GAME #1
ART U Urban Knights (0-0) vs. CSUEB Pioneers (0-0)
Tuesday, Nov. 16, 2010 at 7:00 PM
Hayward, CA, Pioneer Gym
Live Stats
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Game Notes

ART U STARTS 2010-11 CAMPAIGN ON THE ROAD
Academy of Art University men's basketball comes into its season opener riding the momentum from a victory over Division I UC Davis. After knocking off the Aggies 67-62 in a thrilling exhibition game where the Urban Knights shot over 50 percent from the floor in the second half, ART U officially begin its third year with a road contest at Cal State East Bay.

OPENING TIP
Academy of Art and CSUEB are set to tipoff Tuesday, Nov. 16 at 7:00 PM inside Pioneer Gym.

KNIGHT WATCH
Defeating Division I UC Davis was a team effort across the board by ART U. Sophomore guard Ivan "B.J." Prema, Jr. poured in 17 points including 4-for-7 shooting from beyond the arc. He put one long ball in as part of the Urban Knights' 5-0 run to begin the game and netted his last in the final two minutes of the game for a four-point Academy of Art lead. Freshman forward William Overton, Jr. added 12 points and five rebounds off the bench, but 11 different Knights scored in the game to spread around the offense. Junior forward Keith Davis contributed nine points and four assists while freshman forward Aaron Aikman also provided eight points.

SCOUTING THE PIONEERS
Though Cal State East Bay opens its season against ART U, the Pioneers have played two exhibition games thus far. After dropping a 83-71 game to Cal State Bakersfield and falling 70-63 to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CSUEB returns for one of just two non-conference home games this year. Leading the Pioneers in their first game was forward Will Freedman who put in 26 points and guard Mark Samuels with his double-double (11 points, 11 rebounds). Versus Cal Poly, guard George Toyama paced the team with 18 points (4-for-5 3pt). The Pioneers return four players from last season including Samuels, their leading scorer.

MEN'S BASKETBALL SHOCKS DIVISION I AGGIES IN 67-62 VICTORY
In a matchup that may have seemed like David versus Goliath, Academy of Art University upset UC Davis in an exhibition game on Nov. 6 at The Pavilion. The Aggies, who compete in the NCAA DI Big West Conference, stayed close in the first half despite ART U's attempts to pull away. After the game's fifth tie, Davis and Aikman combined for 10 points during a 12-3 push by the Urban Knights late in the period.

Academy of Art led 31-25 at halftime and stayed ahead for the first five minutes of the second. However, a surge by UC Davis put the home team up by five points. Freshman guard Czar Robotham knocked down a clutch 3-pointer, giving ART U a 57-55 advantage with 4:21 remaining in the contest. Prema, Jr., who finished with a game-high 17 points, then drained a shot beyond the arc to provide a cushion after the Aggies had pulled to within one. In the final minute, Overton, Jr. scored four points on a jumper and two free throws to help the Knights to their 67-62 victory.

HEAD COACH MARK SEMBROWICH
Mark Sembrowich begins his second season as head men's basketball coach at the Academy of Art University. He previously served as the Recruiting/Academic Coordinator at Stanford University in 2008-09. He was involved with all aspects of the program, focusing primarily on recruiting efforts and monitoring the academic progress of student-athletes. Appointed to the men's basketball staff by first-year head coach Johnny Dawkins, Sembrowich played an integral role in leading Stanford to its second 20-win season during the last five years. He began his college coaching career at West Point, serving as an assistant coach at Army for five seasons (2000-05). After his time at West Point, Sembrowich completed two stints as an assistant coach at the Division I level. He served two seasons (2006-08) at Yale, guiding the Bulldogs to two straight winning seasons and a second-place Ivy League finish in 2006-07. Before joining the Army coaching staff, Sembrowich spent 12 years as an assistant coach under legendary Head Coach Ziggy Kauls at Mounds View High School in St. Paul, Minn.

LOOKING AHEAD
ART U faces another CCAA school in UC San Diego on the road this Sunday, Nov. 21. From there, the Knights will play in a non-conference tournament hosted by Concordia University, St. Paul to close out the month of November (Nov. 26-27).