BELMONT, Calif. – A clash between two of the top teams in the Pacific West Conference standings lived up to the hype, with Academy of Art men's basketball looking to put the game away holding its largest lead midway through the second half, but a late run from Azusa Pacific would swing the game in APU's favor with a 78-69 PacWest win on Monday. 

Action was whistle-to-whistle from the jump between two of the top teams in the standings as both sides shot above 45 percent from the floor. The three-ball was key for the fourth place Urban Knights (15-11, 11-7 PacWest) in the first frame, as ART U drilled seven first half 3-pointers including three in succession from sophomore guard Brian Rios, sophomore forward Latrell Williams and graduate student guard Joshua Bagley to take a seven-point lead, the largest lead of the period by either side.

As a sign to come, the first place Cougars (17-7, 14-3 PacWest) answered the call with a run of their own to recapture the lead, as the first half would contain a total of 12 lead changes. With the momentum going back-and-forth, the two teams would be separated by just one point at halftime with the Knights in front, 39-38. Helping ART U stay close was Williams and junior forward Mike Asante who each delivered 11 points, with Williams going 5-for-6 from the field while Asante paired his with five rebounds.

Though things briefly continued in the second half as they did in the first with the lead flip-flopping on each of the first four buckets of the second half, two by each side, a key stretch from ART U that included another eight points from Williams would lead the Knights to jump in front by eight. But once again the Cougars responded, using a 20-4 stretch to reclaim a lead that they would not relinquish. An Asante trey would briefly cut the deficit to four points, but that would be the closest the game would be as APU finished off the victory. 

Finishing with a game-high 21 points on the strength of 10-for-15 shooting was Williams, as he breaks his previous season-best of 20 points that he did just one game ago. Joining him in double-digit scoring was Asante with 16 points, who also snatched his second double-double of the campaign with 11 boards, while junior guard Klay Brown chipped in 10 of his own. Six different Urban Knights would contribute a 3-pointer, with Asante, Brown and Rios each hitting two apiece. 

It will be a tough turnaround for ART U, as the Urban Knights will host the No. 9 team in the West Region, the Biola Eagles, for Senior Night on Thursday with tip time set for 7 p.m.