are really sharing the ball and being unselfish. This is a great win but just a step to building upon our goals for the season."

The Urban Knights (5-3, 1-0 PacWest) started out the game in a sprint with 10 unanswered points, the first five of which came on a reverse layup and straightaway 3-pointer from graduate student guard Deang Deang, ultimately forcing a timeout by the Penguins (3-5, 0-1 PacWest) just two minutes into the contest. Dominican responded well to the timeout, as the Penguins were able to reset with a 7-0 run to cut before ultimately taking the lead midway through the first half. 

A barrage of 3-pointers from both teams would follow minutes later as 12 straight points were scored in the game from beyond the three-point line, including one of three first half deep shots from Deang. Capturing the momentum and closing out the first half with a 41-37 lead were the Knights, as they ended on a 6-0 run that included a key steal and subsequent fastbreak layup from Deang, the last of his 17 first half points (7-for-9) to put ART U up for good. Graduate student forward Adrian Byrd-Jelinek chipped in 10 first-half points, hitting exactly half of looks with a pair of threes. 

Halftime proved most beneficial to the Knights, as ART U turned up that hallmark tough defense that has shown up in the early season to make offense tough for the Penguins, ultimately forcing them into 13 turnovers in the second frame and contesting all shots. By the night's end, ART U would set season-highs in steals (14) and blocks (6) while falling just shy of their best in turnovers forced (23; best: 25, 11/14/21 vs SSU).

After the defense went to work then the offense would follow, with Academy of Art draining 63.6 percent of their attempts from the floor as they raced out to a large lead and were rarely threatened down the stretch. Tonight's game finished as the best shooting percentage from the floor on the season for ART U, ending the night shooting 54.5 percent overall from the floor while also dominating the points in the paint (44-30) and points off turnovers (38-15) battles. Another part of the recipe for success was ball control, as Academy of Art took better care of the ball with only three second-half turnovers as they cruised to their first conference win of the season.

Ball movement was also key as the Knights had totaled 10 assists in the first frame, which was only two off their season-high, and kept it moving in the second half to end the night with 24 assists. Not only was it their most on the season, but it was the second-most assists in a single game in program history, trailing only the 26 they had against Holy Names on Feb. 13, 2020. Nine of those 24 assists belonged to graduate student guard Denny Slay, as his team-high total is tied for the fifth-most helpers in a single game in program history. 

Five Urban Knights would end the game in double figures for the third consecutive game, with Deang leading the pack thanks to his game-high 25 on 11-for-14 shooting (78.5 percent). Byrd-Jelinek trailed just behind with a career-high 20 while sophomore forward Latrell Williams added 18, as both just missed out on double-doubles by grabbing nine rebounds apiece. While Slay led all players with nine assists, just behind him was graduate student guard Joshua Bagley with five of his own to go with 11 points and a career-high four steals. Also joining the double-figures squad was Brown, dropping 13 points on 4-for-8 shooting from the field.

Academy of Art hits the road next week seeking its fourth consecutive victory, as the Knights travel down south for a two-game road trip to take on Concordia and Point Loma.