Game #14
ART U Urban Knights (8-5, 4-2 PacWest) vs. Jessup Warriors (6-6, 3-3 PacWest)
Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 at 7:30 p.m.
Rocklin, Calif. – Warrior Arena
Live Stats | Live Video

Game #15
ART U Urban Knights (8-5, 4-2 PacWest) vs. Jessup Warriors (6-6, 3-3 PacWest)
Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025 at 3:30 p.m.
San Francisco – Kezar Pavilion 
Live Stats | Live Video

BACK-TO-BACK WITH JESSUP
Academy of Art men's basketball will proceed to maintain a similar game plan going into their next two Pacific West Conference matchups, as the Urban Knights will take on Jessup twice in a row, splitting the games between Jan. 8 and Jan. 18.

TIP-OFF
Wednesday's showdown with the Warriors will have a late evening tip time, with the action getting underway at 7:30 p.m on the road, and the following game will take place on ART U's home floor at 3:30 p.m. Remember to follow @ARTU_Knights via the athletics app (Apple App Store, Google Play Store) and on Twitter & Instagram, as well as "Like" the Urban Knights on Facebook for score updates, videos, and recaps. 

KNIGHT WATCH
Keeping their opponents guessing who will be the one to have a stellar performance against them, ART U has been seen to have a plethora of players who can get it done for the squad in recent weeks. This past week, senior forward Isaiah Williams stood out once again taking home PacWest Defender of the Week honors on Jan. 6, as he collected 10 steals and four blocks total against Biola and Point Loma. Not just a defensive player, Williams has scored double-digit points in 12 of 13 games this season, while he averages 5.2 rebounds as well. Jessup will need to cook up a game plan to stop Williams if they want to come out of their upcoming games in the win column. 

Senior guard Rodney Munson has shown why he can't be left open at the perimeter even more most recently, as he averaged 20.5 points per game this past week while getting 9-of-13 of his shots to fall from three-point range in his last two appearances. Munson's 34.7 minutes per contest is second-most in the conference, so Jessup will be forced to reduce his shooting for the majority of the game to disallow maintaining his top 10 standard in all four shooting categories in terms of percentage in the PacWest ranks. 

In addition, senior forward Quintin Metcalf, a two-time PacWest Player of the Week recipient this season, will be guarding the paint alongside junior forward Robbie Armbrester, a player for ART U who can produce a flashy play at any given moment. Redshirt junior guard Donovan Vickers, senior guard Treylon Payne, and junior forward Bryce Moore will also be out on the floor with their strong defense looking to lock down Jessup.

BATTLING THE WARRIORS
Currently sitting middle of the pack in the PacWest Conference with their 6-6 overall and 3-3 conference record, the Warriors will play the Knights for the two matchups, but with a contest with Dominican in between. Similar to ART U, one of Jessup's most recent outings came against Biola in a game the Eagles would get the best of them with a 87-74 final score. With the Knights handing Biola a loss in their 82-67 contest, Jessup has been struggling to get back in the win column after starting conference action 3-0, now on a three-game losing streak. This season, the Warriors hold the second-worst offense in the PacWest with the third-worst defense, and hold an average margin against conference schools of -3.8. Ja'Maris Blackmon leads the team in scoring as he puts up 13.4 points per game, while the Knights will look to box out Aydan Janssan down near the basket as he leads his team in rebounds per game (9.0, second-highest in PacWest). Meeting for just the second time, ART U will look to go undefeated against Jessup as the Knights are 1-0 after last year's win on Dec. 1.

CONFERENCE SHOWDOWN SEES PLNU TOP ART U 74-64
In the second showing this regular season of last year's two teams that shared the Pacific West Conference Regular Season title, Academy of Art men's basketball and Point Loma battled head-to-head for sole possession of the conference lead on Jan. 4. Despite the Urban Knights keeping the contest within single digits for the majority of the matchup, it was PLNU that snuck away down the stretch to secure the 74-64 victory.

LOOKING AHEAD
Following both battles with the Warriors, the Knights will return to the road for a four-game stretch starting on Monday, Jan. 20, as ART U will visit Fresno Pacific at the Special Events Center.