LA MIRADA, Calif. – In their first contest of the new year, Academy of Art men's basketball squared up against another 3-1 team in Pacific West Conference play and came out on top, jumping into the shared conference lead once again after the squad's 82-67 win over the Eagles. 

"The first game after the holiday break is always difficult because you lose your rhythm from the time off, but our guys played hard and took care of business tonight," said Head Coach Scott Waterman. "I am really proud of holding Biola to less than 35 percent from the field and how we moved the ball on offense. We still have things we need to work on, but getting a road conference win, we will take any night."

The first half of play showed a similar script throughout nearly the entirety of the period, with the Urban Knights (8-4, 4-1 PacWest) in the lead. Once a senior guard Rodney Munson 3-pointer put ART U ahead just a minute in, the Knights would never see themselves down for the rest of the game. Buckets from six other members of the squad followed within the opening frame, all while Munson knocked down five more without missing a shot. The senior went on to finish the half with 16 points while going 6-for-6 from the field, containing a 3-for-3 line from distance. Academy of Art saw a nine-point lead at the break after going on a 15-5 run, and were now ahead 46-37 with 20 minutes to play.

After Biola (9-4, 3-2 PacWest) attempted to erase their deficit right away bringing it down to a five-point game just a few minutes in, ART U responded by building it to a 14-point difference on junior forward Robbie Armbrester's fastbreak layup. Biola went on to knock down buckets from all angles, but Academy of Art never let up, keeping the Eagles beyond single-digits. In the only time ART U and Biola would meet at least for the regular season, the Knights took this one 82-67. 

With 21 points from Munson leading the team in scoring, senior forward Quintin Metcalf paced the team in locking down the boards as he brought in 13 rebounds, a new career-high, all while he was one of seven Knights to record at least four. An additional quartet scored in the double-digits as well, while the team recorded their new all-time record in total blocks, finishing the game with 12 as senior forward Isaiah Williams led the way with four of them in addition to his four steals. 

Next up, ART U will head further down the coast to visit Point Loma this Saturday, Jan. 4 to look for sole possession of the PacWest Conference lead, starting a 4 p.m.